Photo Credit: Milo Costelloe
Brighton’s C86-inspired quartet The Stanford Family Band return with “Feeding The Beast”, a shimmering slice of retro-leaning sunshine pop that sets the tone for their upcoming sophomore EP Go Again, out July 17 via Krautpop Records.
Built on bright guitar lines, tight rhythmic drive and melody-forward songwriting, the track leans into a vintage palette while keeping a distinctly modern emotional core. There is a warmth to its production that recalls worn cassette tapes and coastal radio static, where nostalgia feels less like reference and more like atmosphere. The band continue to refine a sound that sits somewhere between melodic 60s pop sensibilities and the jangly edge of C86-inspired indie.
“Feeding The Beast” captures the group at their most instinctive. Written last summer and recorded live shortly after, the track was later layered with guitars and percussion to build its fuller, more radiant final form. Laurence from the band describes the process as unusually immediate, shaped by a desire to capture a direct energy rather than overwork the idea in the studio.
Influences such as XTC and classic power pop run through the arrangement, with Rickenbacker-style jangle and layered instrumentation giving the song its buoyant lift. The result is a track that feels both carefully constructed and effortlessly alive, balancing melancholy with a kind of playful brightness.
That duality sits at the heart of The Stanford Family Band’s wider identity. Across their growing catalogue, they continue to explore a lineage of melodic pop that draws from the bittersweet textures of 60s songwriting, the soft focus glow of 70s singer-songwriters, and the energetic clarity of modern indie revivalism. There are echoes of artists like The Lemon Twigs, Drugdealer, and Sharp Pins, yet the band’s voice remains distinct in its combination of nostalgia and immediacy.
Their upcoming EP Go Again expands on this palette, introducing a broader set of influences and a deeper focus on arrangement and tone. Produced by Harry Hayes, who also contributes to the songwriting, the record leans into melodic traditions associated with artists such as Karen Carpenter, CSN, and Big Star, while maintaining the band’s signature brightness.
Having already built momentum through live performances across the UK and festival appearances including Bristol Sounds, Wanderlust, Deadfest and The Alternative Escape, The Stanford Family Band continue to position themselves within a growing wave of contemporary indie acts revisiting classic pop language with renewed energy.
“Feeding The Beast” is both a continuation and a statement of intent. Familiar in its influences, but alive in its execution, it points toward a band refining their own space within the modern landscape of vintage-leaning pop.
