London DIY punk group YAKKIE have announced their debut album, Kill The Cop Inside Your Head, set for release on February 13, 2026. The record will be self-released and arrives alongside the album’s title track, which is now out with an accompanying music video. The song has already gained attention beyond the underground, including airplay from Tom Morello of Rage Against The Machine on his SiriusXM show Stateside.
Recorded at Middle Farm Studios in Devon with producer Peter Miles, the album was tracked entirely using analogue equipment. The band recorded the full record live to reel-to-reel tape in just four days, with no digital tools used at any stage. Each track was captured in a single take, giving the album a raw and forceful sound that matches its political focus.
The title track opens the album with a confrontational tone. Vocalist Janey Starling describes it as a song about fighting internal defeat and learned obedience. The phrase “the cop in your head” comes from Brazilian theatre director Augusto Boal, whose work explored how people internalize systems of control. Starling explains that the song is about recognizing those voices and rejecting them in order to imagine something better. The message is direct, urgent, and rooted in collective action.
The next song to be released from the album is “He Sleeps Alone,” described as an anti-f*ckboy anthem, which arrived January 15, offering another sharp look at power, behavior, and accountability through YAKKIE’s heavy punk lens.
YAKKIE began as a political outlet for Starling, a KERRANG! Award winner and founding member of Dream Nails, who stepped away from music to focus on anti-prisons activism. Her return is marked by intensity and clarity. She is joined by guitarist Robin Gatt of Personal Best and Petrol Girls, whose playing draws from thick, downtuned riffs and noisy leads. Drummer Maeve Westall and bassist Laura Ankles form a dense rhythm section that gives the band its weight and drive.
The band has quickly built a reputation in London’s DIY scene, selling out every show they’ve played so far. They will perform this Friday at the How To Catch A Pig Halloween Party at Matchstick Piehouse and will tour with US political punk band Dead Pioneers in February and March 2026.
With Kill The Cop Inside Your Head, YAKKIE deliver heavy, political punk made for the current moment—loud, focused, and unafraid to confront power head-on.
Check out the video for “Kill The Cop Inside Your Head”: