Back in June, Haircut 100 released Boxing the Compass, their first album in over 40 years. That decades-long gap between releases, though, wasn’t for a lack of trying.
“We played various festivals and a couple of gigs here and there and we always said, wouldn’t it be a shame if this didn’t lead to other things?” says bassist Les Nemes. “And it didn’t. It never did because we didn’t have any manager to get the momentum going and organize stuff.”
Then, around the 40th anniversary of debut album Pelican West, Haircut 100 played London’s Shepherd’s Bush Empire. Following the show, they linked up with manager Melvyn Taub. “He basically took over and everything that happened, even what’s happening now, I guess, in a way, is all down to Melvyn,” says Nemes. Sadly, Taub died in 2024. “He never really got to take it all the way through. So, everything we do, we do with Melvyn in mind. This is what Melvyn would have wanted.”
Formed in early 1980s London, Haircut 100 soaked in the influences around them – everything from XTC and the Clash to dub to Hamilton Bohannon’s “Disco Stomp” – and channeled that, along with youthful enthusiasm for making their first album, and doing it at the same studio where Queen recorded A Night at the Opera, into their 1982 debut, Pelican West. The album was a success that spawned still-memorable new wave jams like “Favourite Shirts (Boy Meets Girl)” and “Love Plus One.”
What still stands out about Haircut 100’s early hits is their funkiness. “I think that comes from Blair because Blair is the real deal,” says Nemes, referencing drummer Blair Cunningham, who is from Memphis and had played on Stax recordings prior to Haircut 100.
“We loved listening to people like Earth Wind and Fire and James Brown and all these funky things, these complicated brass sections, but we were never really good enough technically to play like that,” says Nemes. “When Blair turned up, everything changed because Blair’s the real deal.”
He adds, “Credit where credit is due, a lot of the brass stuff was down to Phil [Smith, sax on Pelican West], he’s a great player and a great brass arranger.”
But, Haircut 100’s first run was relatively short-lived. Heyward went solo after Pelican West and the band continued on for just one more album, Paint and Paint, before calling it a day. By the 2000s, though, Haircut 100 had reunited for occasional live performances. In 2008, they played on a cricket green in Cookham, England, and were invited to record at nearby Wispington Studios. That’s where the band made “A Wonderful Life,” which closes out Boxing the Compass. Not long after that, they headed into another studio with Heyward’s son Oliver, a sound engineer, and recorded “Raincloud.”
“It’s really easy for the four of us to get back, but staying together takes a team of people and that’s what we haven’t been able to have,” says Heyward. “We were getting back to making stuff happen, but we weren’t able to get more gigs around 2008.”
Without gigs or the funds to record a full album, those recordings remained on a hard drive for years, until it was time to make Boxing the Compass. “I wouldn’t want to record those again because they captured magic in there,” says Heyward of the songs, both of which are on the album.
After the band gained management, they went into the studio again with the intention of making just a few demos. That turned out to be a fruitful session. In fact, they ended up with more material than they could use for the album.
On Boxing the Compass, Haircut 100 find the sweet spot between indie and funk, where heaters like “Vanishing Point” and “Someone” sitting beside horn-filled pop songs like “That’s a Start.” Really, if your music collection is a mishmash of James Brown, Style Council, Beautiful South and Belle & Sebastian, you’ll dig Boxing the Compass.
Currently, Haircut 100 is touring the U.S., where, in most cities, they’re opening for Squeeze. In L.A., though, the band is playing their only headlining show in the States. The show, on Wednesday, September 16, at Teragram Ballroom, is already sold out.
When asked what has stuck around from Haircut 100’s first run, Nemes says it’s friendship and enthusiasm. “ It was a little bit like The Monkees. We all lived together in a tiny little apartment. We went out together. We played in a band together,” he explains, adding that it’s been easy to pick up where they left off.
“When you get into a situation- rehearsal, you’re actually playing- you’re doing the thing that you love more than anything else and it sounds good and it makes everyone smile, then that’s infectious isn’t it?” he continues. “You can’t give that up. You’re always going to want that. That’s why bands split up and get back together again, I think. You can’t leave it alone.”
Boxing the Compass by Haircut 100 is out now.
Liz O. is an L.A.-based writer and DJ. Follow on Instagram or sign up for the weekly, Beatique newsletter for updates on new stories and gigs.
Listen to the September, 2026 edition of Beatique, which also features music from Olivia Rodrigo, ear, Purity Ring, Brigette Calls Me Baby, Slayyyter and more.
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