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Heavenly are an indie pop band who released four critically acclaimed
albums between 1991-1996, becoming key figures in the independent music
scenes of both the UK and US through their associations with seminal labels
Sarah Records and K Records. Highly influential on what has become known
as “twee pop”, they inspired generations of musicians with their perfect blend
of punk energy and pop sensibility.
Originally forming in Oxford in 1989 from the ashes of legendary punk pop
combo Talulah Gosh, Heavenly features Amelia Fletcher (vocals/guitar), Peter
Momtchiloff (guitar), Robert Pursey (bass), Cathy Rogers (keyboards/vocals)
and Ian Button (drums).
Members of the indiepop scene in the UK and the burgeoning Riot Grrrl scene
in the US, Heavenly created a unique blend of infectious melody and
sharp-edged lyrics. The band’s original catalogue ran from jangly debut
“Heavenly vs. Satan” (1991), through the harmony-rich “Le Jardin de
Heavenly”(1992) and riot grrrl-influenced “The Decline and Fall of Heavenly”
(1994), to the Britpop era “Operation Heavenly” (1996).
Heavenly reformed in 2023, after a 27 year hiatus. Amelia and Rob had been
angrily approached by their daughters, wanting to know why their parents’
old songs were all over their TikTok timelines. Having established that this
was not an algorithmic blip, and that there was genuine interest in their old
songs, the band decided to play a few shows. Reunion shows in London,
Paris, Madrid and New York sold out quickly, with both original Heavenly fans
and a much younger audience clamouring to see the group live.
Newly rejuvenated, the band started writing songs again. A new 7” single
“Portland Town” was released in July 2025 and their fifth album “Highway To
Heavenly” comes out in February 2026.
On their spring 2026 dates, the band will play songs from the band’s past
career alongside tracks from the new album. This combination is important to
the group. “If you’re just doing your old songs and nothing else, you’re almost
like one of those cover bands—but of yourself. That would have felt pretty
weird pretty quickly,” says Amelia Fletcher.
Their spring 2026 tour also marks three decades since the release of
“Operation Heavenly.” The band had expected their fourth album to be their
most successful but they never promoted it properly due to the death of
original drummer Mathew Fletcher just before its release. Drummer Ian
Button now completes the Heavenly line-up.
Alongside Heavenly these days, Amelia, Rob and Ian currently also play in
Brian Bilston and The Catenary Wires and Swansea Sound; and Peter plays
in The Would-Be-Goods and Tufthunter.
