Since touchdown on The Cowl of our “emphatic publication” in June 2023, Image Parlour have been put via hell and again, a duality that they grapple with on current single ‘Discuss About It’. On-line, they have been torn other than their genesis, decreased to ‘trade vegetation’ regardless of the natural word-of-mouth hype the Manchester-formed band had generated round venues like The Windmill, after they moved to London.
That helped them be a focus for Island Information and acquire a fan in Courtney Love, who attended their third ever present. Following within the footsteps of current breakouts The Final Dinner Celebration and Fats Canine, the duo (initially a quartet) comprising Liverpudlian Katherine Parlour (vocals, guitar) and North Yorkshire-born Ella Risi (guitar) held again their music and reduce their enamel the old school means: within the gig room.
Previous methods are additionally integral to their music, which takes root in rock’n’roll whereas nonetheless sounding wickedly recent and rapid. Parlour’s addictive, conceited vocal rasp and the White Stripes-esque crunch to Risi’s riffs point out a band brimming with confidence. Not one who, surely, stepped again from the noise to recuperate and discover their toes with each other, with the intention to create the album to the perfect of their capabilities.
That resultant document oozes with the class that 2023 debut single ‘Norwegian Wooden’ teased, maybe explaining why it finds a house on the album. ‘Cielo Drive’ and ‘Who’s There To Love With out You?’ strut ahead with knife-like precision, transporting you reside and direct to ‘The Parlour’, an imaginary house and throughline that pays homage to their sweaty roots.
Wonky, on-the-nose guitar riffs dictate ‘24 Hour Open’ and ‘$4 Fantasy’, whereas the mellow ‘Round The Bend’ and ‘The Travelling Present’ break the album again all the way down to its storytelling. The latter explores Parlour’s complicated relationship together with her hometown (“you see me at times”), and the journey that’s taken her to Manchester, London and Nashville, the place ‘The Parlour’ was recorded, drawn out with the theatricality of a coming-of-age musical.
The very good ‘Used To Be Your Girlfriend’ lets down Image Parlour’s defend of swagger, unfolding like a part-time comedy present delivered via the deadpan of Alex Turner. In case you’re an Arctic Monkeys grumbler who needs they appeared like ‘AM’ once more, ‘The Parlour’ would possibly really be the document you’ve been ready for all alongside.
Such unavoidable comparisons to quite a few rock legends are the one factor holding again ‘The Parlour’ from receiving its Michelin star. On this debut album, Image Parlour have proven that, in time, they’ve the skillset and perception to flee the shadow of their idols, and refine their very own distinctive sound that future rock’n’roll bands shall be dying to emulate.
Particulars
- File label: EMI
- Launch date: November 14, 2025
