MESH unveil the stylish music video ‘Exile’ as the first new song from the UK alternative electronic duo since nine years! This single is an edit of the opening track of the English band’s forthcoming new album ‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’, which has been scheduled for release on March 27, 2026.MESH comment on ‘Exile’: “I was trying to write some music that was uplifting but had a dark and moody undertone”, Richard explains. “I had the chord structure and the chorus, but felt something was missing. That’s when I added the arpeggio type line at the start. This changed the character of the song and gave it that hypnotic, driving feel. It is the glue that holds it all together. After we had finished mixing the album and almost a year after the music was written, Mark sent me the track with the vocals added. It was one of those moments when I knew immediately that this track had to be the single. It was as quick as that.”
“We were about to go to Germany to mix the album with Olaf”, Mark adds. “I still had a couple of instrumentals from Rich which had no lyrics or vocals. I loaded one into Cubasis on my phone and started working on it in dead time during the mixing. I needed inspiration, and Judit, the wife of our producer Olaf, gave me the only English books that she had: ‘Chicken Soup for the Soul - Stories for a Better World’ by various authors, and ‘The Man Who Fell to Earth’, which is a Bowie biography. I was also reading Heinlein’s ‘Stranger in a Strange Land’ on my pad. The lyrics kind of just fell out of those influences. I recorded the vocals on the phone outside on Olaf’s balcony and recorded them properly when I got home. It was all very last minute, but worth that last push.”
Video credits
Directed & shot by Kieran Gallop (GLK Media)
Exile girl actress: Olivia Heath
This is the age of post-factual lies, which is reflected in MESH’s album title ‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’ and a dark undertone that occasionally seeps into their new songs. What remains entirely true is the fact that the UK duo has a nearly uncanny knack for writing electronic hits that are as elegant as they are captivating.
‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’ bursts out like a sparkling firework while subtly referencing three decades of electronic music spanning from GIORGIO MORODER, YAZOO, and DEPECHE MODE via GARBAGE and MASSIVE ATTACK to more contemporary artists. At the same time, MESH always maintain their easily recognisable and unique musical identity as well as the trademark sounds that they have cultivated since their beginnings in the early nineties.
MESH had been conceived in 1991, when lead singer and guitarist Mark Hockings and keyboard player and vocalist Richard Silverthorn found friendship and common sonic ground, leading to the formation of the band. This musical partnership has ever since defined MESH’s enduring legacy.
The duo was soon joined by Neil Taylor on keyboards, who had already been playing in another band with Silverthorn. MESH’s creative synergy emerged from a complementary distribution of roles: Richard Silverthorn composed the music, while Mark Hockings penned evocative and profound lyrics, infusing depth and emotion into their soundscapes.
MESH’s musical journey kicked off with the release of the ‘Fragile’ EP in 1994 and the full-length debut ‘In this Place Forever’ two years later in 1996. In 1999 came the next milestone with the sophomore album ‘The Point At Which It Falls Apart’. Collaborations with producers such as Mark Oh, showcased the band’s diverse musical inclinations.
The major label release of ‘Who Watches over Me’ in 2002 propelled MESH further into the limelight and marked a turning point. A surge of popularity across Europe, particularly in Germany let the UK band climb higher up the festival billings. Their collaboration with former DEPECHE MODE producer Gareth Jones for ‘We Collide’ (2006) solidified their status in the electronic music realm.
Adapting to line-up changes, MESH continued their musical journey with the core-duo, augmenting live performances with drummer Sean Suleman and additional live keyboard players. The band strengthened their global presence, particularly expanding in the Americas.
‘Automation Baby’ (2013) reached #33 on the German album charts and generally dominated European Alternative Charts. With ‘Looking Skyward’ (2016), MESH climbed to even greater heights with a #12 position on the German charts. Demonstrating artistic versatility, MESH collaborated with a classical orchestra at the Gothic meets Klassik festival in 2015. The band continued their musical evolution, and welcomed Vaughn George to their live line-up in April 2023.
With ‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’, MESH climb yet another rung on the ladder leading to electronic music heaven. Each song wriggles its way happily into the brain and sticks around leading to spontaneous whistling of melodies and the public singing of extremely catchy chorus lines. You have been warned: ‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’ is highly infectious and leads to a happier life!
Tracklist
01. The Truth Doesn’t Matter
02. A Storm Is Coming
03. I Lost a Friend Today
04. Polygraph
05. Trying to Save You
06. Bury Me Again
07. I Bleed through You
08. Kill Us with Silence
09. 1031030
10. This World
11. Exile
12. Everything as It Should Be
13. Hey Stranger
14. Cipher
15. Not Everyone Is Lonely
16. Be Kind
Album Details
Artist: Mesh
Album title: The Truth Doesn’t Matter
Release date: March 27, 2026
Style: Alternative Electronics
Label: Dependent Records
All tracks written & recorded by Mark Hockings & Richard Silverthorn
Recorded at Mesh HQ & The Summerhouse in Bristol (UK)
Mix by Olaf Wollschläger & MESH at Cottonbeat Studio, Burscheid (DE)
Mastering by MESH
Additional mastering by Olaf Wollschläger
Artwork & photography by Mark Hockings
Additional artwork, editing & layout by Nico Janse van Rensburg
Line-up
Mark Hockings – vocals, synthesisers, guitar
Richard Silverthorn – synthesisers, guitar, backing vocals
Vaughn George – live keyboards
Sean Suleman – live drums
Guest musician: Mari Kattman – additional vocals on ‘Bury Me Again’
Links
www.mesh.co.uk
www.facebook.com/meshtheband
www.instagram.com/mesh.co.uk
Shop: https://spkr.store/collections/mesh
Available formats
‘The Truth Doesn’t Matter’ is available as a ltd. boxset incl. vinyl 2LP & excl. vinyl version of bonus CD, artbook et al. with a hand-numbered certificate signed by MESH (500 copies), and as a 48-page hardcover 2CD artbook incl. the exclusive 9-track bonus CD ‘The Full Truth’, as Gatefold black vinyl 2-LP, and as Jewelbox CD.
Tour Dates
02 APR 2026 - Oberhausen (DE) Kulttempel sold out
03 APR 2026 - Berlin (DE) Huxleys
04 APR 2026 - Hamburg (DE) Docks
05 APR 2026 - Leipzig (DE) Felsenkeller
06 APR 2026 - Praha (CZ) Lucerna Music Bar
08 APR 2026 - Munich (DE) Backstage
09 APR 2026 - Frankfurt (DE) Batschkapp
10 APR 2026 - Cologne (DE) Carlswerk Victoria
11 APR 2026 - Hanover (DE) Pavillon
01 MAY 2026 - Bristol (UK) Trinity
02 MAY 2026 - London (UK) 229 Club
03 MAY 2026 -Sheffield (UK Corporation
14 MAY 2026 - Malmö (SE) Plan B
15 MAY 2026 - Göteborg (SE) Musikens Hus
16 MAY 2026 - København (DK) Viften
30 AUG 2026 - Taunton (UK) Vivary Park Open Air, Electric Summer +Howard Jones
11 NOV 2026 - Liberec (CZ) Dům kultury
Source: Press Release
