TR+ Singles Club: the Virginmarys

the virginmarys

Welcome back to the TeamRock+ Singles Club, the new way to discover the latest new music.This week we have a special track for you: the latest and current single from the Virginmarys, a band long lauded in the pages of Classic Rock.

Oh yeah? Never ‘erd of them.

Then where have you been, old bean? The ‘Marys have been around since 2009 and came to our attention the following year with their Cast The First Stone mini-album. In fact, we can remember bumping into Toby Jepson – one time Little Angel, now a producer – at Hard Rock Hell and him raving about this band he was working with, visibly excited, throwing around comparisons to Guns N’ Roses and the like. When you heard the first fruits of their labours, you could see why: here was a band that rocked hard but had a new lyrical voice, that had the anthemic power of a Foo Fighters and the northern wit and chippy attitude of the Arctic Monkeys. This was something that wasn’t formulaic – not just another rock band copying Led Zeppelin or AC/DC but doing something new and relevant.

So what happened?

They released a bunch of killer singles and EPs between 2010 and 2012 and then their debut album King Of Conflict in 2013. That year they won Best Breakthrough act at the 2013 Classic Rock Awards and toured their arses off. But, in a cruel twist, found that they fell between the cracks when it came to media coverage. (The NME etc claimed that they were ‘too rock’ for the indie-tastes of their readership. The rock media, meanwhile, said they were ‘too indie’ for their fire-breathing rockers. It was all bollocks.) Second album Divides came out in 2016 and was one of Classic Rock’s albums of the year. New single Sweet Loretta kicks things up a gear again – and was voted Track Of The Week by CR readers a couple of weeks back – more upbeat than the Divides material and a must-hear for anyone who loves the modern alt.rock of the Foos, QOTSA, Biffy etc.

TeamRock+ members can click the link below to download a MP3 of Sweet Loretta. If you can’t see the link you’re either not signed in or not a member. Take a free trial to get access to all of the latest issues of Classic Rock, Metal Hammer and Prog, plus thousands of archive stories from the world of rock and metal.

Click here for your free download. (NB: This link will take you to the Virginmarys site and requires signup to their mailing list to unlock the code.)

For more info on the Virginmarys, visit their website or follow them on Facebook.

The TeamRock+ Single Club continues every Friday with a new track to download every week, handpicked by the TeamRock team. Come back next week for more free music.

6 things you need to know about… The Virginmarys

Latest in
Adrian Smith performing with Iron Maiden in 2024
Adrian Smith names his favourite Iron Maiden song, even though it’s “awkward” to play
Robert Smith, Lauren Mayberry, Bono
How your purchase of albums by The Cure, U2, Chvrches and more on Record Store Day can help benefit children living in war zones worldwide
Cradle Of Filth performing in 2021 and Ed Sheeran in 2024
Cradle Of Filth’s singer claims Ed Sheeran tried to turn a Toys R Us into a live music venue
The Beatles in 1962
"The quality is unreal. How is this even possible to have?" Record shop owner finds 1962 Beatles' audition tape that a British label famously decided wasn't good enough to earn Lennon and McCartney's band a record deal
The Mars Volta
“My totalitarian rule might not be cool, but at least we’ve made interesting records. At least we polarise people”: It took The Mars Volta three years and several arguments to make Noctourniquet
/news/the-darkness-i-hate-myself
"When the storm clouds clear, the band’s innate pop sensibilities shine as brightly as ever": In a world of bread-and-butter rock bands, The Darkness remain the toast of the town
Latest in Features
The Mars Volta
“My totalitarian rule might not be cool, but at least we’ve made interesting records. At least we polarise people”: It took The Mars Volta three years and several arguments to make Noctourniquet
Ginger Wildheart headshot
"What happens next, you give everyone a hard-on and then go around the room with a bat like Al Capone?!” Ginger Wildheart's wild tales of Lemmy, AC/DC, Guns N' Roses, Cheap Trick and more
Crispian Mills and Bob Ezrin
“We spent seven months on David Gilmour’s boat and almost bankrupted ourselves. But Bob encouraged us to dream big”: How Bob Ezrin brought out the prog in Kula Shaker
Buckethead and Axl Rose onstage
Psychic tests! Pet wolves! Chicken coops! Guns N' Roses and the wild ride towards Chinese Democracy
Ne Obliviscaris
"Exul ended up being recorded at 10 different studios over two and a half years." Ne Obliviscaris and the heroic story of their fourth album
Mastodon 2000s press shot
“We embrace the spirit of early 70s prog as being the way that you should always approach music." Mastodon and their prog epic Crack The Skye