Along with their preceding group Talulah Gosh and their stateside collaborator Calvin Johnson, Heavenly were among the key players in the early-’90s twee pop movement. Their run abruptly ended in 1996 upon the death of founding drummer Mathew Fletcher, after which his bandmates announced they’d be retiring the Heavenly name. But over the past couple of years — perhaps partially motivated by their 1995 song “P.U.N.K. Girl” having a bit of a viral TikTok moment — Heavenly have slowly been coming out of retirement for their first US shows since 1995 and their first new music since 1996. Today, Heavenly have announced their first new full-length studio album in 30 years.
Highway To Heavenly is out next month and reunites original bandmates Amelia Fletcher, Peter Momtchiloff, Cathy Rogers, and Rob Pursey, joined by new drummer Ian Button. Today’s new single “Excuse Me” makes that long hiatus feel pretty short, abiding by the typical Heavenly formula of sticky pop melodies, a scrappy punk attitude, and a touch of heartache: “We never realized that/ What we had would be the best it got/ Now it is gone.” Listen to “Excuse Me” and see the full Highway To Heavenly tracklist below.
TRACKLIST:
01 “Scene Stealing”
02 “Portland Town”
03 “Press Return”
04 “Skep Wax”
05 “Deflicted”
06 “Excuse Me”
07 “A Different Beat”
08 “Good Times”
09 “The Neverseen”
10 “She Is The One”
11 “That Last Day”
Highway To Heavenly is out 2/27 via skepwax040.
