British band Premier Jester promise you won’t be able to sit still while listening to their catchy fusion of deathcore and European electronicore. The band aims to bring a bundle of fun, energy and laughter to the metal scene in a sound they describe as “energetic, fun and crazy.”
The band, formed of Kent-based Joey Yates (clean lead and harsh backing vocals) and Berkshire/Surrey-based Jimmy Martin (harsh leads and clean backing vocals), Jonah Pritchard (guitar), Adam Berces (bass) and Chris Belae (drums), call themselves a “Tinder band” because they met through an app that connects musicians. Jimmy got the project off the ground, sending Joey a message that he “thought was a scam at first” but decided to have a look in case he liked the vision. A year later, they’ve racked up thousands of views and have their first headline show around the corner, leading Joey to assess it as the “best scam ever.”
And on the sound they’ve crafted, Joey told us: “I describe the sound like a freight train hitting and enormous electrified puddle that when the train explodes rains down a rainbow gelatine-like substance which engulfs everyone in its path with pure energy and good vibes, leading to uncontrolled electrifying lit-ness!”
Our latest taste of this is Premier Jester’s fifth single Slow Dance, which was released last month. It starts with building synths that pick up pace under a big cry of “let’s dance.” Jimmy’s intense screamed vocals take over alongside crushing riffs and big cymbal crashes, before Joey leads us into a catchy chorus “This is a slow dance, Dimming the lights, Enjoy this dance, Cause it’s just for tonight, We sway back and forth, We sway side to side, Wrap your arms round my neck, Gaze into my eyes.” That ends with harsh vocals that flow into another vicious verse. A second chorus gives way to more intense vocals and guitars, which drops into clean vocals over synths leading into a final blast of the chorus, before the track ends with intense screams and crushing guitars.
On the track, Joey said: “Oh yeah, the reception for Slow Dance has been proper lit! It’s our highest viewed music video and fastest streaming song so far, actually! In the first couple of weeks, we’ve already had a quarter of a million views (now 438k views), so it’s done substantially better than where we started back in May, which is cool because it’s my favourite song. If you haven’t heard it yet, it’s a bit of a ballad but with breakdowns and dance sections… there’s a romantic theme throughout, which is guaranteed to hit you right in the feels.”
The guilty more-ish fusion of powerful deathcore and party vibes is prevalent throughout their previous releases. That incudes the excellent Sales King and the super catchy All I Ever Wanted, from which the chorus lines “All I ever wanted, Was to see you smiling, And all I ever wanted, Was to make you mine, I know that I love you, Oh baby why don’t you see, That all I ever wanted, Was you and me” may be stuck in your head for hours. And all of that followed their debut single PJ Lovers, which is basically Europop married with metalcore, opening up with cheeky little rapped vocals before intense screams feed into a big catchy chorus.
Those tracks are leading up to Premier Jester’s debut album, which will be out next year. We’ve got a 10-track album being released around Easter, which will showcase our full arsenal of sounds and skills,” Jimmy told us. “The consistent theme of it will be fun, catchy tracks, but they’re all unique, with some being heavier, some being more silly and others just outright banging.
“The later tracks we’ve written are definitely becoming a bit faster, I’d say, with the contrast between metal and dance becoming more extreme. The headline is, you won’t be able to sit still when listening, and we are VERY excited to deliver this and see our fans’ reactions!”
The Premier Jester sound is heavily influenced by European electronicore giants like Electric Callboy, Samurai Pizza Cats and We Butter the Bread with Butter. Individually, they’re into completely random artists and genres, ranging from EDM and techno to rap, hip-hop and classical.
And on what inspires them to write music, Jimmy explains: “The cool thing with PJ is that anything goes… literally… One morning, Adam texted me as he was eating a PBJ sandwich and said ‘let’s write a song about peanut butter jelly, but with our name in it’ and PJ Lovers was created. I think a lot of music is written for the heart… ours is written for the heart BEAT!
Premier Jester will be releasing a new single early next year, followed by another ahead of their debut album dropping around Easter time. They’ll be continuing to write and record new music as they focus on finetuning their stage game to “blow people’s brains all over our live shows.” As Jimmy says: “This is something we’ve been working on for a long time, and our live shows will be just as intense, energic and visually captivating as the music and videos.”
You can treat yourself to one hell of a party to kick off 2026 as Premier Jester perform their first-ever gig headlining the Black Heart in Camden, London, on 10 January, with tickets available here. Jimmy said: “Claim your OG ticket by being at our first ever show as we headline the Camden Black Heart… you will never see a band emerge on the scene like we plan to!
And Joey added: “We’ve got plenty more to come, and we’re making moves in quick time, so expect to hear more from us soon… and soon after that as well.”
You can follow Premier Jester on Facebook, Instagram and TikTok, and check out their music on Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube.
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