EIGHTY EIGHT MILES – CLASS OF EIGHTY EIGHT – DEBUT EP RELEASE

RELEASED VIA THIS FEELING RECORDS
FEATURING THE FOCUS TRACK ‘FAVOURITE SEASON’

PLUS THEY ARE TO PLAY SOLD-OUT EP LAUNCH SHOW AT BIRMINGHAM’S MUTHERS STUDIO TOMORROW

“An amalgamation of 70’s laurel canyon folk rock with punchy and playful youthfulness wrapped up in rousing anthems and soaring harmonies. Think Fleetwood Mac meets Blondie… melodic punk pop at its finest.”

They’ve played shows with Lottery Winners, The K’s, Red Rum Club, The Clause and overpass; attracted big name fans in the shape of Lindsey Buckingham and Blossoms; and sold-out four consecutive Birmingham headline shows, but now it’s time for Eighty Eight Miles to really hit their stride. Today they release their long-awaited six-track debut EP ‘Class of Eighty Eight’ via This Feeling Records. It comes as the Midlands-based quintet prepare for their biggest summer festival season to date.

The EP captures Eighty Eight Miles’ singular style: a melting point of luscious harmonies and ‘70s Californian folk-rock style, with the verve, bounce and youthful energy of the UK’s contemporary indie-pop scene. If you’re new to their charms, the EP’s new focus song ‘Favourite Season’ is a fine starting point. Led by Ellie Grace’s captivating and expressive vocal, ‘Favourite Season’ elevates their core sound with their grittiest, sweariest track to date complete with contrasting sultry, swooning vocal melodies.

Vocalist/guitarist Ellie says, “We are so excited to finally be releasing our debut EP ‘Class of Eighty Eight’! We have worked so hard on this over the last few years and now feels like the right time to get these songs out to the world.

The songs featured on the EP are a symbol of our evolution as a band with each song having a different personality to the next, showing our wide variety of influences as a group. We are very proud of this work and we hope this shines through to those who listen to it.”

The ‘Class of Eight Eighty’ EP features a second brand new track in the shape of ‘You Just Never Really Wanna Call Me Home’, a touch of beautifully impassioned lovelorn balladeering with a timelessness that would feel just as home in 1969 as it does in the present day.

The EP opens with their previous single, the indie-blues intensity of ‘Always On The Run’, as well as other key moments from their rise so far with ‘Sophie’, ‘Hi’ and ‘Sexy Song’.

The EP has also been released on limited edition black 10” vinyl. All pre-order copies sold-out in just two hours, but remaining stock will be available at upcoming shows.

Eighty Eight Miles formed while attending the BIMM Music Institute in Birmingham. The band – completed by Max Bets-Pael (guitar), Bekka Redfern (bass), Dan Hobday (drums) and Ollie Newbury (keys/guitar) – shared influences both current (Blossoms, Declan McKenna, Red Rum Club) and classic (Fleetwood Mac, The Beach Boys, The Mamas & The Papas). While they have only released a handful of tracks prior to this EP, they’ve built their reputation in the live arena – particularly with festival dates such as the Isle of Wight, The Great Escape and 2000trees.

The band will celebrate the release of the EP with a sold-out homecoming at Birmingham’s Muthers Studio tomorrow, and they also support The Cases and The Lilacs at select shows. They’re back in festival action all summer, with highlights including a main stage debut at Truck (a big step-up, having first played the festival when they opened the This Feeling stage back in 2022), headlining The Pit at Y NOT? on Saturday night, and finally fulfilling their ambition to play Sheffield’s Tramlines. Their full dates are:

APRIL
10th – Norwich, The Adrian Flux Waterfront (with The Lilacs)
11th – Birmingham, Muthers Studio (HEADLINERS – SOLD-OUT)
25th – Glasgow, Audio (with The Cases)

MAY
1st – Manchester, Gorilla (with The Cases)
3rd – Derby Unplugged
22nd – Sheffield, Sidney & Matilda (with The Cases)
23rd – London, Here Comes The Sun
24th – Liverpool, Noisy Weekender

JUNE
12th – Portsmouth, Golden Touch

JULY
4th – Spain, Polifonik Sound
11th – Plymouth, Sound Factory Festival
24th – Oxfordshire, Truck Festival (main stage)
26th – Sheffield, Tramlines (Open Arms stage)

AUGUST
1st – Derbyshire, Y NOT? (The Pit – HEADLINERS)
20th – Leicestershire, 110 Above
28th – Warwickshire, Camper Calling