Westside Cowboy

New Single - Pin Up Boys

Story by Beth Shubart

09/07/2026

There was already plenty of expectation surrounding Westside Cowboy after the release of So Much Country 'Till We Get There, a standout appearance on Later... With Jools Holland and the irresistible first taste of It Goes On in Kick Stones (The Boys). Now, with Pin Up Boys, the Manchester quartet prove they have far more than one trick in their arsenal.

Few young guitar bands sound as instinctive as Westside Cowboy, and Pin Up Boys only reinforces the feeling that their debut album could be something genuinely special. Opening with Reuben Haycocks' restrained vocal and a skeletal arrangement, Pin Up Boys initially lulls you into a false sense of security before erupting into a thrilling collision of jagged guitars, explosive percussion and ragged emotion. It's a masterclass in dynamics, drawing from the quiet-loud tradition without ever sounding like an exercise in nostalgia. Instead, Westside Cowboy reshape familiar indie rock ideas into something that feels urgent, scrappy and unmistakably their own. The band's self-described 'Britainicana' remains intact, but there's a sharper edge here. Paddy Murphy's relentless drumming propels the track forward while Jimmy Bradbury's wiry guitar lines constantly threaten to veer off the rails. Meanwhile, Aoife Anson O'Connell's understated harmonies provide the perfect counterbalance, arriving at just the right moment to soften the song's emotional blows without diluting its intensity. It's no surprise the band chose to keep the recording close to the version fans have embraced on stage. Having evolved through countless live performances, Pin Up Boys carries an immediacy that polished studio trickery would only have diminished. That rawness is precisely what makes the song so compelling, capturing themes of self-control and frustration with a sincerity that's impossible to fake. The accompanying video, directed by Jack Shep, mirrors that restless energy, while the album itself benefits from the deft production of Loren Humphrey, whose work with Geese, Cameron Winter and Wunderhorse makes him an inspired choice behind the desk. If Kick Stones (The Boys) announced Westside Cowboy as one of Britain's most exciting new guitar bands, then Pin Up Boys confirms it wasn't a fluke. With It Goes On arriving in August, the signs point towards a debut that could easily become one of the defining indie records of the decade.