Rising out of the storied strip of Denmark Street, London outfit Tape House step into sharper focus with their latest single, Spanish Friend, out now. The track feels like a quiet turning point — not just another release, but a moment of creative and emotional consolidation from a band steadily refining its voice.
Written in the very rehearsal room where the group first took shape, Spanish Friend carries the atmosphere of its birthplace. There’s a lived-in quality to the sound — an intimacy that mirrors the song’s subject matter. Built on a foundation of restrained tension, the track traces the slow unravelling of a relationship caught between affection and inevitability. Rather than leaning into melodrama, Tape House allow the song to breathe. Space becomes an instrument in itself.
Musically, the band continue to blur genre boundaries. There’s a rock backbone driving the track forward, but its phrasing and harmonic choices nod towards jazz and classical influences. The arrangement unfolds deliberately, resisting excess in favour of dynamic control. At its core sits Charles Markham’s vocal, clear, exposed and unwavering — delivering each line with a sense of acceptance rather than accusation.
Behind the scenes, the single benefits from heavyweight studio pedigree. Production comes from Luie Stylianou and Louis Isaacs, whose credits include work with Judas Priest, David Gilmour and Mark Knopfler. Mastering was handled by Grammy Award-winner Matt Colton, known for collaborations with artists such as Arctic Monkeys, Thom Yorke, The Cure, Aphex Twin, Little Simz, Wet Leg and The Rolling Stones. The result is a polished yet organic sound that allows the band’s identity to remain front and centre.
What sets Spanish Friend apart is its emotional clarity. The song captures that fragile space where love still feels mutual, yet the path ahead no longer runs parallel. It’s about recognising when repetition becomes self-betrayal — when holding on means standing still. As the band explains: “Spanish Friend comes from that uncomfortable space in love where everything feels mutual except the future.”
That honesty has become something of a hallmark. Tape House have quietly built momentum through a string of releases that balance vulnerability with controlled intensity, earning support from tastemakers and carving out a reputation for refusing easy categorisation. Onstage, that same tension translates into something magnetic. Performances at Ronnie Scott’s, O2 Islington and The Groucho Club have cemented their status as a band capable of marrying atmosphere with impact.
With Spanish Friend, Tape House don’t shout to be heard. Instead, they lean into restraint and in doing so, deliver their most self-assured statement yet.