THE FRONT ROW

There’s something about bands from the North West. A certain defiance. A refusal to be overly polished or performative. And The Forensics, flying the flag for Preston rather than jumping aboard the Manchester machine, channel all of that into their latest single “Maxine”.

This isn’t a track that smashes the doors open straight away. It creeps in, slow and deliberate, just a vocal and a subtle guitar line tracing a melody like it’s tiptoeing through a memory. But there’s a knowing glint in its eye. You can feel what’s coming.

By the time the first verse begins to rattle with a jangly guitar line and a sense of something stirring, you’re already locked in. Then it hits, a tight, rhythmic surge of drums and bass that lifts the track from its feet. Suddenly, “Maxine” blooms into something bold and anthemic without losing its edge.

The structure here is a real standout. It doesn’t fall into obvious patterns – there’s a well-crafted interlude just before the second verse that acts like a pressure valve. You’re given just enough time to breathe before it rolls back in, heavier and more confident. It’s one of those smart musical shifts that suggests this band isn’t just writing indie bangers for the sake of it, they’re thinking about movement, tension, flow.

By the time the chorus lands, it’s all in. Big, open, and festival-ready. There’s a youthful lift to it, think early Inhaler meets the swagger of The Snuts’ Mixtape EP era, but it still sounds very much like The Forensics. There’s no copycatting here. The hooks are immediate without being predictable, the lyrics sharp enough to bite but ambiguous enough to sit with you.

Vocally, there’s a sincerity that carries across the whole track. No showboating, no forced angst, just a delivery that feels connected to the song’s story. Maxine isn’t written as a cliché; she’s drawn with light and shadow. There’s affection, frustration, maybe even a bit of chaos in how she’s framed, and that complexity gives the song weight.

What makes “Maxine” land so well is how it balances energy with restraint. It never overplays its hand. The production is crisp but not overcooked. There’s enough space between the instruments to let the dynamic shifts shine, whether that’s the delicate intro or the crashing lift of the final chorus. It sounds like a band that knows what they’re doing and knows exactly how they want it to feel.

And it’s working. Off the back of supports for The Snuts, Andrew Cushin and Deco, The Forensics are clearly becoming a go-to name in the North West circuit. Their first Scotland date at a sold-out Nice N Sleazy in Glasgow shows that momentum is already brewing beyond home turf, and “Maxine” feels like a song that’ll travel far and wide.

It’s the kind of track you imagine echoing out over a crowd as the sun dips behind a tent. Arms raised. Lyrics screamed. People looking around going, “How aren’t this lot massive yet?”

FFO: Inhaler, The Snuts, Sea Girls
Perfect for: Volume-up headphone moments, pre-night-out soundtracks, indie dancefloor singalongs
Next step: See them live before the stage barriers get any bigger.