Abstract Concrete have shared ‘Small World’, their first new original music since the release of their self-titled debut album in 2023.

It’s good to have Abstract Concrete back.

The London five-piece, led from the drum stool by Charles Hayward of This Heat and Camberwell Now, have spent much of the time since their debut on the road, taking the band around Europe and appearing at festivals including Primavera Sound. ‘Small World’ is the first proper indication of where they might be heading next.

As you would probably expect from Abstract Concrete, its starting point doesn’t tell you much about where the song eventually ends up.

“‘Small World’ is a song initially inspired by ’60s yé-yé Euro pop, the mysteries of quantum physics and John Cage’s ‘Silence’, but things got out of control and the sound kept on changing in front of our ears. And the elephant in the room,” the band explain.

That “got out of control” part feels about right. There’s a pop song somewhere inside ‘Small World’, but it keeps being nudged sideways. Hayward’s drumming drives the whole thing forward while Agathe Max’s viola, Roberto Sassi’s guitar, Yoni Silver’s keyboards and Otto Willberg’s bass keep changing the ground underneath it.

It has the same pleasure in collision that made the first Abstract Concrete album so enjoyable. Melody and groove are never very far away, but neither is the possibility that the song might suddenly turn into something else.

Abstract Concrete first emerged around Hayward’s wish to work within a band again, rather than simply put together another solo project. The lineup brought him together with musicians from several corners of London’s experimental underground, and the result has never really sounded like a vehicle for one person. That’s still very much the case here.