CHVRCHES Return With “Roses” And Signal A Heavier Next Chapter

CHVRCHES return with their first new single since 2023, alongside two intimate charity shows and the clearest indication yet of where album five is heading.

Photo: Jody Evans

CHVRCHES return with “Roses”, their first officially released new music in three years and the first clear indication of where the band are heading next. The single follows 2023’s standalone release “Over” and arrives five years after their most recent album, Screen Violence.

Released via Futures Music Group, “Roses” pushes the trio towards a heavier sound while keeping the electronic foundations that have shaped their previous records. Distorted guitars and harder production sit around Lauren Mayberry’s vocal, with the track carrying a darker political frustration throughout.

The shift is deliberate. Speaking about CHVRCHES’ return, Mayberry said the band “wanted to really push ourselves and not be retreading ground we’d walked before”, adding that the new material feels like their “most coherent vision” as a band.

There had already been signs of that direction earlier this year. CHVRCHES returned to the stage at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March, where they debuted the unreleased “Conman”. Built around industrial bass and heavier guitars, the track offered an early glimpse of the sound now coming further into focus with “Roses”.

The band have also been working on their fifth album. Martin Doherty said in February that the record was around 90 per cent complete, describing it as harder while still retaining the recognisable DNA of CHVRCHES. No album title or release date has yet been announced.

Alongside “Roses”, CHVRCHES have announced two intimate UK charity shows for October. They will play an undisclosed Glasgow venue on 26 October before heading to London on 29 October, with proceeds from both dates going to charity.

“Roses” is out now. With album five taking shape behind it, CHVRCHES’ first release in three years suggests the band are returning with little interest in simply repeating where they left off.