“Flat Circle” - HMRC
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
There’s nothing polite about HMRC — and that’s exactly what makes them essential. The Newcastle four-piece have been building a reputation as one of the sharpest, most politically biting bands to rise out of the UK’s current chaos, and their latest single, Flat Circle, shows a new side of that rage: the existential one.
From the opening bars, Flat Circle hits with a driving, prog-punk undercurrent that’s as unsettling as it is hypnotic. The guitars shimmer and stab like something caught between post-punk’s icy minimalism and punk rock’s sweaty urgency, while the rhythm section locks into a pulse that feels equal parts march and breakdown.
What really sets this track apart is the lyrical shift. Frontman Lloyd Holmes has always been unflinching when it comes to pointing the finger at Britain’s decaying institutions, but here he turns that same scalpel inward. Lines like “When I go I don’t want to feel a thing” and “There’s only one set of footprints, but nobody is carrying me” trade satire for something rawer — a philosophical admission of despair and alienation. It’s not just protest music anymore; it’s protest music that understands the psychic cost of living in a collapsing system.
That’s not to say HMRC has gone soft. Far from it. Flat Circle may be more introspective, but the fury is still there, only sharpened into something darker and more existential. Instead of shouting at the walls, Holmes is pacing the room, dissecting the cracks in his own reflection — and the effect is devastating. It’s the sound of a band realizing that sometimes the biggest protest is just admitting how broken you feel under the weight of it all.
Musically, this is one of their most compelling blends yet. You can hear shards of shoegaze bleeding into the corners, flashes of grunge aggression in the riffs, and a precision anchoring it all. It’s a Frankenstein’s monster of UK underground sounds, but instead of being stitched awkwardly, it’s alive, kicking, and snarling.
Photo Credit: Artist EPK
As with their previous singles (Adenosine and Chloe Tells Me), Flat Circle proves HMRC aren’t afraid to take unexpected turns. While many bands in the punk/post-punk revival lane stick to well-worn grooves, HMRC twist the form into something that feels nastier, cleverer, and way more urgent. There’s wit in the band’s DNA — even their name is a piss-take on bureaucracy and corporate absurdity — but what they’re doing here is deadly serious.
If the North East has always had a history of bands channeling frustration into art, HMRC are carrying that torch into new, jagged territory. Flat Circle isn’t just another angry punk song; it’s a howl from the pit, dressed in distortion and dripping with empathy. The political charge is still there, but it’s now fused with a personal, almost spiritual reckoning. And that combination? That’s where the real danger lies.
HMRC aren’t just a band to watch. They’re a band you have to watch, because they’re not waiting for anyone’s approval — they’re tearing their own path, one ferocious track at a time.
“Flat Circle” is available now on all major streaming platforms
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