Tapir! were an English

indie folk Indie folk (also called alternative folk) is an alternative genre of music that arose in the 1990s among musicians from indie rock scenes influenced by folk music. Characteristics The staff of '' Paste Magazine'' said in 2020: "No music genre ...

band, formed in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

in 2019. They were known for their blending of folk music with genres such as

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

and

art pop Art pop (also typeset art-pop or artpop) is a loosely defined style of pop music influenced by art theory, art theories as well as ideas from other art mediums, such as fashion, fine art, film, cinema, and avant-garde literature. The genre dra ...

, as well as the narratives told in their music. Their practice of wearing red

papier-mâché file:JacmelMardiGras.jpg, upright=1.3, Mardi Gras papier-mâché masks, Haiti Papier-mâché ( , , - the French term "mâché" here means "crushed and ground") is a versatile craft technique with roots in ancient China, in which waste paper is s ...

heads during performances and interviews was often noted by reviewers as part of the band's eccentricity. Tapir! formed in 2019, and released their first single, "My God", in 2022. They then released two EPs, ''Act 1 (The Pilgrim)'' and ''Act 2 (Their God)''. Both EPs were included in their only full-length album, ''

The Pilgrim, Their God and the King of My Decrepit Mountain ''The Pilgrim, Their God and the King of My Decrepit Mountain'' is the only studio album by British indie folk band Tapir!, released on 26 January 2024 through Heavenly Recordings. The album is divided into three acts: ''The Pilgrim'', ''Their G ...

'', released on 26 January 2024; the album received generally positive reviews. They released two more singles - "Hallelujah Bruv" and "Nail in a Wooden Trunk" - in 2024, before announcing on 27 May 2025 that they would be disbanding. Tapir! have been praised for their eccentricity and overall aesthetic, as well as the narratives included in their music. ''The Pilgrim'' tells the story of the titular Pilgrim travelling through a world of green hills and red beasts, and was described by '' DIY'' as "an escapist dream, and immersive story". Their music has been compared to

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...

and

pagan Paganism (, later 'civilian') is a term first used in the fourth century by early Christians for people in the Roman Empire who practiced polytheism, or ethnic religions other than Christianity, Judaism, and Samaritanism. In the time of the ...

ceremonies; many aspects of their lyrics were inspired by biblical, mythical, and literary sources.

Career

Tapir! consisted of six musicians based in

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

, many of whom were a part of other projects. The band formed in 2019 and began releasing music three years later; they released "My God", written during the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

, as their first single, and the EP ''Act 1 (The Pilgrim)'' in 2022. These were both later re-released, with "My God" becoming a single for their first album and ''Act 1 (The Pilgrim)'' being remastered and re-released to coincide with the signing of the band to

Heavenly Recordings Heavenly Recordings is a London-based independent record label founded by Jeff Barrett in 1990. Heavenly released the first albums from Saint Etienne, Beth Orton and Doves, and early singles by Manic Street Preachers. Current Heavenly artists i ...

in May 2023. Tapir! began playing live shows in 2022, opening for

Ian Sweet Jilian Medford, better known by her stage name Ian Sweet, is an American indie rock musician from Los Angeles, California. History As Ian Sweet, Medford has released four full-length albums. The first album, ''Shapeshifter'', was released in 2016 ...

in May. In August, they performed at

Green Man Festival The Green Man Festival is an independent music, science and arts festival held annually in mid-August in the Brecon Beacons, Wales. Green Man has evolved into a 25,000 capacity week long event, showcasing predominantly live music (in particular ...

. In March 2023, they were announced as part of the October Left of the Dial festival. On 8 November, Tapir! opened a concert for

post-rock Post-rock is a subgenre of experimental rock that emphasizes Texture (music), texture, atmosphere, and non-traditional song structures over conventional rock techniques. Post-rock artists often combine rock instrumentation and rock stylings wit ...

band Explosions in the Sky at

Troxy Troxy is a Grade II-listed Art Deco music venue on Commercial Road in Stepney, London. Built as a cinema in 1933, it closed in 1960 and became a training school for the London Opera Centre. In the 1980s the building was used as a bingo hall, ...

. Tapir!'s first album, ''

'', was released on 26 January 2024. It is composed of three acts: their two previous EPs – ''Act 1 (The Pilgrim)'' and ''Act 2 (Their God)'' – plus four songs in a third act exclusive to the full album. The first song of each act contains narration by

Kyle Field Kyle Field is an American football stadium in College Station, Texas located on the campus of Texas A&M University. It has been the home to the Texas A&M Aggies football team in rudimentary form since 1904, and as a permanent concrete stadium s ...

. The album tells the story of "The Pilgrim", a creature travelling through a fictional world of green hills and red beasts. The album was described by '' DIY'' as "immersed in the cinematic, the mythological and the art of experimenting... an escapist dream, and immersive story". On 15 August 2024, Tapir! released a new track, "Hallelujah Bruv". It was recorded with Yuri Shibuichi and Hywel Pryer, who had previously worked with the band. On 17 September, they released the single "Nail in a Wooden Trunk". On 27 May 2025, Tapir! announced that they would be disbanding, stating that they had "completed the project that

hey Hey, HEY, or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the ...

set out to achieve and then some". They stated that part of the reason for disbanding was so that the band's vocalist, Evelyn Gray, could focus on their

gender transition Gender transition is the process of affirming and expressing one's internal sense of gender, rather than the sex assigned to them at birth. It is a recommended course of treatment for individuals experiencing gender dysphoria, providing impro ...

, and that many of the band members were "at different stages of

heir Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Offi ...

lives from when

first began the band".

Musical style and reception

'' Clash'' describes Tapir! as "blend ng

with

folk Folk or Folks may refer to: Sociology *Nation *People * Folklore ** Folk art ** Folk dance ** Folk hero ** Folk horror ** Folk music *** Folk metal *** Folk punk *** Folk rock ** Folk religion * Folk taxonomy Arts, entertainment, and media * Fo ...

indie Indie is a short form of "independence" or "independent"; it may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media *Independent media, media free of influence by government or corporate interests *Indie art, fine arts made by artists independent of commer ...

with skittering electronics" and as

. Describing the track "Gymnopédie", ''Circuit Sweet'' called its climax "a glorious

lo-fi Lo-fi (also typeset as lofi or low-fi; short for low fidelity) is a music or production quality in which elements usually regarded as imperfections in the context of a recording or performance are present, sometimes as a deliberate stylistic ch ...

symphony that sounds like it's performed teetering on the edge of a cliff". Writing for ''Hideous Magazine'', Angelika May wrote of the song "My God" that it "exudes an abundance of esotericism and eccentricity, offering intricate and thorough conceptions that make you want to crack open their crimson, mammalian heads in an attempt to understand their process". In a review of the 2022 version of ''Act 1'' for ''Hard of Hearing Magazine'', Lloyd Bolton compared the music's aesthetic to

, saying "amid the crackle, artless singalongs create the impression of a fictional

ceremony, celebrating the folklore of this imaginary region". Many of the drums in Tapir!'s music are electronic, although they did have a drummer when playing live. Much of the lyrical inspiration on ''Act 2'' is from

biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

, mythical, and literary sources, such as the track "Eidolon" being inspired by a

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman Jr. (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist, and journalist; he also wrote two novels. He is considered one of the most influential poets in American literature and world literature. Whitman incor ...

poem. The band often wore red

heads online and for live performances, representing the character of the Pilgrim.

Members

All info per PIAS and Wax Music. * Evelyn Gray – vocals, guitar * Ronnie Longfellow – bass guitar * Emily Hubbard –

cornet The cornet (, ) is a brass instrument similar to the trumpet but distinguished from it by its conical bore, more compact shape, and mellower tone quality. The most common cornet is a transposing instrument in B. There is also a soprano cor ...

, synths * Tom Rogers-Coltman – guitar * Will McCrossan – keyboard * Wilfred Cartwright – drums,

cello The violoncello ( , ), commonly abbreviated as cello ( ), is a middle pitched bowed (sometimes pizzicato, plucked and occasionally col legno, hit) string instrument of the violin family. Its four strings are usually intonation (music), tuned i ...

Discography

Albums

* ''

'' (2024)

EPs

* ''Act 1 (The Pilgrim)'' (2022, re-released 2023) * ''Act 2 (Their God)'' (2023)

Singles

* "My God" (2022, re-released 2023) * "On a Grassy Knoll (We'll Bow Together)" (2023) * "Gymnopédie" (2023) * "Hallelujah Bruv" (2024) * "Nail in a Wooden Trunk" (2024)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tapir British indie folk groups Musical groups from London Musical groups established in 2019 2019 establishments in England Musical groups disestablished in 2025