New Video: Howling Bells Shares 120 Minutes MTV-like “Chimera”

Since their beginnings, London-based, Aussie trio Howling Bells — siblings Juanita Stein (vocals, guitar) and Joel Stein (guitar) and Glenn Moule (drums) — have been a bit of anomaly: They relocated to the UK to pursue their dreams of making it. And then, they broke through a British indie scene of three and four dudes wearing skinny jeans wearing bands with their acclaimed, self-titled 2006 full-length debut.

Those dreams of making it big became real: They played an NME Tour and then in stadiums opening for a Coldplay, while winning acclaim from the UK music press.

Throughout their nearly two decade history, the band has gone through a series of lineup changes but some things have remained the same: the core trio’s deep, unbreakable bond and their hypnotic sound, influenced by Tom Waits, Sonic Youth, Nirvana, Fleetwood Mac and Björk.

Howling Bells’ fifth album, Strange Life is slated for a February 13, 2026 release through Nude Records. The long-awaited album is the band’s first album of new material in over 12 years and was recorded with their longtime friend and collaborator Ben Hillier at Agricultural Audio Studios. The new album is reportedly both a vibrant document of and an exploratory testament to the alchemical magic between its core members.

Strange Life‘s latest single, “Chimera” showcases Juanita Stein’s gorgeous and expressive vocal and the band’s knack for big, hooks and choruses paired with an arrangement anchored round chiming guitars, a supple bass line and hi-hat driven drum patterns. If you’re of the 120 Minutes-era MTV age, as I am, “Chimera” will remind you quite a bit of The Sundays and Heaven or Las Vegas-era Cocteau Twins.

“Chimera is a strange word. It means a few different and curious things; in this context, however, I’m using it to mean something of an absurd nature, unattainable, a fantasy,” Howling Bells’ Juanita Stein explains. “Such is the relationship we have with music at times. This song speaks to my experience as a musician, surviving the perpetual ups and downs of the game. But if you’re lucky enough, you have someone who can cut through the noise and help you realise that the fantasy is half the joy. That the longing is part of the journey and that our achievements along the way are deeply meaningful. At its core, ‘Chimera’ is a song about hope and relinquishing control.”

Fittingly, the accompanying video for “Chimera” also further emphasizes the 120 Minutes MTV vibe by featuring trippy, superimposed imagery of the band performing on top of a sunset, flowers and the sea, flowers and rain splattered windows and the like.

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