The Guest List - “If Ever Your Devil Is Kind”

New single from their forthcoming album

Story by Emily Strout

09/07/2026

The new single from Manchester-based The Guest List is a delightful glimpse into the band’s upcoming debut album Something Real—fresh and vulnerable, it’s exactly what UK indie rock has been needing.

The Guest List are instantly something different, and on first listen to “If Ever Your Devil Is Kind”, you can sense it. From the band’s own mouth, the song is about “feeling unfulfilled in spite of having achieved everything that you thought would make you happy”, a feeling that is sure to resonate with audiences both young and old. It isn’t the group’s first time confronting tougher topics, too; previous tunes address things like mental health and domestic violence, but they somehow manage to do so in a catchy and beautiful way. The Guest List feel thoughtful beyond their years, standing out from the sea of guitar bands around them. The confessional lyrics of the single feel torn right from the soul: lines like “You realised you still ain’t happy yet / Why the fuck ain’t you happy yet?” hit alongside the almost dreamy instrumentation. Vocalist Cai Alty’s performance is what really sells the whole thing, however. Unique and clear, he sings with such distinction that you have no choice but to stop and mull over the lines he’s just fed to you. “If Ever Your Devil is Kind” comes after the release of two other album singles, “You Should Care” (delightful) and the titular “Something Real” (also delightful). Something Real is set to be released on August 28th, and if these singles are anything to go off of, it’s certain to be a good one.