The band recently released re-issues of their three earliest albums, their debut LP The Cribs, The New Fellas and third studio album Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever; all three releases have made it to the UK album top ten. Placing at number eight is the group’s self-titled debut album, The Cribs was self-produced by the group and was recorded in the span of a week. The album was released in 2004 via London-based independent label Wichita Recordings and marked the band’s first entry into the era’s blossoming indie rock scene.

The group’s follow-up to their debut release has placed at number seven, The New Fellas was released in 2005 and sired the brother’s great critical acclaim. The album was included within NME’s Album Of The Year list of 2005 where it placed at eleven, The New Fellas also placed within Q Magazine’s list of Albums of the Century. The album’s first single “Hey Scenesters!” was quickly adapted as the indie scene’s anthem and remains a key part of the genre’s cannon.

The Cribs’ third studio album Men’s Needs, Women’s Needs, Whatever has charted at number four. Often regarded as the band’s breakthrough album it was released in 2007 to critical and commercial acclaim, the album charted at number thirteen through its original release. The LP included one of the group’s biggest and most well-known single, “Men’s Needs” initially charted at number seventeen on the UK singles charts giving the group their highest chart position to date within the singles chart.

The band of brothers are currently performing a string of intimate gigs in the UK, Ryan spoke with NME concerning their recent album chart success, “We’ve been so busy playing multiple shows a day and haven’t really had any days off, so we haven’t really had chance to process it yet – but it’s certainly not what we were expecting when we did these reissues,”

The frontman continues, “The fundamental reason for doing these reissues was because the vinyl had been out of print for such a long time. We didn’t expect anything like this, but it’s amazing. We really appreciate it because it means that people still care about the records. That’s not always going to be a given, all this time down the line. It’s been a pretty crazy last couple of days. We’re so psyched.”

Ryan proceeds to discuss the band’s early work charting higher now than when originally released, “The first albums came out right in the heart of the whole file-sharing era so they didn’t really chart at all, It means a lot to see the first album in the Top 10, because that album was recorded before we had a record deal or anything. That feels really special because I never thought I’d see that record in the charts.“

He concludes, “That’s the only record in the Top 10 that cost £900 to record and was funded by working in a factory. The perversity of going up against Beyoncé and those big-hitters with a record that was made in that way is what means the most to us. It’s surreal.”

The band will next perform in Leeds on Thursday 4^th August 2022, the date was added to the tour schedule as an extra date due to popular demand and will mark the final performance of their UK shows. On Tuesday 30^thAugust 2022, The Cribs will embark on a string of US performances where they will support fellow indie rockers Modest Mouse for nine dates.

The Cribs UK tour date

04/08/2022 – The Cribs Outstore Shows/Brudenell Social Club – Leeds

Click here to purchase tickets.

Bassist Gary Jarman explained the singles club: “Basically, after three years away from the road we just ended up with SO many songs built up in the vaults that we wanted to try doing something different and interesting with them!”

“We had a bunch of extra tracks from the ‘Night Network’ sessions which we finished and mixed over lockdown… and then the extra downtime led to us coming up with several new songs also. Of course we could have just put them all to one side and held them back for a new album or whatever, but that doesn’t seem like much fun…” he continues.

The band previously released “Swinging at Shadows” which was recorded at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606in LA. The track was accompanied by a video filmed at the band’s first gig after the pandemic.

The new song “The Day I Got Lost Again” has been explained by the band as a song about ” us guys returning to our embryonic form, trying to rip-off “Hard Days Night” era Beatles…which is to say, it’s probably the closest we’ve sounded to our debut album since around 2004“. 

“It’s also the first (and almost certainly last) time you will hear a harmonica in a Cribs song. It follows the classic rock n roll formula of verse/chorus/verse/bad solo/chorus/corny ending – all done and dusted in way under 3 minutes. Just the way we like it – hope you like it too!” they continue. 

Speaking about “Opaline and Evergreen” the band said: “Another basement recording, we decided to pair this song with “The Day I Got Lost Again” because they are thematically coming from a similar place, lyrics wise – it’s inspired by all of those places that you encounter in your day to day existence, the ones occupied by the ghosts of the memories you made there (for better or worse) – and how simultaneously haunting and wonderful that can be, no matter how outwardly mundane they may appear. And how we miss being able to get lost”.

Meanwhile, The Music who hasn’t performed live since 2011 announced their return to the stage next year 31st of May 2022. The gig that will be supported by The Cribs, The Coral, The Snuts and The Skinner Brothers has been previously cancelled due to coronavirus restrictions. More info and tickets can be found here.

The Cribs will head on to their re-scheduled UK tour next year spring, starting off in March in Birmingham. You can get tickets to the tour here.

1/03/22 – O2 Institute – Birmingham
2/03 – Waterfront – Norwich
4/03 – O2 Academy – Sheffield
5/03 – SWX – Bristol
6/03 – Academy – Manchester
8/03 – Boiler Shop – Newcastle
9/03 – SWG3 – Glasgow
11/03 – Roundhouse – London
12/03 – Chalk – Brighton
02/06 – Temple Newsam – Leeds