W: Sibyl Cooper - @redblehhh I: Olly Bromidge @ollybromidge Lighting Assistant: -Tyreese Parkin @tyreeseparkin_ Set support: Samuel GrahamUnion Jack dress by @denholmbruce
From their early days The Molotovs were led to the haunts of music legends by a golden thread of fate. Each time they perform, Matt and Issey grow stronger, now kinetic and relentless on stage, driven by slicing guitar riffs, ferocious drum fills, and the spark of a brother-sister chemistry that’s as tight as it is combustible.
In an age of growing austerity, the state of the United Kingdom is dire. As the cost of living rises, tension between people and government reaches its boiling point, a mirror is placed before us. It reflects back images of Callaghan’s England, of power outages, trade unions clashing with police, a sweeping sense of hopelessness.
With a new wave of post COVID young artists emerging onto scenes across the country, I sense that a new punk resurgence is on the horizon, and bands like The Molotovs are at the Vanguard.
The Molotovs are not just “making noise” — they’re reshaping the landscape of punk and DIY music, one blistering performance at a time. Formed by brother and sister duo Matt and Issey Cartlidge, the band’s ascent from London’s street corners to stages across the UK has been explosive.
Over the past three years, Matt and Issey have played more than 500 live shows — an eye-watering number for a duo in their teens. From the depths of Camden pubs to busking sets in Soho, no matter the weather, the duo built a reputation the old-fashioned way: volume, grit, and total immersion in the London live music scenes. Their first live show took place at The Court - formerly known as the Bag O’Nails Club, the notorious Kingsley Street venue with a stage graced by Jimmi Hendrix and Fleetwood Mac, and the place Paul and Linda McCartney first met:
“Some bloke put his business card in the guitar case and went, ‘call me if you want a gig’. So obviously we did, and it's really good fun. We thought it was the best thing ever. If I watch videos about it now, I'd probably cry.” - Matt
Matt, the group’s charismatic frontman, has an instinctive stage presence. Issey plays bass like she’s wielding a weapon, eyes locked and loaded. Together, they feel like a movement in motion — confident and conscious of the weight punk carries.
When it comes to writing, Matt is on the lyrics and constructs the central guitar riffs with Issey weaving bass lines around in and around their tracks:
“I write a lot about people in one way or another, whether it be politics or social interactions, frustrations. Young people, their chances of getting their own house and being independent is becoming less and less and less, and it's tough for young people nowadays. That really frustrates me. That's really where the noise comes from in one way or another.” - Matt
There is a sense of youth and honesty in Molotovs lyrics. They are political without preaching, emotional without melodrama — a middle finger and a love letter all wrapped into one.
The Molotovs are not just live performers, they are scene-builders. The duo started Youth Explosion out of Wimbledon Library in 2023, an all-ages event that allowed music fans an opportunity to see alternative music in a safe and unconventional space, a space where self expression and acceptance is welcomed above all. Youth Explosion caught the eyes and ears of Sex Pistols drummer, Paul Cookie Cook. He attended a night and joined the band to play God Save The Queen:
“He just saw everyone was going for it, and there was a real energy in the room. I think he got a bit excited, then he came bounding up the side stage.” - Issey
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Youth Explosion has now come to a close, but a new 18+ night has taken its place. As well as a slick bass player with a keen eye for styling, Issey curates Incendiary Nights out of Soho’s The Spice of Life. A dynamic night of guitar music showcasing London’s freshest band talent, of artists who draw inspiration from eras past and project the sounds forward with a fresh perspective. The sense of community Youth Explosion brought is still channelled by Issey into Incendiary:
“People will be there on month one, and they'll be dressed how the general public dresses. Then you see them by month six. They've got themselves a new piercing, they're feeling more tailored. You see they start to get into it, and how much this stuff matters, bringing through a new generation of music lovers.” - Issey
This grassroots ethos hasn’t gone unnoticed by punk and new wave legends. The Molotovs have performed live with one of Issey’s favourite bands, The Libertines, and have supported Blondie at Cardiff Castle, a mind blowing experience for the duo that felt like a dream.
With the duo having embarked on their debut tour, ‘Tour Tour Tour’, the collaborations have not stopped, with the duo performing with The Sex Pistols at The Royal Albert Hall on the tour’s opening night. These icons see in the duo a spark of something real, of something that matters.
The Royal Albert Hall is a liminal space for subculture music, blending ornate gold gilt ceilings, seamless marble and velvet coated seating with the thrashing tones of punk and post punk music. Echoes of classical pioneers like Wagner and Bernstein mingle with Siouxsie Sioux, Dave Vanian, and Ian Astbury who haunt the halls. Matt and Issey join the pantheon of artists who left their mark and spirit on this cultural cornerstone.
The Molotovs and Pistols show was in support of the Teenage Cancer Trust. Performing for a cause was rewarding for the duo, there was a lot of humanity in the room, with both old and young fans in attendance.
Backstage at a Pistols show, you would expect nothing less than debauchery and ruckus, but in the Sex Pistol’s zen new era, Matt and Issey enjoyed cups of tea with the band backstage, learning about Frank Carter’s passion for photography, and discussing The Small Faces and The Jam with Glen Matlock.
As Matt and Issey embarked on their Tour Tour Tour, they headlined venues across the country, from The Cavern in Exeter to The Jacanandra in Liverpool, an old haunt of The Beatles.
In each city, Matt and Issey were supported by bands local to the area like The Coppers and The Cases. Over 800 bands submitted applications which Matt and Issey reviewed:
“We think it’s really important to create all ages music hubs here in London. We want to do that in other parts of the country and spur on local scenes.” - Issey
The ethos of Punk Cultivation resulted in each stop on Tour Tour Tour being sold out out out, a regenerative wildfire sparked from a burning bottle.
For Matt, nothing on the tour was quite like performing on home turf at The Scala. Familiar faces from gigs on the London circuit were packed into the front row.
Here, the crowd was a generational melting pot of young teen fans and veteran punks from the golden age. All ages were dressed to impress with mod and punk styles.
The crowd at The Scala shows what’s magnetic about The Molotovs, how they are a bridge between generations. They aren’t Frankensteining punk back to life with rusty wires and lightning bolts, they’re gently reviving the genre with a lazarus elixir, capturing the sound of the traditional punk scene with great authenticity. It’s a sound that glows with freshness to the young and nostalgia to the veterans.
As Tour Tour Tour concluded, Matt and Issey had no time to rest, jetting off to the States to perform at South-by-SouthWest Festival in Austin, Texas. Straight after landing, their first show at the festival was at 1am. All down 67th street at venues like BME and Mohawk hosted an array of bands from across the world. The magic of US festivals like South-by-SouthWest, captured also by Seattle’s Freakout Festival, is that streets become a cultural hub for musicians and music lovers.
Bars, record stores, coffee shops all open their doors and convert into gig spaces. Mohawk, a grand outdoor venue, was one of the sold out shows for The Molotovs, and the American audiences connected with the music. With the sound being integrally British, an anxiety that there would be a divide between artist and audience was present. The opposite was the case, with the band bringing a sonic freshness to the festival.
“Oi, Sibyl, guess what I’ll be looking at all weekend?”
Matt stepped out of frame from our Zoom call for a moment, and brought back with him a charts trophy, which he bit like an olympic medal.
“I’ve dented it already…”
Matt and Issey received the trophy for the top amount of vinyl sales during this cycle, outselling Oasis and Ariana Grande, a testament to their hard graft, and to them highlighting the importance of physical music outside of streaming platforms.
“Back in the day records meant something because you had to work for it, you had to properly save up to get a record. You felt a connection and affiliation, because it meant more. It's more than music, it's the artwork, it's the in-sleeve, it's the lyrics, you've got the full package. It’s a painting on the wall, and we’ve lost that. We’re now tiny four pixels on a screen.” - Issey
On the subject of aesthetics, we fell into a discussion on drag.
Matt would devour an seventies avant-garde drag persona, with styling like that of Jordan Roth or Daphne Guiness. I tasked Issey to make sure this transformation happens, The Molotovs in a dream home heartache era.
“I can promise a date for The Molotovs drag album:21st November 2029.” - Matt
I manifest this for the decade’s end.
With the duo performing non-stop over the last three years during their teens, they have missed out on a conventional education, an experience both of the duo are glad to have avoided:
“I think a lot of people feel confined by that system, straight jacketed. You're shown the path of: go to school, go to university, get a degree. Then you're supposed to be welcomed in some job with a red ribbon. Some people aren't lucky enough to have their circumstances.” - Matt
Being outside of UK schooling, taking to the streets to perform, and following their passions as young people has primed The Molotovs to be a voice for their generation, to not conform and put yourself into a box as UK bureaucracy thrives from. The duo speak so rawly and eloquently not just in their lyrics, but as creatives who feel the anxieties and concerns of their generation. The time now for them to set ablaze.
An exciting future lies ahead for Matt and Issey as they embark further on their musical journey. ASBO Magazine excitedly awaits More More More from The Molotovs.
Follow @themolotovs
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