Francis Lung

Drawing from '60s influences including the Left Banke and Phil Spector, Manchester singer and songwriter Tom McClung—previously a member of WU LYF—adopted Francis Lung as his solo moniker. After issuing a pair of 2016 EPs that featured sparer, more intimate material, he embraced a lusher, affectionate Baroque pop sound on the 2019 album A Dream Is U and its 2021 successor Miracle.

McClung started developing solo work during his time in WU LYF, the group that disbanded a year after the 2011 release of its critically acclaimed debut Go Tell Fire to the Mountain. The band—Ellery James Roberts on lead vocals, Evans Kati on guitar, Joe Manning on drums, and McClung on bass (under the alias "Lung")—reached the U.K. Top 100 with that album.

Under the Francis Lung name, he put out the home-recorded EPs Faeher's Son, Vol. 1 and Mother's Son, Vol. 2 in late 2016. Teaming with producer Brendan Williams, McClung broadened his sonic palette for the full-length debut A Dream Is U, issued by Memphis Industries in 2019. The pair worked together once more on the 2021 album Miracle. McClung performed and sang all parts on Miracle aside from the strings, reinforcing his smart, punchy pop style while adding a distinctively introspective quality.