PREMIERE: Barbarian Hermit's Final Two Track Single 'Redux'
At the beginning of August Manchester noise mangers Barbarian Hermit announced they would be going on indefinite hiatus, a huge blow to all of us who love them.
But before they bow out, and just prior to their farewell show, they are set to release a final two-track single 'Redux' this Friday.
Today, we at The Razor's Edge are proud to be premiering their final work! You can exclusively check out the two track masterpiece below and find out a lot more about the bands journey to releasing it.
The Redux project first came about because Barbarian Hermit’s drummer, Gaz Manning, is doing a University course in music production and he needed to record and mix a full song as part of his coursework.
With Burn The Fire being a staple in the band’s live set they figured it would be the easiest song to lay down as it's so deeply embedded under their fingertips. Coincidentally, 2025 marks 10 years since they first released it as a single with its infamous green-screened video featuring badgers in IKEA and flying cars. As such the band decided it would also be a fitting way to commemorate this anniversary while also finally having a studio version that features Gaz on drums and Bobby (Rob Sutcliffe) on bass, seeing as they didn't play on the original. The song has also developed over time so there are a few extra bells and whistles on the track that aren't on the original version, including a new solo by Mike Regan (guitar).
While Barbarian Hermit were in the studio with Gaz, it turned out they had time to lay down another track. The song Del Toro was one they originally wrote with Si (Scarlett – vocals) back in 2016. He left the band before they had chance to record it and it would eventually become the song ‘Beyond The Wall’ on their 2018 album ‘Solitude and Savagery’, with Ed Campbell singing a new set of lyrics on it.
When Si rejoined the band in 2021, his original version was put back into Barbarian Hermit's live set list. It was a no brainer to also lay down this version of the song in the studio and finally present the song as it was originally written.
Around the time of recording, the Hermits made the difficult decision to put the band on hiatus for various personal reasons.
Guitarist Adam Robertshaw said,
“Releasing these two songs as an EP became a fitting way to tie a bow around our time as a band, by celebrating our history and completing some unfinished business, so to speak.
“Gaz did an excellent job of engineering these two songs, and the mastering by Joe Clayton (No Studio) has elevated them even further. We also got to work with the brilliant Truespiltmilk Designs on the cover art. He's an artist we've admired for a long time, so it was a pleasure to finally work with him.”
Redux is out available to stream and download on 12 September via APF Records.
Redux track listing:
1. Del Toro
2. Burn The Fire (Redux)
Barbarian Hermit's final swansong will be at The Bread Shed, Manchester on October 25th and feature support from Under, 1968 and Rupcha Farms.
This is a show you do not want to miss!
