CQ Wrestling - New single 'Pacifico' + new album announcement (10th March)
- Desh Kapur
- 7 minutes ago
- 3 min read
CQ Wrestling announce new album Resistance
Hear lead single 'Pacifico' Below
Resistance out 22nd May on Truth Records
SXSW appearances + UK headline tour dates on sale now
CQ Wrestling are today announcing their sophomore album Resistance for release on 22nd May, and sharing its lead single 'Pacifico'. The band will perform at SXSW this week, with spring UK headline tour dates also now on sale.
There’s a saying that simmers beneath the sonic assault of Resistance, the new album from CQ Wrestling. “Nothing changes if nothing changes,” recites Jake Mac, who knew of this idiom before 2024; before the loss that turned his and bandmate Charlie Woods’ worlds upside down; before the “year of complete mayhem, mess and chaos” that followed. From the outside looking in, the Brighton-based duo may have seemed on the top of the world. Then known as Chappaqua Wrestling, the exhilarating energy of their debut album Plus Ultra had seen the band lauded as future British music scene conquerors. The pair had a major label record deal to their name. Sweat dripped from the walls at headline show after headline show, in front of rapturous fans – and yet something felt amiss.
“We were selling out tours and people were loving the music, but honestly, we just felt f****** lost,” says Woods. Then tragedy struck. “It completely derailed us,” says Mac, recalling how the sudden death of his father – “a big part of the project” since its inception – sank them both into a period of grief and introspection. Amid the mourning emerged a desire to transform.
Resistance is an album forged in the embers of personal tragedy and hammered into shape by desire, resilience and resolve. Detailing a metamorphosis, new single ‘Pacifico’ draws a line in the sand for the band as they recover from a time of tremendous upheaval to find themselves following their own creative compass, with renewed vitality.
The band comments on the new single:
"As a band, we’ve been through every obstacle going; grief, covid destroying releases and tours, the stop button being forced on, probably everything you could imagine to see a band collapse. But we’ll never stop. 'Pacifico' is the song that epitomises this journey we’ve been on and what it means to us to have music and friendship as our own act of Resistance. It’s our song to find a path to change."
Continuing about the album, they say:
"This album is a collection of songs above all about trying to find joy and hope in dark times. We are so proud of this body of work, and have fought incredibly hard to get it done. Over the past two years writing and recording this album, this band has almost broken up from the madness and impossible nature of being an artist in the modern world, the cost of living has plummeted to new lows, mental health issues are impossible, and more conflicts are starting, pulling more people into crisis. Most significantly for us personally was the devastating loss of Jake’s father Gavin, who was a champion and original manager of this band, all the way back when we first met in school.
Resistance is everywhere and it’s the simple explanation to how this album was made. We are so proud of this, and it’s a huge testament to keep the faith, keep the joy, and keep fighting through bleak times."
Pre-order new album Resistance HERE.
CQ Wrestling Live dates 2026
March 14 – SXSW: Liift Showcase, Seven Grand
March 16 – SXSW: Rocknite, Hotel Vegas
March 18 – SXSW: BME, Two Palm
April 25 – Beautiful Ones Festival, Concorde 2, Brighton, UK
May 27 – The Crescent, York, UK
May 28 – Boileroom, Guildford, UK
May 29 – Waterfront Studio, Norwich, UK
May 30 – Cavern, Exeter, UK
June 2 – Rough Trade, Bristol, UK
June 5 – Sidney & Matilda, Sheffield, UK
June 6 – Cabaret Voltaire, Edinburgh, UK
June 10 – Cluny 2, Newcastle, UK
June 11 – Sunflower Lounge, Birmingham, UK
June 12 – Polar Bear, Hull, UK
June 13 – Rough Trade, Liverpool, UK
Oct 21 – The Dome, London, UK
Oct 22 – Brudenell Social Club, Leeds, UK
Oct 26 – G2, Glasgow, UK
Oct 27 – Yes (Pink Room), Manchester, UK
Oct 29 - Bodega, Nottingham, UK
CQ Wrestling - Resistance album tracklisting
1. Pacifico
2. Innocence
3. Smoke Screen
4. Shine Not Burn (Under the Sun)
5. HEALTH+
6. Finish Line
7. Catherine Wheels
8. Forgive & Regret
9. All Change
10. Guns In Their Hands
11. Soft Top