Westside Cowboy Release New Single ‘Pin Up Boys’
By 
UK Record Store Shows Announced
Debut Album IT GOES ON Out August 21st Via Island Records
UK Headline Tour On Sale Now
LISTEN ‘PIN UP BOYS’
Manchester quartet Westside Cowboy release new single ‘Pin Up Boys’ following its premiere this evening as Radio 1’s Hottest Track In The World. It arrives with a video directed by SNL UK star Jack Shep. Debut album It Goes On (pre-order here) is set to land August 21st via Island Records – and the four-piece announce a run of record store shows in support of this, full details further down (on sale Thursday / July 2nd).
Hot off the heels of an already iconic Later… With Jools Holland performance, ‘Pin Up Boys’ lands as the second single from their highly anticipated debut album It Goes On.
Beginning with Reuben Haycocks’ affecting vocals against a sparse arrangement, the fan favourite track is a rousing single from the quiet-loud school of classic indie. It showcases the quartet’s deference to, and re-imagining of, the guitar music cannon.
As with all the tracks on It Goes On, the recording is a snapshot of the song at a moment in time – organic evolution being a hallmark of their songwriting process. ‘Pin Up Boys’, explains Reuben, became “heavier and more aggro” every time they played it live; a mirror to its preoccupations with the struggles of self control.
Speaking further on the track’s origins, the band say:
“Pin Up Boys was written a year and a half ago using an acoustic guitar, a drum machine sample pad and some screwdrivers as drumsticks. It is by far the longest serving song on the album and the one that we have played the most live, which was a blessing and a curse when we came to record. After realising this song was set in its ways, we thought the recording should be a somewhat faithful version of the live performance. We hope you get something out of it.”
The music video captures this energy, as director Jack Shep details:
“Westside Cowboy’s performance style is so energetic and distinct. They clearly have a mountainous future ahead of them, and it was awesome to work with young people at the precipice of starting something really special together.
In the video we wanted to capture the band’s dynamism, through a spotlight. We follow this fixed, malevolent spotlight chasing our hero (played by the band’s mate, Will) as he tries to escape its gaze. As he runs, he manages to escape, splitting into a new spotlight with a new version of the band. The whole thing begins to buckle and shatter.”
The album was produced by Loren Humphrey (Geese, Cameron Winter, Wunderhorse) at Greenmount Studios in Leeds. Big feelings are at the heart of the matter: these are songs that aim to distill the confusion, desperation and blind hope of youth into eleven stirring tracks.
Westside Cowboy have always tried to focus on what unites people. Early on in the group’s life, they co-created No Band Is An Island: a Manchester-based collective putting on fundraising nights to spotlight both local artists and important issues via speakers from charities and direct action groups, and the video for the album’s lead single ‘Kick Stones (The Boys)’ was shot in collaboration with activist football club FC United of Manchester.
The quartet will be supporting the album release with their biggest headline tour to date this autumn/winter including shows at London’s O2 Forum Kentish Town and Manchester’s Albert Hall (full dates below). Westside Cowboy will also appear at festivals including Green Man, Latitude, and Reading and Leeds this summer, and have today announced limited record store shows around the LP’s release.
Record Store Shows Announced
19th August – Resident, Brighton
20th August – Rough Trade East, London
25th August – Jumbo, Leeds
27th August – Rough Trade, Liverpool
3rd September – Rough Trade, Nottingham
4th September – Assai, Glasgow
About Westside Cowboy
Described as “thrilling” by The Guardian, “reshaping UK indie” by DAZED, and “one of the UK’s most exciting forces” in an NME Cover feature, Westside Cowboy’s output so far showcases a band blessed with a telepathic synergy, and unafraid to take this coalescent magic outside their comfort zone.
The quartet recently came to mainstream attention with an instantly iconic Later… With Jools Holland performance, becoming one of the most talked about appearances of the series. This follows winning audiences over with their unrelenting energy, melodies and wistful guitars whilst supporting Brooklyn icons Geese, as well as a fully sold-out headline UK run in January/February, debut US dates in late 2025, and a tour with Black Country, New Road last October.
The group’s electric live shows have slingshotted them towards 1000+ cap venues even before any mention of a debut album. This is establishing an immersive mythos, replete with ‘I was there’ credentials, and if-you-know-you-know moments. Last summer’s packed-out festival stages including at Glastonbury, Green Man and End of The Road are evidence of an outfit striking the core of the scene.
The band’s two EPs so far – So Much Country ‘Till We Get There (Jan ‘26 / Adventure Recordings) and This Better Be Something Great (August ‘25 / Heist or Hit), spawned singles which landed on BBC 6 Music’s playlist and saw support on BBC Radio 1 from Greg James, Sian Eleri, Alyx Holcombe, and more.Westside Cowboy is Reuben Haycocks (guitar, vocals), James (Jimmy) Bradbury (guitar, vocals), Aoife Anson O’Connell (bass guitar, vocals), Paddy Murphy (drums, vocals).
It Goes On Tracklisting
Kick Stones (The Boys)
Paperchains
Dobro
Well Done Kid, You Did It
Worried Age
Big Wheels
Pin Up Boys
Coyote
Patchwork
Take My Leaving As I Love You
You Could Have Died There On The Dancefloor
UK Live Dates
9th July – Ally Pally Park, London (supporting The Maccabees)
24th July – Tramlines, Sheffield
25th July – Latitude, Suffolk
26th July – Truck, Oxfordshire
21st August – Green Man, Wales
28th August – Leeds Festival, Leeds
30th August – Reading Festival, Reading
24th November – St Lukes, Glasgow [SOLD OUT]
25th November – NUSU, Newcastle
26th November – Crookes Social Club, Sheffield [SOLD OUT]
27th November – Irish Centre, Leeds [SOLD OUT]
29th November – XOYO, Birmingham[SOLD OUT]
30th November – 1865, Southampton
1st December – Chalk, Brighton
2nd December – O2 Forum Kentish Town, London [SOLD OUT]
4th December – Electric Bristol, Bristol [SOLD OUT]
5th December – Albert Hall, Manchester [SOLD OUT]