We love folk rock here at Lazland, and it is a written rule of the site’s constitution that any new material from Wigan collective, Merry Hell, will automatically win a website gong. They remain the finest live act on the modern music scene, and their music continues to bring deep pleasure.

2025 saw them release Rising of the Bold, and from that I have awarded my second “folk rock track of 2025” to Vagabond Army, a story of wage slaves sadly all too relevant in modern times, something we should be deeply ashamed of. Bob Kettle, as ever, writes profoundly and the band deliver a rollocking piece. You can get this at https://merryhell.bandcamp.com/album/rising-of-the-bold