The Molotovs | February ‘26
Live-wire Siblings, Reclaiming British Youth Culture.
Words by: Carolina Fernandez Bold
Seventeen-year-old Mathew Cartlidge and his nineteen-year-old sister Issey formed their band during the 2020 lockdown. In just a few years, they’ve played more than 600 shows and opened for icons like the Sex Pistols, Blondie and Iggy Pop. Their live performances hit hard, fusing post-punk attitude with indie rock spark, and a stage presence that electrifies crowds.
‘When I play live, and I see people feeling the same sort of things I do, that creates unity. And that connection — it makes the songs mean even more to me than when I first wrote them,” Mathew tells me. Issey agrees. “Especially with the songs that have been released,” she adds. “Hearing people sing the lyrics back, it makes all those statements that Matt’s putting through his songs all the more poignant. It becomes more severe.”
Their debut album, Wasted on Youth, released January 30th, collects songs that The Molotovs have been performing for years alongside newer tracks. As Issey puts it, “We can finally put all that momentum into this physical manifestation. This single black disk that other people can rally behind.”
Rooted in political and social frustration, the record confronts youth disengagement. “I don’t think young people are really getting involved with politics, or having a take,” Mathew says.
“We’re so distracted… and young people feel hopeless, like they can’t make a difference.” In songs like Newsflash and Today’s Gonna Be Our Day, lyrics tap into restlessness and the sense of time slipping through your fingers. Frenzied guitar riffs and propulsive drums lend an urgency that mirrors the impatience of a generation navigating life through screens, isolation and division.
“It’s about giving people hope,” Issey says. “We’re an increasingly polarised society, and it’s about drawing people back to compassion and togetherness. And saying, look — we’re all in the same room, with the same common interest of music.” When Issey takes to the stage in a Union Jack dress, it’s more than a fashion statement. “People were putting it up, and it’s become emblematic of intolerance and hate. I was like, let’s take it back into our own hands and reclaim what this flag means.” Referencing the band’s British musical heritage and mod-inspired style, The Molotovs turn the flag into a symbol of inclusion, shared cultural pride, and the collective joy of music.
The fire that drives their songs and politics runs straight through the sibling relationship at the heart of the band. “Matt’s like an arsonist and I’m like a firefighter,” Issey says. “He’s always putting up flames and I’m always putting them out. We work together really well a lot of the time!”
It’s this combustible, untamed energy that fuels The Molotovs’ momentum and pulses through Wasted on Youth. As Mathew says, “It’s about growing up, messing up, and inspiring young people to end the apathy.”
A reminder that youth is meant to be lived loud, messy, and fully alive.
Team Credits
Photographer: Laura Braithwaite
Stylist: Zoe Ward
Art Directors: Emily-Grace and Michael Morgan | Original Magazine
Hair Stylist: Callum Olver
MUA: Sadie Lauder
Photography Assistant: 2tim6
Stylist Assistants: Ellerie Hamilton | Aidan Richards | Matthew Taylor
Wardrobe Credits
@limitee_pr
@mattmolotov@issey_carts wears @adamoflondon
@issey_carts wears @pleiades_shoes@bigezbazaar@asos@reverie.wear_@bionicclaire
