▲ 35 r/thebottlemen
CATB @ Tottenham Stadium 25’ 🐊
Thought I would share one of the many, many videos I got last year at their London stadium show! Let me know if I should post more 🖤
u/bottlingthecatmen — 2 days ago
▲ 24 r/thebottlemen
A hidden message? 👀
Tonight, I’ve been doing a deep dive into the most recent — and possibly longest-standing — image on the new CATB website.
Obviously, we still have absolutely no idea whether the website is legitimate, but every upload since May has been completely unique: not AI-generated and definitely not stolen. So, it’s either the work of a very dedicated fan or, maybe, just maybe, it’s actually them. I was looking into this image specifically. We already know it shows Llandudno, Wales, where the band first formed, but I decided to take a closer look at the bollards in the foreground. Irrelevant, right? Maybe not..
I counted eight visible bollards in the image. It’s worth noting that the original seafront contains far more than eight, meaning this could either be completely accidental or an intentional hint.
With the band’s LTD company being re-registered earlier this year, the renewal of the original .com website, and recent interactions and equipment sightings on current members’ Instagram accounts, it certainly feels like something could be on the way. But what does the number eight have to do with anything?
The last major show the band played in Wales was at Principality Stadium on 1 August 2025. August, of course, is the eighth month of the year, and with that date creeping closer by the week, could an announcement finally be on the cards?
Van has stated very clearly that he “needs another year alone”, so maybe this is a clever visual tease pointing towards something bigger — or maybe it’s complete nonsense. At this point, who knows? But we’re rapidly reaching the stage where we need something from the band, otherwise we’re all just going to become even more delusional.
u/bottlingthecatmen — 8 days ago
▲ 24 r/thebottlemen
Time to relax? 😌
I genuinely think the fandom needs to relax and take a breather!
Yes, the band are not active on their socials and the most we hear from them is when they make random surprise returns every few years. But people are acting like this isn’t normal!
The band have been this way almost entirely throughout their career. Yeah, they were probably more active during their Balcony era, but ever since contact has gotten less and less and it’s seemed like the band may never be what they once were. The thing is many bands do this, like The Arctic Monkeys, for instance. Just because they’ve been VERY quiet lately does not mean they’re never coming back. The band were literally on tour last summer, and so, like most bands they’re likely taking a break before they come back. Not only this, but with the recent post about Benji’s guitar being spotted in James Comptons Instagram post, it’s likely the band may also be making new music too. If correct, this requires a crazy amount of time and effort, meaning it’s likely we won’t hear anything from them this summer or even this year.
But! Van did re-register the ‘CATBLIVE’ brand as a LTD company a few month back, suggesting he has every intention to keep going. So relax, take a breather, CATB will be back! It’s just a matter of when.
u/bottlingthecatmen — 16 days ago
▲ 7 r/thebottlemen
CATB: THE DOCUMENTARY?
In the last few days I’ve really been thinking about the possibility for a CATB documentary of sorts. The band have such a rich story and timeline which stretches well over 10 years, I just think there are so many different avenues for the band to explore in this format!
For example, the beginning of the band.. Van’s first performances with the original group, interviews from ex-band mates, friends and family members e.g. Billy Bibby & Larry. The origins of the name, the reason for creating the band, their first unreleased tunes (like Velvet or Parrifin), the creation of the first album etc. the list truly goes on! As careless as the band have seemed in the last few years, I’m sure they have countless demos/BTS work which has never seen the light out day, or video diaries (which I believe the band did at one stage but scrapped) which are stored away somewhere, waiting to be released.
It could also explore the bands rise through their other releases like The Ride and The Balance accompanied with the struggles they faced throughout all of that. And of course touch on some harder topics like the departure of Bondy & Bob in 2021, the cancellation of shows throughout that period and Van’s personal struggle with substances and band relations.
I truly think wrapping the bands 10+ year history into a cinematic documentary would not only help to give context and perspective on a ever-breaking indie band, but also give fans some reassurance and nostalgia on what’s been and possibly what’s to come. I don’t think it will ever happen, but they’ll be stupid not to consider it.
Tell me what you think?
u/bottlingthecatmen — 16 days ago
▲ 44 r/thebottlemen
What are CATB cooking up? 👀
After a great deal of speculation on the bands future, uncertainty over new websites and unofficial announcements I thought I’d make a post to discuss some evidence which strongly suggests CATB are cooking something up for us in the studio.
As you can see above, I’ve added a small collage of screenshots from posts made by the bands new drummer, James Compton. These posts have been made within the last 7 months are are very exciting!
The biggest clue that CATB are returning, possibly with new music, is the appearance of Benji’s guitar in the background of one of James’ drum sessions. Now, why would James just casually have Benji’s guitar sitting in his studio? Suspicious. Another thing fuelling the suspicion is that James has been actively conversing with CATB’s new lead guitarist, Kai Smith, in his comment section - with Kai commenting “👀” underneath another of James’ drum sessions which were posted to his Instagram. And finally! Another story post made by James pictured his laptop screen, unfortunately nothing can be read, but he did tag Kai into the story suggesting a collaboration of sorts. I would also like to note that all of the recent videos where James has been drumming out, the beat, tempo and overall sound of what he’s drumming sound ever so similar to that of CATB and the music they’ve released in the last 10+ years.
So, thanks to James, it seems as though something is being rustled up for us but who knows what and god knows when we will ever officially find out.
🐊
u/bottlingthecatmen — 16 days ago