The Trusted are a Southend-on-Sea-based indie pop band who have been featuring on these pages since 2022 when Jane discovered them for us through their single Arkansas. They’ve just released a new EP, an introspective and emotional collection of five tracks called Lost Soul.

By Graeme Smith

The Trusted are a band who formed during their secondary school years, coming together around a shared love for melodies and the music of British rock acts like Catfish and the Bottlemen, The 1975, The Clash and Elvis Costello. The band took those influences and recreated them through their unique lens, resulting in a sound that combines post-punk sentiments with strong storytelling.

Their new EP opens with its title track, an anthem for the unnoticed. It’s a finely-balanced track that gives us a melancholic story underpinned by racy indie rock instrumentals. The verse canters along before we arrive at an epic-feeling chorus. With great use of rise and fall, it’s an interesting composition that grabs your attention, and doesn’t let go. It’s a great start.

Marrow slows things down with a reflective ballad that shows the softer side of The Trusted’s sound. Doomsday is a mid-EP highlight, giving us a bold number suitable for festival stages. Its kicking guitar riff starts things off on the right foot before we arrive at a simmering, poetic verse that gives way to a memorable chorus.

Gimme Your Devotion is perhaps the EP’s brightest moment, with layers of electronica swirling among the track’s traditional indie rock instrumentals. The vocals take on a sultry quality in the verse before arriving at a chorus that leaves it all out there. Burning the Night closes the EP with a smouldering moment that gives us heavy percussion and brooding bass. It’s a final highlight.

If you happen to be in London on 1 February, The Trusted will be playing at The Bedford, Balham that evening, with a set featuring tracks from this EP. Tickets are free and available here.

You can check out Lost Soul below.