{"title":"The Beths","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Beths are an alternative\/indie pop band hailing from Auckland, New Zealand. With their catchy melodies and energetic performances, they have quickly gained a loyal following in the music scene. Formed in [year], the band consists of members [names]. Their unique sound blends elements of indie rock with pop sensibilities, creating a refreshing and infectious musical experience. Known for their heartfelt lyrics and tight harmonies, The Beths have established themselves as one of the most exciting bands to emerge from New Zealand's vibrant music scene.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSince their formation, The Beths have released several critically acclaimed albums, including [album names]. Their music has garnered praise for its relatable themes and honest storytelling. With each release, they continue to push boundaries and explore new sonic territories while staying true to their signature sound.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn addition to their studio recordings, The Beths are also known for their captivating live performances. They have toured extensively across New Zealand and internationally, winning over audiences with their high-energy shows and undeniable stage presence.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"expert-in-a-dying-field","title":"Expert In A Dying Field","description":"\u003cp\u003eOn The Beths’ new album \u003cem\u003eExpert In A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eElizabeth Stokes\u003c\/strong\u003e’ songwriting positions her somewhere between being a novelist and a documentarian. The songs collected here are autobiographical, but they’re also character sketches of relationships – platonic, familial, romantic – and more importantly, their aftermaths. The shapes and ghosts left in absences.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe question that hangs in the air: what do you do with how intimately versed you’ve become in a person, once they’re gone from your life? The third LP from the New Zealand quartet houses 12 jewels of tight, guitar-heavy songs that worm their way into your head, an incandescent collision of power-pop and skuzz.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eWith \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e, The Beths wanted to make an album meant to be experienced live, for both the listeners and themselves. They wanted it to be fun - to hear, to play - in spite of the prickling anxiety throughout the lyrics, the fear of change and struggle to cope.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMost of \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e was recorded at guitarist \u003cstrong\u003eJonathan Pearce\u003c\/strong\u003e’s studio on Karangahape Road in Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa (Auckland, New Zealand) - and sometimes in the building's cavernous stairwell at 1am - toward the end of 2021, until they were interrupted by a four-month national lockdown.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThey traded notes remotely for months, songwriting from afar and fleshing out the arrangements alone, the first time they’d written together in such a way. The following February, The Beths left the country for the first time in more than two years to tour across the US, and simultaneously finish mixing the album on the road.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat latter half felt more collaborative, with everyone on-hand to trade notes in real time, until it all culminated in a chaotic three-day studio mad-dash in Los Angeles. There, \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e finally became the record they were hearing in their heads.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e is an extension of the same skuzzy palette the band has built across their catalog, pop hooks embedded in incisive indie rock. The album’s title track “Expert In A Dying Field” introduces the thesis for the record: “How does it feel to be an expert in a dying field? How do you know it’s over when you can’t let go?” Stokes asks. “Love is learned over time ‘til you’re an expert in a dying field.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe rest is a capsule of The Beths’ most electrifying and exciting output, a sonic spectrum. “Your Side” is a forlorn and sincere love song, emotive; while “Silence is Golden,” with its propulsive drum line and stop-start staccato of a guitar line winding up and down, is one of the band’s sharpest and most driving.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e“When You Know You Know” skews a bit groovier, pure pop and a natural addition to the band’s live set. “Knees Deep” was written last minute, but yields one of the best guitar lines on \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere’s a certain chaos across the 12 tracks, the palpable joy of playing music with long-time friends colliding with the raw nerves of pain. Stokes strings it all together through her singular songwriting lens, earnest and self-effacing, zeroing in on the granules of doubt and how they snowball.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDid I do the wrong thing? Or did you? And are we still good people at the end of it? She isn’t interested in villains, but instead interested in just telling the story. That insecurity and thoughtfulness, translated into universality and understanding, has been the guiding light of The Beths’ output since 2016.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the face of pain, there’s no dwelling on internal anguish - instead, through The Beths’ music, our shortcomings are met with acceptance. And \u003cem\u003eExpert In A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e is the most tactile that tenderness has been.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"LP Blue","offer_id":50384126935371,"sku":"1157529","price":24.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - White","offer_id":50384127590731,"sku":"2021812","price":23.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Green","offer_id":50384127689035,"sku":"2165943","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Tape","offer_id":50384127295819,"sku":"1157524","price":12.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50384127164747,"sku":"1157523","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50384127394123,"sku":"1157522","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Silver","offer_id":51253691089227,"sku":"2501160","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Head In The Clouds Blue Eco Mix","offer_id":56592710697291,"sku":"R4480-9372","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/e17a753d-0298-4500-b712-99670054df82_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726288200"},{"product_id":"jump-rope-gazers","title":"Jump Rope Gazers","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Beths\u003c\/strong\u003e return with their second album and what a bundle of emotion and rousing indie anthems it is. Another golden nugget and another album you will fall in love with instantly.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSongwriter and lead vocalist \u003cstrong\u003eElizabeth Stokes\u003c\/strong\u003e worked on what would become The Beths’ second LP, \u003cem\u003eJump Rope Gazers\u003c\/em\u003e, in between these intense periods of touring. Like the group’s earlier music, the album tackles themes of anxiety and self-doubt with effervescent power pop choruses and rousing backup vocals, zeroing in on the communality and catharsis that can come from sharing stressful situations with some of your best friends.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eStokes\u003c\/strong\u003e’s writing on \u003cem\u003eJump Rope Gazers\u003c\/em\u003e grapples with the uneasy proposition of leaving everything and everyone you know behind on another continent, chasing your dreams while struggling to stay close with loved ones back home. With songs like the rambunctious \"Dying To Believe\" and the tender, shoegazey \"Out of Sight,\" The Beths reckon with the distance that life necessarily drives between people over time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePeople who love each other inevitably fail each other. “I’m sorry for the way that I can’t hold conversations \/ They’re such a fragile thing to try to support the weight of,” \u003cstrong\u003eStokes\u003c\/strong\u003e sings on \"Dying to Believe.\" The best way to repair that failure, in The Beths’ view, is with abundant and unconditional love, no matter how far it has to travel. On \"Out of Sight,\" she pledges devotion to a dearly missed friend: “If your world collapses \/ I’ll be down in the rubble\/I’d build you another,” she sings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e“It was a rough year in general, and I found myself saying the words, 'wish you were here, wish I was there,’ over and over again,” she says of the time period in which the album was written. Touring far from home, The Beths committed themselves to taking care of each other as they were trying at the same time to take care of friends living thousands of miles away. They encouraged each other to communicate whenever things got hard, and to pay forward acts of kindness whenever they could.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat care and attention shines through on \u003cem\u003eJump Rope Gazers\u003c\/em\u003e, where the quartet sounds more locked in than ever. Their most emotive and heartfelt work to date, \u003cem\u003eJump Rope Gazers\u003c\/em\u003e stares down all the hard parts of living in communion with other people, even at a distance, while celebrating the ferocious joy that makes it all worth it - a sentiment we need now more than ever.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"LP - Beam Of Light","offer_id":51845008818507,"sku":"R3008-3266","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Apple Red","offer_id":50406797246795,"sku":"1092488","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Tangerine","offer_id":50406796493131,"sku":"1092502","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Clear","offer_id":50406797640011,"sku":"1151633","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Lemon and Lime","offer_id":50406800916811,"sku":"2021811","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Marbled Red","offer_id":50406798393675,"sku":"2004359","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50406796230987,"sku":"1092487","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/6dbabbf0-ebe7-498f-945d-834d1fc71215_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726591172"},{"product_id":"warm-blood","title":"Warm Blood","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Beths debut EP - available for the first time on Vinyl. This EP is the prequel to their debut album \u003ci\u003eFuture Me Hates Me\u003c\/i\u003e which is much loved at Rough Trade Shops.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe Beths’ Warm Blood is a strong contender for the catchiest record you’ve never heard. Formed when four jazz students at the University of Auckland bonded over their shared love of the pop-punk sounds of their youth, The Beths bring new energy to the genre. This 5-song debut EP, a deliriously pleasurable statement of purpose, comes crammed with enough blissful hooks to carry through mostbands’ careers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eListeners for whom the tag “New Zealand indie rock” brings to mind the Flying Nun sound of bandslike The Clean and The Chills may be surprised to find Warm Blood’s five unstoppable tunes landing closer to artists like Slant 6 and The Breeders. The nimble guitar work here moves from heavy riffing reminiscent of Sleater-Kinney to hazily bending lines that would make Stephen Malkmus and Mary Timony beam, while the joyous vocal harmonies from all four members bubble and swell to ecstaticcrescendos that channel The Zombies’ Odessey and Oracle.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWith impeccable production from guitarist Jonathan Pearce and stellar musicianship across the board, \u003ci\u003eWarm Blood\u003c\/i\u003e is a non-stop delight. Tracks like leadoff track and first single \u003ci\u003eWhatever,\u003c\/i\u003e the ridiculously addictive standout \u003ci\u003eIdea \/ Intent\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eRush Hour 3,\u003c\/i\u003e a playful ode to romance in this era ofdownload-and-chill franchise films, take delight in the challenge of breathing new energy into the limitations of the 3-minute pop song.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"Brown | LP","offer_id":50418753241419,"sku":"1149196","price":16.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Pink | 12\"","offer_id":50418754879819,"sku":"1057600","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Yellow 12\"","offer_id":50418756485451,"sku":"2004362","price":17.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"Blue LP","offer_id":50418758222155,"sku":"2021806","price":15.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/a19184ce-6091-493a-92d2-ac6b0322827e_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1726743215"},{"product_id":"auckland-new-zealand-2020","title":"Auckland, New Zealand, 2020","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe anticipation is there in Elizabeth Stokes’ solo guitar riff under the opening lines of “I’m Not Getting Excited”: a frenetic, driving force daring a packed Auckland Town Hall to do exactly the opposite of what the track title suggests. As the opener of The Beths’ \u003ci\u003eAuckland, New Zealand, 2020\u003c\/i\u003e expands to include the full band, the crowd screeches and bellows. It’s a collective exhalation, in one of the few countries where live music is still possible. The album title, and film of the same name, deliberately include the date and location, lead guitarist Jonathan Pearce says. “That’s the sensational part of what we actually did.” In a mid-pandemic world, playing to a heaving, enraptured home crowd feels miraculous. In March 2020, everything seemed on track for another huge year for The Beths. Home after an 18-month northern hemisphere tour, they had just finished recording sophomore album Jump Rope Gazers and were primed for more extensive touring. But within days, New Zealand’s lockdown split the band between three separate houses. All touring was cancelled. “It was existentially bad,” Stokes says. As well as worrying about economic survival, they lost something crucial to the band’s identity: live performance. “It's a huge part of how we see ourselves... What does it mean, if we can't play live?” The band found an outlet through live-streaming, returning to the do-it-yourself mentality of their early days to connect with a global audience. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe album and film have their genesis in that urge to share the now-rare experience of a live show, as widely as possible. The fuzzy-round-the-edges live-streams pointed the way aesthetically. Native birds, wonkily crafted by the band from tissue paper and wire, festoon the venue’s cavernous ceiling while house plants soften and disguise the imposing pipes of an organ. The presence of the film crew isn’t disguised: much of the camerawork is handheld; full of fast zooms and pans. With much of the material still fresh, the band was less focused on re-invention than playing “a good, fast rock show”, Pearce says. The tempo is up on crowd favourites “Whatever” and “Future Me Hates Me” (released as a live single on its third anniversary) as both band and audience feed off the mutual energy in the room. Certain songs have taken on special resonance post-Covid. Pearce has found “Out Of Sight”, a tender rumination on long-distance relationships, hits particularly hard with live audiences. Album closer “River Run” visibly brings Stokes to tears as a mix of achievement and relief kicks in. “You can finally relax at that point … You play the last note, breathe out a sigh and look up - and you’re in a giant room full of people happy and smiling.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"Green LPx2","offer_id":50443413520715,"sku":"2026644","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50443412767051,"sku":"1129646","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP","offer_id":50443413127499,"sku":"1129647","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/2412740d-f940-42bd-ae57-e7fd9da2cdde_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727014117"},{"product_id":"brand-new-colony-we-looked-like-giants","title":"Brand New Colony \/ We Looked Like Giants","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis split 7” features The Beths with Pickle Darling on one side, and Car Seat Headrest on the other. Both bands are celebrating the 20th anniversary of two landmark indie-rock albums that are near and dear to them: The Postal Service’s \u003ci\u003eGive Up \u003c\/i\u003e(Sub Pop) and Death Cab for Cutie’s \u003ci\u003eTransatlanticism \u003c\/i\u003e(Barsuk).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eOn one A-side is New Zealand indie rockers, The Beths’ delightfully bright cover of “Brand New Colony.” The sonically brilliant reinterpretation features fellow New Zealander, producer and multi-instrumentalist Pickle Darling’s signature finger pluckings and dulcet keys.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe other A-side features alt-rock mainstay Car Seat Headrest’s propulsive guitar-driven take on Death Cab for Cutie fan favourite “We Looked Like Giants.”\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sub Pop","offers":[{"title":"Red 7\"","offer_id":50449004069195,"sku":"2145084","price":9.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/thebeths-carseatheadrest-splitsingle-900_afe5013a_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727098405"},{"product_id":"future-me-hates-me","title":"Future Me Hates Me","description":"\u003cp\u003eThe Beths from New Zealand occupy a warm, energetic sonic space between joyful hooks, sun-soaked harmonies, and acerbic lyrics. Their debut album \u003cem\u003eFuture Me Hates Me\u003c\/em\u003e on Carpark Records delivers an astonishment of roadtrip-ready pleasures, each song hitting your ears with an exhilarating endorphin rush like the first time you heard The Breeders \/ Jale \/ Veruca Salt.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFront and center on these ten infectious tracks is lead singer and primary songwriter Elizabeth Stokes. Stokes has previously worked in other genres within Auckland’s rich and varied music scene, recently playing in a folk outfit, but it was in exploring the angst-ridden sounds of her youth that she found her place. From the irresistible title track to future singles \"\u003cem\u003eHappy Unhappy\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eYou Wouldn’t Like Me\u003c\/em\u003e,\" Stokes commands a vocal range that spans from the brash confidence of Joan Jett to the disarming vulnerability of Jenny Lewis.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBeths guitarist and studio guru Jonathan Pearce (whose other acts as producer include recent Captured Tracks signing, and also an RT fav, Wax Chattels) brings it all home with an approach that’s equal parts seasoned perfectionist and D.I.Y. Channeling their stew of personal-canon heroes while drawing inspiration from contemporaries like Alvvays and Courtney Barnett, The Beths serve up deeply emotional lyrics packaged within heavenly sounds that delight in probing the limits of the pop form.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e“That’s another New Zealand thing,” Stokes concludes with a laugh. “We’re putting our hearts on our sleeves—and then apologizing for it.” The result is nothing less than one of the standout records of 2018.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"LP - Blood and Water (Red and Blue)","offer_id":57280098271563,"sku":null,"price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Magenta","offer_id":50477564690763,"sku":"1047595","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Neon Yellow Splatter.","offer_id":50477566165323,"sku":"1099895","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Cloudy Grape","offer_id":50477568786763,"sku":"1117434","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Jelly Bean Green","offer_id":50477567443275,"sku":"1110456","price":18.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Cloudy Blue","offer_id":50477569376587,"sku":"1106779","price":19.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Green and White Marbled.","offer_id":50477569999179,"sku":"2004358","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"CD","offer_id":50477566886219,"sku":"1039436","price":14.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Baby Blue","offer_id":50477568328011,"sku":"1142354","price":21.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Deep Blue","offer_id":52948768620875,"sku":"R0684-5823","price":26.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/6ba654e5-9428-4fce-94e8-a20692b3ed71_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727474505"},{"product_id":"expert-in-a-dying-field-deluxe","title":"Expert In A Dying Field (Deluxe)","description":"\u003cp\u003eDeluxe reissue with bonus material, including singles \"\u003cem\u003eA Real Thing\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eWatching The Credits\u003c\/em\u003e,\" along with acoustic and demo versions of album tracks and one never-before-heard demo \"\u003cem\u003eKeep The Distance\u003c\/em\u003e.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eOn The Beths’ new album \u003cem\u003eExpert In A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eElizabeth Stokes\u003c\/strong\u003e’ songwriting positions her somewhere between being a novelist and a documentarian. The songs collected here are autobiographical, but they’re also character sketches of relationships – platonic, familial, romantic – and more importantly, their aftermaths. The shapes and ghosts left in absences. The question that hangs in the air: what do you do with how intimately versed you’ve become in a person, once they’re gone from your life?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe third LP from the New Zealand quartet houses 12 jewels of tight, guitar-heavy songs that worm their way into your head, an incandescent collision of power-pop and skuzz. With \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e, The Beths wanted to make an album meant to be experienced live, for both the listeners and themselves. They wanted it to be fun - to hear, to play - in spite of the prickling anxiety throughout the lyrics, the fear of change and struggle to cope.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eMost of \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e was recorded at guitarist \u003cstrong\u003eJonathan Pearce\u003c\/strong\u003e’s studio on Karangahape Road in Tāmaki Makaurau, Aotearoa (Auckland, New Zealand) - and sometimes in the building's cavernous stairwell at 1am - toward the end of 2021, until they were interrupted by a four-month national lockdown. They traded notes remotely for months, songwriting from afar and fleshing out the arrangements alone, the first time they’d written together in such a way.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe following February, The Beths left the country for the first time in more than two years to tour across the US, and simultaneously finish mixing the album on the road. That latter half felt more collaborative, with everyone on-hand to trade notes in real time, until it all culminated in a chaotic three-day studio mad-dash in Los Angeles. There, \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e finally became the record they were hearing in their heads.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e is an extension of the same skuzzy palette the band has built across their catalog, pop hooks embedded in incisive indie rock. The album’s title track \"\u003cem\u003eExpert In A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e\" introduces the thesis for the record: “How does it feel to be an expert in a dying field? How do you know it’s over when you can’t let go?” Stokes asks. “Love is learned over time ‘til you’re an expert in a dying field.”\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe rest is a capsule of The Beths’ most electrifying and exciting output, a sonic spectrum: \"\u003cem\u003eYour Side\u003c\/em\u003e\" is a forlorn and sincere love song, emotive; while \"\u003cem\u003eSilence is Golden\u003c\/em\u003e,\" with its propulsive drum line and stop-start staccato of a guitar line winding up and down, is one of the band’s sharpest and most driving. \"\u003cem\u003eWhen You Know You Know\u003c\/em\u003e\" skews a bit groovier, pure pop and a natural addition to the band’s live set. \"\u003cem\u003eKnees Deep\u003c\/em\u003e\" was written last minute, but yields one of the best guitar lines on \u003cem\u003eExpert\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThere’s a certain chaos across the 12 tracks, the palpable joy of playing music with long-time friends colliding with the raw nerves of pain. Stokes strings it all together through her singular songwriting lens, earnest and self-effacing, zeroing in on the granules of doubt and how they snowball. Did I do the wrong thing? Or did you? And are we still good people at the end of it? She isn’t interested in villains, but instead interested in just telling the story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThat insecurity and thoughtfulness, translated into universality and understanding, has been the guiding light of The Beths’ output since 2016. In the face of pain, there’s no dwelling on internal anguish - instead, through The Beths’ music, our shortcomings are met with acceptance. And \u003cem\u003eExpert In A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e is the most tactile that tenderness has been.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Carpark","offers":[{"title":"Blue LPx2","offer_id":50486293168459,"sku":"2047101","price":32.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/CAK164X_745abfe5_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727608251"},{"product_id":"straight-line-was-a-lie","title":"Straight Line Was A Lie","description":"\u003ch4\u003e\u003cspan style=\"text-decoration: underline;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/www.roughtrade.com\/browse\/albums-of-the-year-2025\" rel=\"noopener\" target=\"_blank\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAlbums of the Year 2025: #98\n\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/h4\u003e\u003cp\u003eNew Zealand indie rock heroes The Beths latest album \u003cem\u003eStraight Line Was A Lie\u003c\/em\u003e is a catchy, instant classic out on Anti. Written in Los Angeles and self-recorded in the band's hometown of Auckland, \u003cem\u003eStraight Line Was A Lie\u003c\/em\u003e (their first release for ANTI-) follows 2022's critically celebrated LP \u003cem\u003eExpert in A Dying Field\u003c\/em\u003e.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLead singer and songwriter Liz Stokes delves deeper into her psyche to address everything from roundabout progress to physical and mental health challenges, and fraught family dynamics. Inspired by The Go-Go's, Olivia Rodrigo, filmmaker Akira Kurosawa, and Stephen King's On Writing, amongst others, Stokes' songwriting has achieved startling new depths of insight and vulnerability.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFans will agree that \u003cem\u003eStraight Line Was A Lie\u003c\/em\u003e is the most sharply observant, truthful, and poetic Beths project to date.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Anti","offers":[{"title":"LP - Lemon Blue Horizon | Rough Trade Exclusive (UK)","offer_id":52303591211339,"sku":"R4667-9036","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Smoky Lilac | Rough Trade Exclusive (US)","offer_id":52471167385931,"sku":"R4667-6577","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Lime Sherbert (UK)","offer_id":52303558738251,"sku":"R4667-3552","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"LP - Blue (US)","offer_id":52504320541003,"sku":"R4667-0484","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"LP - Black","offer_id":52303558705483,"sku":"R4667-6265","price":27.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"CD","offer_id":52303558672715,"sku":"R4667-7296","price":11.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/59e74700-1fe9-4f97-9c61-deb8a6f0dff4_7a429091-5a07-494f-8f4f-d05b6219275c.jpg?v=1752246951"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/collections\/test_df5eb3b5_thumbnail_4096_2ac4e9c9-45cb-4bdf-a806-7ee824626482.jpg?v=1726288134","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/fr\/collections\/the-beths.oembed","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}