Twenty years after its release, Howling Bells’ self-titled debut is getting its first vinyl pressing.
The anniversary edition, out on October 2 via Nude Records, also opens the band’s archive, with early bedroom demos and rare photographs offering a glimpse of the songs before the album took shape.
For this FM PRO Quickfire 5, Juanita Stein revisits the ambition she hears in those recordings, explains why new material had to fit the record’s original atmosphere, and reflects on the ritual of listening to an album on vinyl.
She also looks ahead to the band’s anniversary show at London’s Hoxton Hall on 6 November, where the debut will sit alongside their later work.
Listening to an entire album becomes a ritual; you cannot replace this. — Juanita Stein
Q1. Twenty years on, what do you hear in Howling Bells now that you couldn’t hear—or fully understand—when you first made it?
Twenty years later, I hear our debut album as a profound, deeply emotional work.
I hear the aching and ambition of youth in a way I didn’t acknowledge then. We had an abundance of spirit and energy that is very much present in these songs.
I hear a lot of unanswered questions; I think I’m subconsciously exploring issues I wasn’t yet speaking out loud.
Q2. You considered recording new material for this edition, but it felt “too modern”. What made preserving the album’s original atmosphere more important than reframing it for 2026?
I’ve never felt that the album needs reframing. It’s an incredibly honest and heartfelt collection of songs and this kind of honesty will always be relevant.
So adding songs in the spirit of this record felt more truthful.
Q3. The rediscovered bedroom recordings capture the band before the debut took shape. What do those raw demos reveal about your early ambition and creative instincts?
It was very emotional hearing myself from way back when, I can hear how powerful I am in those demos, how confident I am, I don’t overthink anything; I’m assured and adventurous with my arrangements and chord progressions, which I love.
Q4. FM PRO TECH: With streaming built around instant access, what does a physical archive edition—vinyl, demos, photographs and signed artwork—offer that a digital release cannot replicate?
This is such an important question right now!
Apart from the obvious tangible element to a physical release—the sensory experience of opening a package, touching the prints and feeling the grooves on a record—there is the emotional connection I believe we can have with a record, especially vinyl.
It forces us to create space for ourselves, physically and mentally. Listening to an entire album becomes a ritual; you cannot replace this. There’s nothing ritualistic about getting a recommendation on your preferred streaming service.
Q5. You’ll celebrate the anniversary at Hoxton Hall in November. How do you bring these songs back to the stage without turning the show into a nostalgia exercise?
Well, I mean, the show itself is an homage to the an album which is 20 yrs old! So, there’s no escaping the nostalgic element; however, I do think it’s important to frame that album amongst our more recent songs and records to give it perspective.
It’s like when I went to see AIR’s 25th anniversary of Moon Safari, and the entire second setwas made up of songs from different albums; I left feeling as though I’d seen something new. We were able to revel in the nostalgia and move into the future.
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