Photography by Maya Lutz

Lip Filler makes rowdy debut on first single COOL’, produced by st Francis hotel

On 20 September, West London indie-punk five-piece Lip Filler released their debut single ‘Cool’, produced by St Francis Hotel (Little Simz, Greentea Peng, Michael Kiwanuka).

Inspired by artists old and new ranging from Blur to Nilüfer Yanya, the band – consisting of guitarists Jude and Verity, bassist Theo, drummer Nate, and vocalist and keys player George – met in the Southwest of England. The friends moved in with each other in London, allowing them to begin to develop the sound that defines Lip Filler today.

Their debut single ‘Cool’ captures this sound, blending a range of influences from indie-rock and dance-punk, accompanied by lyrics about personal identity and the insecurities that accompany young adulthood.

For a band who hadn’t released any music up until this point, Lip Filler have garnered an impressive fan base, within which this track is already a favourite after they have been playing it live on recent support slots.

Now ‘Cool’ has been officially released, its popularity is only going to grow. The catchy call and response vocals that drive the song are soundtracked by heavy rock instrumentation, providing the vocals with additional power and force that is only heightened when the track is performed live.

This high energy relaxes for the chorus of the track, with the instrumental taking a more atmospheric tone whilst George repetitively sings “You can call my name”. Even though this structure is unconventional, since the chorus is usually the most energetic section of a song, it works perfectly for Lip Filler here to balance out the aggression of the verses.

Of the track, George said: “It’s a song about caring too much about yourself and your image. I suppose it’s about trying to claim validation from other people around you. It’s about types of people we generally encounter on nights out since moving to London. But there’s also contrasting sections of the song, such as the chorus, which focuses more on the vulnerabilities of these people. It looks at the weird transitional stage of young adulthood where you’re not secure enough in your own identity.”

Having already supported the likes of XVOTO, Pit Pony, Gene Pool and more, the release of ‘Cool’ only further builds the hype for Lip Filler’s debut EP which is scheduled for release next year. Their other aspirations for 2023? To go on a headline tour of their own – and to buy a pet tortoise for their flat, of course.


Listen to ‘Cool’ here: