Castle Park (album)

Castle Park
Studio album by
Graham Coxon
Released19 June 2026 (2026-06-19)
Recorded2011
StudiosThe Pool, London
Genres
Length36:43
LabelTransgressive
Producers
Graham Coxon chronology
A+E
(2012)		 Castle Park
(2026)
Singles from Castle Park
  1. "Billy Says"
    Released: 20 April 2026
  2. "Alright"
    Released: 12 May 2026

Castle Park is the ninth studio album by English singer-songwriter Graham Coxon, released on 19 June 2026 through Transgressive Records and produced with Ben Hillier. The album was recorded in 2011—about fifteen years prior—during the sessions for Coxon's previous solo album A+E (2012). Described as a power pop and garage rock album, Castle Park was preceded by the singles "Billy Says" and "Alright", and upon release, it coincided with the beginning of a reissue campaign of Coxon's solo discography.

Background and recording

Castle Park was recorded in 2011 during the same sessions that produced his previous studio album, A+E (2012),[1] at The Pool in London.[2] It had been originally intended as a possible follow-up, but it had been indefinitely shelved so that Coxon could focus on Blur's reformation.[1] In an interview for Guitar World, he said that the twenty[a] songs he had recorded during the sessions "fell into two piles", and A+E was born from the half that was more centered around bass riffs. At the time, he thought he would keep the other half unreleased "until that music becomes fashionable again", but after being repeatedly asked by fans about its status, he eventually decided he release it anyway.[4] While the album remained unreleased, Coxon had frequently performed some of its songs live, including "Billy Says".[5]

Title and artwork

The title is in reference to Castle Park, Colchester, where Coxon spent of much of time during his teenage years.[1] In the NME, he said that his reasoning for naming the album at the time was simple: "it seemed to be quite a romantic and sunny place. I never saw it raining at Castle Park. It has a castle, a bandstand, a little lake, this weird cottage, [and] this golden angel out the front."[6] The cover art consists of four colorised postcards of landmarks around the park.[7]

Composition

Stylistically, Castle Park has been described by critics as power pop[1][8][9] and garage rock,[9] sharing similarities with previous works like Happiness in Magazines (2004) and Love Travels at Illegal Speeds (2006), but with more emphasis placed on acoustic guitars and 1960s-influenced mod music.[1] The lyrics are primarily themed on relationships, such as being broken up with.[6]

The album starts with the Kinks-influenced "Billy Says", followed by the indie pop "Alright"[5] and the garage rock "When You Find Out";[10] the latter is a cover of the Nerves, a band known for the song "Hanging on the Telephone", later popularised by Blondie.[1] After another indie pop track, "Isn't It Funny",[5] the record proceeds with a song that again recalls the Kinks, "There's a Little House".[8][11] Coxon, who shares vocals with Lucy Parnell,[12] compared the track to Max Bygraves' version of "Gilly Gilly Ossenfeffer Katzenellen Bogen by the Sea", which he described as "a call-and-response children’s song".[6]

Following the acoustic-led "Easy", a song about love and hardship,[10] Castle Park continues to incorporate elements from other styles and genres, such as flamenco on "Dripping Soul", Motown on "Forget Today", and chamber pop on the instrumental "Mélodie pour Christine", which features various string instruments.[1] The album concludes with "All the Rage", an existential song about the anxieties of life. Coxon described it as "probably the most depressing song I've ever written".[7]

Singles and release

On 20 April 2026, Coxon announced Castle Park and led it with the single "Billy Says".[13] A second single, "Alright", followed on 12 May 2026. The album was released on 19 June 2026 through Transgressive Records.[14] That day, Coxon also released his first two albums, The Sky Is Too High (1998) and The Golden D (2000), as part of a broader, year-long reissue campaign of his solo career, including the remaining six studio albums and all three soundtrack albums.[13]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Aggregate scores
SourceRating
AnyDecentMusic?7.4/10[15]
Metacritic78/100[16]
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusicStarStarStarStar[8]
Classic PopStarStarStar[17]
DIYStarStarStarStar[1]
The Financial TimesStarStarStar[9]
MojoStarStarStarStar[18]
MusicOMHStarStarStarStar[19]
NMEStarStarStarStar[10]
The ScotsmanStarStarStarStar[20]
The TimesStarStarStarStar[21]
Uncut7/10[5]

According to the review aggregator Metacritic, Castle Park received "generally favorable reviews" based on a weighted average score of 78 out of 100 from seven critic scores.[16] Another aggregator, AnyDecentMusic?, gave it a weighted average score of 7.4 out of 10 from six critic reviews.[15]

Johnny Sharp of Uncut magazine, commenting on the record's background, said "there's nothing here to suggest [the songs] went unreleased for quality-control reasons".[5] The NME's Andrew Trendell went further, saying that for a "lost" album, Castle Park stands as one of Coxon's best works, and that it "would have been a terrible shame" to leave it unreleased.[10] In Classic Pop, John Earls thought the album was at its best when the record embraced its mod influences, and he also highlighted the tracks "Isn't It Funny" and "Mélodie pour Christine" for demonstrating Coxon's musical diversity.[17] Elsewhere, DIY's Jerrome Volk described Castle Park as a "breezy, accessible" record that has "much to enjoy", picking "Billy Says" as its standout track.[1]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Graham Coxon, except "When You Find Out" (Peter Case).[12]

Castle Park track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Billy Says"3:42
2."Alright"3:32
3."When You Find Out" (The Nerves cover)2:13
4."Isn't It Funny"4:28
5."There's a Little House"4:07
6."Easy"3:43
7."Dripping Soul"4:22
8."Forget Today"4:58
9."Mélodie pour Christine"3:26
10."All the Rage"2:12
Total length:36:43

Personnel

Except where noted, credits are adapted from Tidal.[12]

Musicians

Technical and design

Charts

Chart performance for Castle Park
Chart (2026) Peak
position
Scottish Albums (Official Charts)[23]18
UK Albums Sales (OCC)[24] 11
UK Independent Albums (Official Charts)[25]6

Notes

  1. ↑ It had been initially stated that Coxon and Hillier recorded twenty-one songs during the sessions,[3] rather than the twenty that were later stated.[4]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Volk, Jerrome (10 June 2026). "Albums: Graham Coxon – Castle Park". DIY. No. 161 (June 2026). p. 52. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  2. ↑ Coxon, Graham (2012). A+E (CD liner notes). Parlophone. 5099932773125.
  3. ↑ Sawyer, Miranda (24 March 2012). "Interview: Graham Coxon: 'It's not 1975. It's a confusing world'". The Guardian. Retrieved 13 June 2026.
  4. 1 2 Daly, Andrew (2 June 2026). "'Damon got very good, so it was pretty hard to write with him around – especially when he was rejecting your songs': How Graham Coxon came out from his Blur bandmate's shadow". Guitar World. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 Sharp, Johnny (22 May 2026). "Archive: Graham Coxon – Castle Park". Uncut. No. 353 (July 2026). Yalding, Kent, England: Kelsey Media. p. 46. ISSN 1368-0722. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 Trendell, Andrew (21 June 2026). "Graham Coxon: 'I've always wondered about relevance – there seems to be this forever-changing front row'". NME. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  7. 1 2 Wright, Lisa (17 June 2026). "Graham Coxon: Park Strife". DIY. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  8. 1 2 3 Collar, Matt. Castle Park – Graham Coxon at AllMusic. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 Hunter-Tilney, Ludovic (19 June 2026). "Graham Coxon clings to the reliability of rock on Castle Park — album review". The Financial Times. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 Trendell, Andrew (18 June 2026). "Graham Coxon – 'Castle Park' review: lost album proves itself a '60s pop treasure". NME. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  11. ↑ Pearis, Bill (19 June 2026). "Indie Basement (6/19): the week in classic indie, alternative & college rock". BrooklynVegan. Retrieved 21 June 2026.
  12. 1 2 3 "Castle Park / Graham Coxon / Credits". Tidal. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  13. 1 2 Trendell, Andrew (20 April 2026). "Graham Coxon to release never-heard-before 2011 album 'Castle Park' as he reissues solo catalogue". NME. Retrieved 12 June 2026.
  14. ↑ Redfern, Mark (12 May 2026). "Graham Coxon Shares New Song 'Alright'". Under the Radar. Retrieved 11 June 2026.
  15. 1 2 "Graham Coxon – Castle Park". AnyDecentMusic?. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  16. 1 2 "Castle Park by Graham Coxon". Metacritic. Retrieved 11 July 2026.
  17. 1 2 Earls, John (11 June 2026). "Graham Coxon – The Sky Is Too High / The Golden D / Castle Park". Classic Pop. No. 106 (July 2026). Anthem Publishing. p. 94. ISSN 2050-6643.
  18. ↑ Segal, Victoria (16 June 2026). "Filter Albums: Graham Coxon – Castle Park". Mojo. No. 393 (August 2026). London: H Bauer Publishing. p. 84. ISSN 1351-0193. Retrieved 17 June 2026.
  19. ↑ Murphy, John (19 June 2026). "Graham Coxon – Castle Park". MusicOMH. Retrieved 19 June 2026.
  20. ↑ Shepherd, Fiona (18 June 2026). "Album reviews: Graham Coxon | Keith Urban | Haircut 100 | Jo Mango". The Scotsman. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  21. ↑ Hodgkinson, Will (18 June 2026). "Graham Coxon: Castle Park review — the Blur guitarist goes back to basics". The Times. Retrieved 18 June 2026.
  22. 1 2 3 4 Coxon, Graham (2026). Castle Park (LP liner notes). Transgressive Records. TRANS967XX.
  23. ↑ "Official Scottish Albums Chart on 26/6/2026 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 June 2026.
  24. ↑ "Official Albums Sales Chart: 26 June 2026 – 2 July 2026". Official Charts. Retrieved 27 June 2026.
  25. ↑ "Official Independent Albums Chart on 26/6/2026 – Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 June 2026.
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