Photo by Megan Wyrill
Hartlepool quintet Marketplace have released their latest and greatest, brand new single ‘Play Nice!’. Their indie-pop begins with effect-laden guitar tones sparkling the atmosphere, before jumping into a playful, nostalgic groove. Twinkling twangs in the high-end, bouncing around at the bass and a singalong vocal in the middle, the band is bright and breezy.
You’ll find yourself bobbing your head to the beat as its buoyant nature makes it all the more charming. The duet of vocals, then backed up by another of harmonies, as well as a sea of graceful guitars and subtle synths, comes together to create a busy mix that you can keep picking new melodies out of. The beautiful chaos is pulled together by the tight drum rhythm into a lush sugar-coated product.
Vocalist Evie Rhodes explains, “Play Nice! was born from being thrown into the kind of situation which I had not been in since secondary school, and the frustration of feeling like I was long past the point of dealing with interpersonal issues in that sort of immature, psychological, mean-girl way. In its most basic form, it is a diss track, which was something I would never have expected I’d do. It kind of demonstrates how checked out I’d become with the situation, in that it’s basically years of frustrations boiling up to the surface that I wished I’d been able to express at the time.”
Broad support from UK tastemakers and on the way to New York for the New Colossus Festival and Texas for SXSW. Lots to come in 2026 then, with more singles on the way to add to their discography. The five-piece is set to have an exciting year to come.
Listen below:
