Some artists ease their way into the spotlight. Late Transmissions starring Eve Quartermain arrive with a cinematic flourish, a raised eyebrow, and a full orchestra in tow. Their new single I’m Done With London, released ahead of their debut album The Heart Wants What It Wants, is a gloriously theatrical kiss‑off to the capital, delivered with the kind of widescreen drama that feels ripped from a lost Bond theme.
The track is a head‑on collision of Shirley Bassey‑style grandeur and John Barry’s sweeping orchestral tension, but what really sells it is Eve Quartermain herself. A genuine vocal discovery, she tears through the song with a mix of bruised humour and torch‑song fatalism. London starts as a party, spirals into something darker, and ends with the unforgettable sting: “I’m done with London… but London’s not finished with me.” Anyone who’s ever tried to escape the gravitational pull of Zones 1–6 will feel that line in their bones.
In contrast to the song’s cinematic scale, the video keeps things deliberately grounded. Eve sits alone in a pub, nursing a drink, lost in her own thoughts while the world around her barely registers her presence. It’s understated, almost mundane, and that’s exactly why it works. The drama is in the performance, not the setting.
Late Transmissions is the long‑brewing reunion of David Balfe and David Hughes, two musicians whose roots run deep in the Merseyside post‑punk and early synth scenes. Balfe’s history includes Big In Japan, The Teardrop Explodes, and founding both Zoo Records and Food Records, the latter responsible for signing Blur and Echo & The Bunnymen. Hughes, meanwhile, moved from Dalek I Love You to OMD before building a heavyweight career in film and TV scoring, including work on Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels.
Their shared love of classic orchestral pop, Scott Walker, Dusty Springfield, John Barry, forms the backbone of Late Transmissions’ lush, technicolour sound. But the emotional core of the project is Eve Quartermain, whose voice blends power, vulnerability and noir‑ish intensity. She’s the kind of singer who can make a lyric feel like a confession and a threat at the same time.
The Heart Wants What It Wants promises a collection of songs that feel both timeless and sharply contemporary. The arrangements shimmer with old‑school glamour, but the themes, burnout, longing, self‑reckoning, are unmistakably modern. It’s an album for anyone who knows that even in the bleakest moments, there’s catharsis in saying your truth out loud.
The record features I’m Done With London, the earlier singles Lightning Never Strikes Twice and the title track, and arrives 1 May on limited red vinyl, CD and digital formats.
Pre‑order: https://musicsaves.co.uk/product/theheartwantswhatitwants/
Spotify pre‑save: https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/evequartermain/the-heart-wants-what-it-wants
