Maruja

“...it’s exciting and exhilarating, I can’t wait to hear what these guys do next.” - Anthony Fantano, The Needle Drop

“Maruja have begun to etch their name into the looking glass of jazz-infused chaos” - So Young Magazine

 “Phenomenal and definitely one to watch” - God is in the TV

“This Manchester-based 4 piece exceeds all expectations and breakdown preconceived notions of genre.” Band On The Wall

Ahead of a string of UK and EU tour dates this Autumn/Winter, Manchester's Maruja share new single, ‘One Hand Behind The Devil’  - out today (13th October).

An infernal hellfire of break-beat-punk, harsh noise, and transcendent cosmic jazz. The quartet fizz, erupt, and soar across 4+ minutes of intense, unflinching drama. Laden with doom and fearsome cathartic release, ‘One Hand Behind The Devil’ stands as another electric formulation of Maruja’s devilish ambitions.

This latest release comes off the back of a memorable 2023 for the band. The spring saw Maruja longlisted for Glastonbury’s Emerging Talent Competition, play to sold-out rooms at Brixton’s Windmill and Manchester’s YES Pink Room, and star in theneedledrop’s (Anthony Fantano) GREAT ALBUMS: May 2023 video with their debut EP, ‘Knocknarea’. Compared to the likes of Black Country, New Road, Black Midi, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and Swans, Fantano states that “the performances are tight, the spoken word passages are edge of your seat, the guitars and saxophones are really dynamic and fantastic...” He goes on to say, “...this EP, there’s so much potential, there’s so much good material… I have no doubt that with something of this quality right out [of the] the gate, we’re going to have an even better album down the pipeline. Definitely check this EP out because this thing is fire!”

With previous single ‘Zeitgeist’ added immediately to Spotify’s New Music Friday playlist, alongside radio plays on Radio 1 (Jack Saunders) and Matt Wilkinsons’ Apple Music Show, the band have also seen backing numerous backing from across the indie press and beyond - NME, So Young Magazine, Loud & Quiet, BBC 6Music, BBC Introducing, God Is In The TV, Hard of Hearing, and Wax Music have all flocked to support. Maruja have also amassed over 1.5 million streams, despite self-releasing all their material, and debut EP, ‘Knocknarea’ was, for a time, ranked as Rate Your Music and Album of the Year’s #1 EP of 2023.

Establishing themselves as the most breathtakingly turbulent band currently emerging out of the fertile environs of Manchester, it is at their live shows that the full brunt of their menace can be felt. Performing at the likes of Left of the Dial  Float Along, Manchester Psych Fest, and Supersonic’s Block House Party, the band have also achieved notable support slots for Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Opus Kink, Courting, L.A. Witch, Talk Show, The Lounge Society, and Enola Gay.

The convergence of vocalist and guitarist Harry Wilkinson, drummer Jacob Hayes, bassist Matt Buonaccorsi, and saxophonist Joe Carroll creates the intense, unflinching nuance of Maruja’s call. For just a glimpse of the energy that ensues, live videos of the band’s performances at Live from Low Four Studio or Live at The Windmill show that Maruja are quickly becoming a serious force to be reckoned with