Brentford has launched a special-edition shirt with Hard-Fi to mark the 20th anniversary of the release of ‘Stars of CCTV’.
- READ MORE: Hard-Fi: “‘Stars of CCTV’ seems more relevant now than it did back in 2005”
The band marked the 20th anniversary of the record – which topped the charts in 2005 and earned them a Mercury Music Prize nomination – with a deluxe reissue earlier this year. Now, they’ve teamed up with their beloved Bees on a shirt that pays homage to the artwork seen on the record.
Made by official kit partner Joma, the shirt features the Brentford crest and the bold yellow CCTV-inspired album camera graphic on the chest. Celebrating Brentford and Hard-Fi’s west London roots, the shirt is now available at the Hive Superstore. Fans can shop the shirt online here from 9am on Monday (December 1).
As a lifelong fan and season ticket holder, frontman Richard Archer has supported the club’s journey into the Premier League and performed at the club’s Farewell Griffin Park event, before their move to Gtech Community Stadium.
Speaking about the shirt, Brentford’s marketing services director Steve Watts said the collaboration brought together “two important parts of west London’s identity – football and music.
“Hard-Fi and Brentford are entwined in each other’s history and have been authentic supporters of each other for the last two decades,” he added. “So it feels fitting to bring the two together to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the iconic Stars of CCTV album with this limited-edition shirt.”
Archer said that the release of the shirt was “right up there” with the best opportunities afforded to the band. “We’re so grateful to Brentford for making this happen,” he said. “It’s such a buzz seeing the finished shirt and seeing it worn by the players, we feel so proud to work with a club that means so much to us.
“This is a perfect way to mark the 20th anniversary of Stars and to look forward to our new fourth album.”
News of their upcoming recording came earlier this month, when they announced that they’ve completed their first album in 14 years.
Speaking to NME back in 2023, Archer looked back at their debut release and said: “‘Stars of CCTV’ seems more relevant now than it did back in 2005, almost. A lot of the subjects are more prescient now perhaps, so, it’s just trying to figure out what is it we want to say, and sonically what do we want to be doing? We’re trying lots of different things out to see what resonates.”
“When we wrote ‘Stars Of CCTV’, even though the subjects were talking about what was happening, it wasn’t really as on purpose. It was just talking about our lives and when we were growing up, writing about we knew and trying to make a point about it in some ways. We want to do what feels good and not worry too much, like we did on album one.
“We just want to enjoy the process and not be pressured into making the new ‘Hard To Beat’.”
