Bath’s indie‑americana favourites Young Martyrs are stepping confidently into a new chapter with their latest single, ‘Sugar On My Tongue’, out May 8th. It’s the second taste of their forthcoming third album Might Just Be Enough, due this summer — and it’s a track that shows a band sharpening their emotional and sonic edges in all the right ways.
Formed in 2020, Young Martyrs have built their reputation the old‑fashioned way: through relentless gigging, word‑of‑mouth buzz, and a knack for writing songs that feel both intimate and widescreen. Their self‑titled debut arrived the same year they formed, quickly selling out headline shows across the UK and landing them support slots with Badly Drawn Boy, The Hoosiers and McFly. Festival appearances followed — including Glastonbury and Rock Oyster — before their second album Time Is Not On Our Side (2023) expanded their reach across the Atlantic, culminating in a run of New York shows.
Now, with ‘Sugar On My Tongue’, the band sound more assured than ever.
Recorded initially as a three‑piece — with guitarist Rich Beeby also handling bass duties before the recent arrival of new bassist Phil Smith — the track was laid down between Real World Studios in Bath and Indefra Studios in Frome. Co‑produced with Sebastian Brice, engineered by Ben Koch, and mastered by Christian Wright at Abbey Road, it’s a song that carries both polish and pulse.
Musically, it’s a gorgeous blend of shuffling drums, searing guitars and atmospheric rock textures, all wrapped around Tom Corneill’s yearning vocal delivery. Lyrically, Beeby — who penned this track along with two others on the album — leans into the messy, magnetic pull of unspoken desire.
“The band rocks and rolls in this song so it needed a lyric that’s raw and does most of its thinking from the neck down,” he explains. It’s a song about physical longing, suppressed impulses and the blurred line between fantasy and obsession — and Beeby leaves it to the listener to decide whether that surrender is something to resist or revel in.
To accompany the single, Young Martyrs returned to familiar ground, filming the music video in Bristol — one of the band’s hometowns and a city central to their early rise. Shot at Firebird Studios and the brilliantly unpretentious Lick’n Chick’n takeaway, the video stars Lorien Tear and Sadie Evans, the latter fresh from winning Best Actress at the It’s My Shout film awards.
Directed by Rhys Davies of Furball Films, the video follows a story of unrequited affection slowly shifting into something more reciprocal. It’s tender, awkward, and quietly cinematic — a perfect visual companion to a song built on tension and unspoken emotion. Filming on Bristol’s streets was a deliberate choice, a nod to the local culture that shaped the band and the place where their reputation first took root.
With Might Just Be Enough on the horizon, ‘Sugar On My Tongue’ feels like a statement of intent: confident, emotionally charged, and unmistakably Young Martyrs. If this is the direction they’re heading in for album three, fans old and new are in for something special.
ONLINE:
Website: http://youngmartyrs.com
Twitter: https://x.com/youngmartyrsx
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/young_martyrs
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