After the success of their Pelican West 40th anniversary shows in 2023, Beckenham new wave outfit Haircut 100 have announced their first UK tour in over four decades, heading to the likes of Newcastle, Manchester, Birmingham, Cambridge, Bath and more in October and November 2023.
Haircut 100 was formed by Nick Heyward, Les Nemes and Graham Jones after moving to London in 1980. It didn't take long for them to make waves in what would be a crowded decade for British new wave; their 1982 debut Pelican West peaked at No.2 on the UK Albums Chart and with playful and dynamic tunes including 'Favourite Shirt (Boy Meets Girl)', 'Favourite Day' and 'Love Plus One', remains on the 80s most memorable records.
Heyward left not long after to pursue a solo career, leaving bassist and new vocalist Marc Fox and the rest of the band to release their awaited second album Paint and Paint in 1984. Despite failing to chart, it remains a cult-classic of the era, including songs such as the funky 'Fish in a Bowl', the glistening 'So Tired' and the bittersweet and bouncy 'Immaterial'.
The band soon split after the release of Paint and Paint, but 20 years later reconnected as old friends while joining one of Nick Heyward's solo shows. In 2023 Pelican West was re-released as a super deluxe boxset, and the band performed at BBC Radio 2's Piano Room (including a cover of Harry Styles' As It Was). The band performed what were believed to be one-off shows at Oxford and London to celebrate its release, however in June 2023 they announced that they would embark on a UK-wide tour in October and November that year.