pencil

London newcomers pencil share intoxicating second single ‘The Window’, out today (January 31st) via cult indie label Moshi Moshi Records (Anna Meredith, Du Blonde, Girl Ray).

The follow-up to debut track ‘The Giant’, which arrived in autumn last year to widespread acclaim from key press champions The Independent, DIY Magazine, The Line Of Best Fit, So Young Magazine and La Blogotheque, as well as BBC 6 Music airplay (Deb Grant, Tom Ravenscroft, Marc Riley, GIdeon Coe), ‘The Window’ showcases the group’s essential convergence of styles and sounds to perfection.

A pastoral blend of sweeping chords, sandy percussion, autumnal textures and wistful strings that hark back to the earthy sounds of Big Thief, Cass McCombs or even Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’, the quintet’s stream-of-consciousness lyrics were inspired by an overheard conversation about the London suburb of Walthamstow, as well as the “spooky things” found while (bandleader Kamran) Khan was staring into a taxidermy shop. As the first song the band played in full with (violinist Coco) Inman, it’s a benchmark of the atmosphere and vibe that the group have pledged to explore.

Released as part of Moshi Moshi’s relaunched Singles Club (which has previously delivered releases from Florence & The Machine, Friendly Fires, The Drums, Lykke Li & more), pencil have already made quite the impression on the live front, with a full UK tour support run with The Japanese House late last year, whilst further dates alongside Folly Group are lined up early this spring.

pencil’s ’The Window’ is out now via Moshi Moshi Records and available on all digital platforms. 

pencil are Coco Inman (violin), Dom Potts (bass), Kamran Khan (acoustic guitar + vocals), Thomas Fiquet (drums), Cai Burns (electric guitar + vocals)

Avant-garde London quintet pencil return with a brand new single, 'The Window', following the release of their debut single 'The Giant' in October 2023.

A pastoral blend of sweeping chords, sandy percussion, autumnal textures and wistful strings that hark back to the earthy sounds of Big Thief, Cass McCombs or even Radiohead’s ‘In Rainbows’ -
this essential convergence of styles and sounds can be found on ‘The Window’. The stream-of-consciousness lyrics, meanwhile, were inspired by an overheard conversation about the London suburb of Walthamstow, as well as the “spooky things” found while Khan was staring into a taxidermy shop. As the first song the band played in full with Inman, it’s a benchmark of the atmosphere and vibe that the group have pledged to explore.

Speaking about 'The Window', the band share, 'As soon as the first version of this song was conceived, ‘The Window’ quickly became a touchstone for how we wanted the band to sound and feel. We existed as a four-piece for a little while before Coco (violin) joined and this was the first song we played together at our first rehearsal in early 2022 - in that moment pencil was born. The words in this song are drawn from overheard conversations, banal soundbites, subconscious admissions and haunted strolls in the metropolitan winter. We produced it ourselves, using what started as a live demo and gradually decorated it over time.'