After a whirlwind 18 months that’s seen them sell out headline tours, storm festival stages and earn praise from every corner of the music press, Manchester five‑piece The Guest List have announced their long‑awaited debut album Something Real, landing August 28th.

The news arrives alongside their brand‑new single ‘You Should Care’ — a soaring, emotionally charged anthem that pulls back the curtain on a more vulnerable side of the band. Built on open‑hearted honesty and the confusion of early adulthood, it’s a track that feels both intimate and widescreen, complete with another striking video to match.

It’s the latest step in a rise that’s been impossible to ignore. Rolling Stone UK hailed their recent single Something Real as “a thrillingly ambitious statement of intent… reminiscent of Humbug‑era Arctic Monkeys,” while The Independent declared them “on course to become one of the UK’s next big guitar bands.” Dork went further still, tipping 2026 as the year where “graft plus ambition turns into a breakthrough.”

CLASH, Music Week and NOTION have all echoed the same sentiment: The Guest List are becoming a band to believe in.

Recorded in Bergen, Norway with long‑time collaborator Matias Tellez, Something Real expands the band’s sound into deeper, darker and more emotionally resonant territory. It’s a record unafraid to confront the world head‑on — tackling mental health, anxiety, male suicide, domestic violence, climate collapse and the rising tide of outrage culture.

Yet for all its weight, the album never loses sight of the personal. Sharp melodies, big choruses and moments of raw vulnerability run throughout.

Frontman Cai Alty sums it up simply: “The album is basically us saying, ‘we’re young, we’re confused just like you – how did we get here?’ It’s about trying to find something meaningful in a world that often feels overwhelming.”

Formed in 2021 as schoolmates and music students, The Guest List first gained traction through high‑energy indie covers online — but it’s their original material that’s turned them into one of the UK’s most exciting new guitar bands. Their sound, shaped in part by The Coral’s James Skelly and later refined with Tellez, has drawn comparisons to Arctic Monkeys, Radiohead and Sam Fender, while carving out something unmistakably their own.

Their live reputation has been a major driving force too. From Glastonbury and TRNSMT to sold‑out headline shows and support slots with Blossoms, DMA’S and Inhaler, they’ve built a fanbase that cuts across scenes and generations.

Fresh off another sold‑out UK tour, The Guest List have announced their biggest headline run yet for November — including a major London date at Scala on November 24th.

Before that, they’ll hit a packed summer of festivals including:

Reading & Leeds
Neighbourhood
Latitude
Tramlines
Victorious
Plus a run of EU shows

With Something Real, The Guest List step into a new chapter with a debut album that feels urgent, ambitious and unafraid to speak plainly about the world around them. It’s a record built on connection, honesty and the desire to make sense of modern life — and it cements their status as one of the UK’s most compelling new bands.

EU & UK HEADLINE TOUR DATES
October
21st BRUSSELS, Botanique
23rd ROTTERDAM, Left of the Dial
24th ROTTERDAM, Left of the Dial
25th COLOGNE, Artheater
27th BERLIN, Berlin
28th HAMBURG, Turmzimmer
29th UTRECHT, Ekko
31st PARIS, Supersonic Records

November
17th NEWCASTLE, The Grove
19th GLASGOW, St Luke’s
20th BIRMINGHAM, O2 Institute 2
21st OXFORD, O2 Academy 2
22nd SOUTHAMPTON, Papillion
24th LONDON, Scala
25th LEEDS, Project House
26th BRISTOL, Fleece

FESTIVAL APPEARANCES
May
24th NBHD WEEKENDER, Warrington, Victoria Park

June
19th ISLE OF WIGHT FESTIVAL, Newport, Seaclose Park

July
18th BACK DOUNE THE RABBIT HOLE, Stirling, Cardross Estate

25th TRAMLINES, Sheffield, Hillsborough Park
26th LATITUDE, Suffolk, Henham Park

August
2nd CAMP BESTIVAL, Weymouth, Lulworth Castle
8th BOARDMASTERS, Newquay, Watergate Bay
28th READING, Reading Festival
29th LEEDS, Leeds Festival
30th VICTORIOUS, Southsea Common

October
17th NBHD FESTIVAL, Manchester

Something Real Tracklisting
1.. Something Real

2. Ruine

3. You Should Care

4. Sick Animal

5. Mundane

6. If Ever Your Devil is Kind

7. Pink

8. Mary

9. Craven

10. Slow Down Sally

11. Weatherman

12. The Only Ones

The Guest List are: Cai Alty (vocals/guitar), Tom Quigley (lead guitar), Leio Hunter (rhythm guitar), Sid Wallace (bass) and Angus Gilchrist (drums).

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