WIDGET
- bizzarre
- 10 hours ago
- 4 min read
East London queer disco punks WIDGET announce debut album 'CLASSY HITS VOL.2', on Peach Records & share new single and video 'CHAMOIS LEATHER'.
East London queer disco punks WIDGET have announced their debut album ‘CLASSY HITS VOL.2’, set for release on the 24th April 2026 on Peach Records. WIDGET are the dancefloor conquering Danny Dyer referencing party band you never knew you needed in your life. Their funky, scratchy, politically conscious tunes recall the likes of Tom Tom Club, B52s, The Slits and Le Tigre.
Find out for yourself in the first single for ‘CHAMOIS LEATHER', all bright afro-punk riffs, call and response vocals and slinky disco beats.
Listen to ‘CHAMOIS LEATHER' through the graceful, freeing video starring East London punk legend Steve MacGuire throwing some shapes, as directed by the band's bassist Elena Agulla Gil and filmed in the beautiful Hoxton Hall
WIDGET gave us a further insight into the idea behind the video:
"Steve is a local East London legend, who attends and dances his heart out at multiple indie gigs per week, supporting the community in a gentle and wholesome way.
We were out for Estella's [Adeyeri, WIDGET guitarist] birthday and saw him dancing. We knew then that he'd be the perfect person to portray the WIDGET ethos."
The band adds this thoughtful insight into the song. It's a very Millennial take on the world, what with coming of age on the internet:
"'CHAMOIS LEATHER' is about nothing in particular and yet everything at the same time. Have you ever felt like you were a strange pimple on the teenage chin of society? Yeah, us too.
This song is for everyone who aches to be understood but is also desperate to not be observed. It's for everyone who wants to dance like nobody is watching yet are far too busy watching themselves to get involved."
‘CLASSY HITS VOL.2’ marks one and a half years of WIDGET and follows on from their self-titled EP released in September 2024. The band was formed by members of Big Joanie, all cats are beautiful, Junodef and Zahra Haji Fath Ali Tehrani. All are seasoned members of the UK/EU DIY scene, as well as community organisers, vocally queer radicals and core components of the underground music scene.
It follows that WIDGET are fully self-sufficient members within their community. Front person Ky also records, mixes and masters all WIDGET'S music, bassist Elena makes all their videos, artwork and assorted visuals, they release their music on their own label, Peach Records.
WIDGET’s live shows are a joyous, inclusive affair. The band’s raucous energy and Ky’s oddly commanding stage presence give the crowd no option but to join in, dance, and singalong. Irresistible bangers follow one after the other thick and fast, each one as funky and uplifting as the last. When the last chord has rung out, die-hard fans and newbies alike wipe the sweat from their faces and exclaim “Now, that’s what I call WIDGET!” A party band to end all parties, it’s a fun, freeing and ever so funky ride for all.
Instant classic ‘CLASSY HITS VOL. 2’ was recorded in four days at the Shaken Oak studios in Oxfordshire and mixed/mastered at Peach Records in Dalston, London.
Known for their raucous and energetic live sets, the debut album brings all the frenetic excitement of WIDGET's gig dancefloor directly into your ears. Sparking straight into life with fan favourites 'DOGS DONT LIE' and 'SOFTSPOT STUNNA', before grabbing the listener by the scruff of the neck and delivering them into the wonderfully chaotic world of 'MANLY KUBRICK (HE SAYS SHIT LIKE)'.
The songs are sharp, buoyant and catchy, clearly driven by a pocket obsessed rhythm section. Duelling scratchy guitars, tape drenched synths and tireless percussion give the absurd yet poignant lyrics of songs like 'GRABITY GRAVITY', 'IT'S THE END OF THE LOOP' and 'CHAMOIS LEATHER' the pretence of a huge in-joke you’ll never understand. The record draws to a close with the hypnotic arpeggiated time shift of 'WHAT IF PHONES BUT TOO MUCH'. A thudding, marching tone poem protesting god only knows what, only that Tom Hanks and a sassy dog are involved.
The lyrics are vast in their nicheness, millennial references positively littering every song. If you never expected to hear Danny Dyer, Johnny Mnemonic and Hannah Montana featured in the same song, neither did we. But the easter eggs for millennial listeners don't end there, with nods to 90s kids shows Animorphs and Fern Gully or verbatim lines lifted from The Sopranos and Honey I Shrunk The Kids.
The band are airtight and on point, the result of a year of regular playing across the UK’s independent Queer scene. Sold out solo-bill shows at East London’s Shacklewell Arms, playing support for Glasgow’s Sacred Paws and a much-lauded set at 2025’s Supernormal festival has left them more razor focused and succinct than ever.
The single is out now on all dsps - and if you pre-order on Bandcamp, you receive a free download of the track.
Photo by Elena Agulla Gil
