When Chvrches released their disco influenced record Screen Violence in 2021, they left listeners with some of their brightest synth arrangements to date. Five years without releasing new music has pulled the Scottish trio in a distinctly different direction. Their new single, Roses, arrives with an abrasive, politically pointed edge, swapping polished hooks for the heavier textures of industrial music.
Driven by dense, hard hitting percussion and cold synthesizer parts, the track offers an immediate reset. Lauren Mayberry matches the instrumental weight with a sharp, detached vocal delivery, beginning the song with the words, "Raise a glass to delusions of the good days of blood and wine; of pearls for swine." The song swells into a broad choral section before concluding with a stark, authoritarian command: "If I may command your undivided attention, now we can start." The accompanying video mirrors the tone of the song, placing Mayberry in gothic attire as she performs beside a damaged car and a full suit of knight's armor.
To support the release, the group has arranged two secret, small scale live dates scheduled for next month. They will play Glasgow on October 26, followed by a London gig on October 29. Rather than running standard ticket queues, admission is being distributed through a lottery ballot, with all proceeds donated to charity. The dates give fans a rare chance to see how this abrasive new material works in a small room before any broader touring begins.
Listeners who caught the band live earlier this year already had a preview of this aesthetic pivot. During Robert Smith's Teenage Cancer Trust concerts at the Royal Albert Hall, Chvrches debuted an unreleased piece named Conman. Built on a pulsing, gritty electronic bassline, that track featured Mayberry singing pointed lines about "a man made for the microphone" who "fills my pockets full of stones."
News of studio activity first emerged last summer when the trio confirmed they were writing together once more. Martin Doherty and Jonny Scott subsequently stated that the resulting album was roughly ninety percent complete. Doherty stated that the fresh direction would likely catch listeners off guard and carry genuine weight, all while holding onto the core songwriting identity of the band.
Mayberry explained that the five year gap, the longest break the musicians have taken between studio albums, was entirely deliberate. Reconvening after such an extended period meant challenging their established patterns, which Mayberry noted helped them arrive at what she considers their most coherent artistic statement to date.
That time away allowed every member to branch into outside projects. Mayberry spent the hiatus launching a solo career, issuing her debut album Vicious Creatures in December 2024. During that period she worked with Death Cab For Cutie, Joe Talbot of IDLES, and Aaron Dessner of The National, joining Dessner to record a cover of Frightened Rabbit's Who'd Kill You Now? for the Tiny Changes tribute collection.
Meanwhile, Doherty and Scott moved to Los Angeles and established a rave influenced musical project called The Leaving while navigating a difficult personal period. Iain Cook also explored separate avenues, creating a remix for The Cranberries' track Linger in 2024 after teaming up with former Sons & Daughters member Scott Paterson to start the group Protection in 2022.
Reuniting after those diverse independent ventures has clearly shifted the trio's creative approach. If Roses is any indication of the full record to come, Chvrches have little interest in recycling previous styles, choosing instead to test just how much structural pressure their pop foundations can take.
