Meet The Molotovs, the teenage siblings bringing an old school blast of rock and roll

You’d be forgiven for not realising that that The Molotovs – siblings Mathew and Issey Cartlidge – are still in their teens. A single listen of their debut single ‘More More More’ brings to mind the earliest days of The Jam, a thought only solidified by the sharp haircuts and even sharper suits that make them appear like the poster stars for a resurgence of Mod culture in 2025.

They’re musical outliers in the modern landscape, sure, but the ink is still fresh on a new deal with Marshall Records, which is more than enough to suggest they’ve got a few powerful backers in their corner.

That, and the small matter of a support slot with the Sex Pistols last month and receiving the seal of approval from the Modfather himself, Paul Weller.

Guerilla gigs on the streets of London – including one memorable date at Sister Ray Records last month – allowed the band to hone their reputation as a formidable live act. Now, they’re just hoping that the rest of the world is ready to turn it up to 11 with them…

We’re speaking mid-way through your tour and most of those dates are sold out. How does that feel at such an early stage and what do you think people have found in The Molotovs?

Mathew: I think they’ve really just copped onto our reputation. We’re a good ticket, a good live band and we’ve got a good reputation, which comes naturally when you’ve done over 500 gigs together.

Issey: I’d agree with that, but I think we’re coming out of a digital world where people are looking to get back into social settings and we’re a band that prides itself on performing live. People want to see bands getting back out there on the circuit, going to real gigs again. I think it takes a lot of our fans back to a pre-modern era of the 1970s and 1980s.

Mathew: But we’re young too. Issey’s 18 and I’m 17, so we feel that people can identify with our band really because we’re so young and because we’ve got that sort of youthful impact.

It’s interesting when you’re so young but your sound and certainly your image seems rooted in the Mod Revival. How did you first fall in love with the genre?

Mathew: It’s interesting because when the band started I wasn’t into it, but it all came from my dad seeing me getting into music and showing me the stuff he liked. The Jam, Small Faces and even stuff like The Kinks, XTC and The Specials. But I’d extend the British music of the 2000s in there too, like The Libertines and Arctic Monkeys. I love all that stuff.

Issey: Taste is always hereditary as well, so it’s come from what we’ve heard at home and our dad saw The Jam four times back in the day so he’s a lifelong fan.

What was the point when you thought that being two siblings in a band was an achievable objective?

Mathew: Lockdown, really. We had both been playing in bands but when that hit you obviously couldn’t rehearse with anyone outside your own household so it was about convenience more than anything.

Issey: Yeah, out of necessity. I wouldn’t choose him normally!

Mathew: When lockdown ended we just started busking all over London and doing covers of the bands we liked and that allowed us to become a really well rehearsed unit. So when the doors opened again, we flooded into venues and got onto the gigging circuit.

How do you manage to bridge that generational gap with your fans? I imagine there’s a lot of older music lovers who like the sounds you’re bringing across, but how do you bring that to a younger generation?

Mathew: I think it’s all really new and exciting to them because it’s something they’ve never heard before. It’s a bit like kids discovering The Beatles, only that we are a young new band bringing through those sounds.

Issey: Last year we started these youth benefits show in Wimbledon and they were super accessible because we realised that our peers couldn’t get into venues because they were just too young. We moved on to Bush Hall and did a benefit there too. We’ve always tried to cater for people who our like minded in our age.

You released your debut single ‘More More More’ last month. Why did you want that to be the first taste of The Molotovs, and what’s next after that?

Mathew: I wrote it a few years ago and through doing that and through doing so many gigs, it’s become a staple of our gigs, you know, that song’s become a bit of a chant and we thought it was a great first single. We’ve had it for a while and it was the perfect thing for people to catch on to before you give them something to kind of bigger to chew on.

I’m working on the album at the moment to release at the end of this year. And a lot of the time we’re trying to capture our live energy of everything from the 60s to 80s. All the best records and the best bands recorded live.

Given the fact that you’ve got such a distinctive look and are doing something quite different, have you faced any backlash online or IRL?

Mathew: All the time, being told you’re fucking Poundshop Weller and everything like that. But I don’t care because it’s always wankers with zero followers and numbers at the the end of their name. It’s usually some old gammon on the internet or some failed musician having a go at young kids for just trying to start something. You just think is that all you’ve got to do with your time? At the end of the day I’ve got influences and I’m not gonna hide them. Noel Gallagher’s ripped off everyone under the sun and everyone tries to take something from somewhere else…

Issey: Guitar music is dominated by male musicians too and having a female element in there with myself allows us to put something different in our records.

And you’ve had some serious backers too – you’ve supported the Sex Pistols and Blondie already…

Mathew: Yeah, Paul Weller told us to make sure we get paid! He was very insistent on that. But a lot of them just keep telling us to keep going as we’re doing it the old fashioned way. Just keep on out there and don’t give up!