Bristol’s rock trio Krooked Tongue return with ‘I Don’t Believe In Ghosts’, out today, the latest single to be taken from their debut studio album ‘I Know A Place’ which arrives on April 24th 2026 to limited edition vinyl.
The album’s previous singles saw support from Apple editorial’s ‘Breaking Hard Rock’ and ‘New In Rock’, New Noise Magazine, HEAVY Magazine, CLOUT, Fab UK, Bristol 24/7, Sirius XM, Total Rock, IDOBI, Primordial Radio and Boogaloo Radio, with ‘Nothing Ever Grows’ being used throughout the Bivol vs Beterbiev boxing fight on DAZN Sports and ‘Let ‘Em Loose’ being used to soundtrack Progress Wrestling’s live show at London’s Electric Ballroom.
Recorded and produced with long-time producer Josh Gallop (Sergeant Thunderhoof, Mother Vulture, Phoxjaw) at Stage 2 Studios in Bath, ‘I Don’t Believe In Ghosts’ is unlike anything Krooked Tongue have written before, displaying a fragility not seen in any of their previous works. Delicate, emotive piano keys wrap around Oli Rainsford’s uncharacteristically gentle vocals, lyrically exploring the process of grieving a loved one.
I Don’t Believe in Ghosts
On the single, vocalist and lyricist Oli Rainsford explains, “‘I Don’t Believe in Ghosts’ holds the chalice of uncertainty with the tender grip of an exhausted hand. It’s a song that tries its best to pry open the syntax of death, to make sense of it, but knows there’s no way to categorise or organise our emotions when it comes to losing someone.
The idea of ‘ghosts’ or ‘the paranormal’ is one we all know and by the most part reject. I don’t buy into any of that stuff, but ‘I Don’t Believe in Ghosts’ acts as a sort of proverbial notepad. A place to whisper your thoughts out into the open and feel as though they’re being heard, even if they’re not. I think we’ve lost our way a bit in this modern age, disconnected from humanity and death in an age where death is so commonly consumed through media. We’ve lost the art of taking a moment, catching our breath. ‘I Don’t Believe in Ghosts’ gifts us that moment to breathe. The lyrics continuously play with the phantom feelings that we all sometimes experience after someone dies.
A perfectly timed breeze or a robin that lands nearby on a crisp Autumn morning. We see ourselves and others in moments throughout our life. Whether you believe in those sorts of things or not, the fact that we can even for a split second imagine and say ‘maybe it’s a sign’, is the purity of the human experience.
“The song was originally written on piano, as it is on the record, a couple of years ago as part of my Masters dissertation. When it came to start planning our debut album, it just seemed too authentic a song for it to not be included in our first full body of work. It was important for us to keep it authentic. It would’ve been easy to slap on a bunch of extra stuff, but the song’s strength, we agreed, is in its solemn tone. The artwork for the song was inspired by the visualisation of grief in the film ‘A Ghost Story’.
Something about the crudeness of a classic bed sheet ghost adds to the childlike innocence in keeping with the lack of knowing, when it comes to death. I thought the way that movie embraced the silence and space was really captivating, and it had a clear influence in the writing and performing of the song. Death is a weird thing to write about, it’s something so familiar to everyone and yet so alien because it relies on personal experiences. One of the most beautiful things about music is that it often bridges that gap. We want to dedicate this song to everyone who has lost someone, and to everyone who has carried the torch as life hurtles onward. Time heals all. Don’t be a ghost. Stay human.”
MORE INFORMATION:
Krooked Tongue
burst onto the scene with the release of their critically acclaimed debut EP ‘No Vacancy Hotel’ in February of 2022, recorded with Josh Gallop (Phoxjaw, Mother Vulture) at Stage 2 Studios. The EP has since amassed over 250,000 streams and saw support from publications such as Ones To Watch, HardBeat Magazine and Distorted Sound.
Their second studio EP ‘Deathproof’, released May 2023, saw the start of the band’s evolution, there was a refreshed maturity to their songwriting and an evident progression in their sound. ‘Deathproof’ has been streamed over 350,000 times to date and was celebrated by Louder Than War Radio, Ones To Watch, Sirius XM, BBC Introducing and many others.
August 2024 saw their biggest support tour to date, supporting Kid Brunswick on his final ‘Dead Forever’ tour across the UK. They’ve also shared the stage with False Heads, Virgin Marys, Phoxjaw, Pulled Apart By Horses, The Soap Girls and Mother Vulture and have played slots at festivals such as Icebreaker, Dot to Dot, The Godney Gathering, Estonia’s Tallinn Music Week and Burn It Down. March 2026 sees the band head to the United States for the first time for New York City’s New Colossus Festival.
ONLINE Krooked Tongue:
Website: https://krookedtongue.bandcamp.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Krookedtongue
X: https://x.com/krooked_tongue
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krookedtongue
LIVE DATES Krooked Tongue:
December 14th 2025 – The Louisiana, Bristol (Supporting The Valla)
January 27th 2026 – Drummonds, Worcester (IVW Tour)
January 28th 2026 – The Grove, Nottingham (IVW Tour)
January 29th 2026 – Green Door Store, Brighton (IVW Tour)
January 30th 2026 – Tiny Rebel, Cardiff (IVW Tour)
January 31st 2026 – The Cobblestones, Bridgwater (IVW Tour)
March 3rd-8th – New Colossus Festival, New York, USA
“Sound like Queens Of The Stone Age breaking Royal Blood out of jail and showcase a band straining at the leash” – Louder
“Whilst the EP may resonate overwhelming with the angst-consumed youths, as a debut EP it is still one many others may only gawk at in the hopes that the blueprints they’ve laid out may one day be misplaced and fall into the hands of those hoping to follow in their shadow.” – Distorted Sound Mag
“The title track closes the record by ramping up the band’s playful nature while systematically breaking down defenses with its sharp melody and harder, punchier grooves. Guitar solos weave through the mosh-inducing song, making it the perfect finale for any live performance.” – Ones To Watch
“This is another fine example of British rock music setting itself on a pedestal against the rest of the world.” – HardBeat Magazine
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