Our love of murder ballads is well documented and the new single from London quintet The Hanging Stars, The House on The Hill is a mighty fine addition to the roster.

It is a murder ballad about a poor girl who drowns herself in the sea after having her heart broken and is partly a true story, the track being inspired by an entry in a book of traditional songs gathered by folk music archivist Alan Lomax.

The track further embraces the band’s transatlantic influences. Bathed in swampy psychedelia and sounding like an unearthed lost gem of 60s Americana, whilst clinging to their pastoral English folk roots. Call it the missing link between between the California desert sun and the grey skies of London Town.

The single is a prelude to their forthcoming debut full-length, tentatively titled Over the Silvery Lake and due out in early 2016.

.

Follow @madmackerel