Belle and Sebastian have shared a new song that was scrapped from their 2023 album, Late Developers, at the last second. “What Happened to You, Son?” tells the story of a music fan obsessing over his idols. Check it out below.

“The song is about my youth, and the funny hole I fell into in my late teens. I was failing at my university course, failing in almost everything I tried around then. I was obsessed with the music of the time, I used to hang so much on the lyrics and message and feeling of certain bands of the 80s era – it probably wasn’t healthy,” singer Stuart Murdoch stated. “Instead I let the singers become my penpals and my deities. The song tries to address what happens when the pop stars grow up, and change, and go a different way, and seem to betray the stance they held when you loved them the most.”

Next week, Belle and Sebastian embark on a North American tour that continues throughout the spring. They will perform songs from their two recent records, Late Developers and A Bit of Previous, and opening select dates will be Haley Heynderickx and the Weather Station.

Last December, Belle and Sebastian made an animated appearance on The Simpsons. The band appeared alongside David Tennant, Karen Gillan, and Paul Higgins for an episode that took place in Scotland.