Marie Franc drop 2nd single of 2026 ‘Pendle Hill’
The Mancunion band are back.
Photo: Marie Franc
Manchester’s Marie Franc are back with their second single of the year, Pendle Hill, following February’s Fabric. The eerily haunting track will be released on May 1st — Beltane — which is the ancient festival of fire and renewal. In short, a fitting time for Marie Franc to build on their ever-expanding haunting occult-indebted music. Joined by new guitarist Benjamin Bowker and fresh off a headline set in their home soil of Manchester, the song unfolds exactly like the type of evil ritual that it seeks to retell.
Pendle Hill is haunting and echoes the brooding, gothic arrangements of the excellent recent Weyes Blood records. It’s an unusual combination to infuse this dramatic, elegant sound with gloomy and sinister traditional folk elements. However, it is nothing short of captivating and works surprisingly effectively as the song crescendos with dramatic effect.
Frontwoman Rachel Ferguson’s spellbinding lead vocals are enchanting and really elevate the dense, mystical musical arrangement. Her vocal ‘ooh’s’ towards the end conjure up images of satanic ritualistic chanting and end the song on a chilling note. On the genesis of Pendle Hill, she shared that “the song began as a retelling of the Pendle Witches. Historically, ‘witch’ was a label to punish women and outsiders who didn’t conform, those deemed too visible, too free, too difficult to control.”
Ultimately, Pendle Hill is less a practise in simply being spooky and more a dark and frightening reminder of just how cruel the modern world can be towards women, especially those in the trans and queer communities. Ferguson again shared that “the song is a celebration of their strength and resistance, and reframes the witch as a figure to represent their survival.”
Marie Franc may just be getting started, but with a single as grand and ambitious as Pendle Hill, it certainly won’t be the last we hear from them.
Pendle Hill is out now via Lonely Seagull Recordings.
