Arctic Monkeys release new song 'Opening Night' for War Child compilation

Arctic Monkeys have released "Opening Night", their first new song since 2022 album The Car, with proceeds benefiting the charity War Child. The track is taken from HELP(2), a sequel to War Child’s 1995 compilation Help. The original 1995 Help brought together A-list names to raise £1.2m for children affected by conflict, including Radiohead, Blur, Sinéad O’Connor and the Smokin’ Mojo Filters, a supergroup of Paul McCartney, Noel Gallagher and Paul Weller.

The new compilation, released on 6 March, is similarly star-studded: alumni such as Portishead’s Beth Gibbons and Blur’s Damon Albarn and Graham Coxon appear alongside Pulp, Beck and Depeche Mode, and younger artists including Olivia Rodrigo, Fontaines DC, Cameron Winter, Wet Leg and Sampha.

Oscar-nominated film-maker Jonathan Glazer contributed to the project, working with children in war zones across Ukraine, Gaza, Yemen and Sudan and recruiting children in the UK to document the making of the project. James Ford, who has produced or co-produced all but one of the Arctic Monkeys’ albums, oversaw the album, which was recorded at Abbey Road Studios in November.

Ford said: "The original Help meant a lot to me and to have the opportunity, given the current news cycle, to help galvanise our music community into doing something as unarguably positive as helping children in war zones seemed like a no-brainer.

Key Topics

Culture, Arctic Monkeys, Opening Night, War Child, Abbey Road Studios, James Ford