Photo Credit: Press

As they prepare for their UK headline tour, we sat down with indie-pop duo The Valla to chat about their latest single, the band’s upcoming UK and tour, as well as their plans for the remainder of 2026.

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What has the reception been like for ‘Middle Finger’?

George: It’s been good I think. We really liked it and then fell out of love with it for a bit. It’s come back, kind of by surprise. We always hoped it was going to be a big song for us. Some people really love it, some people aren’t too bothered, it’s a bit of a Marmite one. The whole vibe of the song is quite Marmite, it’s not really a happy song about ice cream. You are either into songs that are quite angsty and life being a bit shit, or you’re not. There have been some people who have said they love it and it’s their favourite one and then there are people we haven’t heard from at all because they may prefer a more cheerful, upbeat ballad. That is the reason why we picked it as the first single as it’s a good one to warm up for the rest of the EP. You don’t hit them with your best straight away, it is more of a “We’re back!”.

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Has the writing process changed at all for the new track?

Hamish: The biggest thing that we changed, even for the last couple of singles, is that we are doing it all of ourselves now. We are self producing, writing all the music together, just the two of us. It has given us a huge amount of freedom and time to really sit with a song and ask ourselves if we like it, can we re-write this section or have we done this bit well, rather than going into a studio and you’ve only got a couple of days to record. The riff changed in ‘Middle Finger’ probably 20-30 times before we came out with the proper riff. 

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What can we expect from the next few tracks that will feature on the EP?

Hamish: The EP is called ‘Warpaint’. The theme for the EP that we’ve been running with behind the scenes is anthems for the underdogs. It’s for those misfits and people who feel like they don’t fit it. You can expect to hear songs where we highlight that it is ok to be who you are and to stick at it. 

George: It came about kind of naturally. We were talking about it before we decided what the EP was called and what it was all about. We realised anthems for the underdogs is what all of our music is from the angle of the misfit. Whilst we are very privileged middle classed white men, we feel like we’ve had it rough in the music industry. We haven’t acquired the same opportunities that other artists have had, and I know many artists do feel that way but we’ve always been very independent so all of our music is coming from that angle and this EP is that premise carried on and has become our identity.

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How excited are you to get back out on the road for your UK tour?

Hamish: I am in Australia at the moment so I am travelling back for the tour which is really exciting. We’ve hit up the majority of the cities before for the ‘Fuck It’ tour last year and we had a really great time. We had really great gigs across the tour so we wanted to return to those places and hopefully see the crowds multiply through word of mouth.

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Does playing new territory also add to the excitement or is there a level of nervousness included?

George: For Hamish it will be the first time he has been to some of these cities full stop. I’ve been to Lincoln Cathedral when I was about 11, so I can’t say I have been recently. Without being too cliche, it is one of the reasons people get into music. It opens doors and takes you to places you wouldn’t normally go to. Lincoln may not be Hollywood but it is an opportunity to get out there rather than playing Hackney and Covent Garden.

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Other than the EP, is there anything else we can expect from The Valla for 2026?

George: There is definitely more music coming soon I hope. 

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Finally, for your fans who have stuck by you and to those who have jumped on board recently, what message do you have to say to them?

George: What the hell are you doing still supporting us!? There are so many better bands, better looking bands, younger bands, more charming bands.

Hamish: We are very grateful is what George is trying to say.

George: We genuinely are very grateful. There are some die hard fans that even my parents have met. I stuck them on the merch desk on the last date of the previous tour and they now know some of the die hard fans by name and they ask me how they are doing. That is how core some of our fans have become, the fact my parents know their names. We have one particular fan who has been to gigs from the very beginning and has had a track record of being late but still comes down despite travelling hours to a show. It’s people like that who remind you that we’re making an impact on their lives one way or another. Some people really live for what we’re doing and it makes you feel like what we’re doing is really worthwhile.  

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