Dirty Nice

“charming mix of off-kilter melodies and classic songwriting chops” The FADER

“mind-bending” Rolling Stone

“weird and wonderful” i-D | “Now Hear This” The Independent

“vivid synth pop” The Times | “whimsical, playful” MTV | "upbeat wave of enthusiasm" DORK

“glorious, strange, and downright addictive” The Line of Best Fit | “pop gems” DIY
 

July 30 - Off-beat cartoon indie / alternative duo Dirty Nice release new single ‘If I Was Abducted By Aliens’. Originally written for their own amusement, they made an animated teaser of the track, which they published for their rapidly growing Instagram, YouTube and TikTok audiences (350k+). The heartfelt and unanimous refrain "It's easy to get lost out here" along with the whimsical yet relatable narrative have resonated widely and lead to millions of views and thousands of requests for the song to get an official release.

“In the studio earlier this year Mark and I (Charlie) had one afternoon spare. For some reason we spent it writing a “novelty” song about being abducted by an alien, but it being a positive (mostly) experience. Although it wasn’t the most badass (‘serious’) of contenders for our 3rd album, it weirdly felt like a perfect synthesis of the spirit of the cartoons we make on YouTube, etc. and the music we make - fun nonsense with a heart. So we made a little toon for the tune of it and put it online for fun and it blew up! People like aliens. And maybe aliens like people. Seems we’re all just a little lost between the stars."

Dirty Nice is ‘Don’t Hug Me I’m Scared’ composer Charlie Pelling’s musical project with Lisbon based musician Mark Thompson. Pelling is fast becoming the go to composer in the UK comedy scene working with the likes of 2022 Edinburgh Comedy Award winner Sam Campbell and BAFTA winner Jamie Demetriou (Stath Lets Flats, Fleabag).

The duo’s technicolour world exists in the space between earthy personal vignettes and cartoonish uncanniness. In an age where every band/artist has to also be a content creator Charlie & Mark decided to lean into their interests of cartoons and comedy.

In the last year they have amassed a cult online following into the hundreds of thousands across Tiktok, Instagram and Reddit for their creative animations. Voicing and animating a whole host of eccentric characters themselves, they further expand the weird and wonderful world of Dirty Nice that all began with the music. 

The new single follows acclaimed second album Surrenderland which came out late last year - featuring lead single ‘This Is Gonna Hurt’ which has sailed past a million streams and was championed by The FADER, Rolling Stone, CRACK, It’s Nice That and more.

2021's debut album Lobster initially won the band fans across all media, with critical acclaim at press (MTV, i-D, The Independent, The Times, Notion, Wonderland, Complex, DIY, Clash, DORK Magazine, The Line of Best Fit) and radio (Jack Saunders on Radio 1, Steve Lamacq, Chris Hawkins on BBC Radio 6 Music).

Florence Pugh has come out as a fan of Dirty Nice while speaking on the VOGUE podcast. Collaborations with Wet Leg - who contributed backing vocals to their ‘Sunshine End Times’ single - as well as Desta French and Bad Sounds have also expanded their horizons along the way.