And Also the Trees

And Also the Trees are a British post-punk band, from Inkberrow, in Worcestershire, England. They were formed in the summer of 1979, and enjoyed a degree of success between 1985 and 1992, particularly in France and Germany. Initially made up of Simon Huw Jones (vocals), Justin Jones (guitars), Nick Havas (drums) and Graham Havas (bass) — replaced by Steven Burrows as early as 1983 — the band took their name from one of Simon Huw Jones's early lyrics, "Green is the Sea/And Also the Trees". And Also The Trees are associated with the post-punk or cold wave (in France) musical movement.

While And Also the Trees are undoubtedly part of this wave of English post-punk, which for a time drew comparisons with bands such as Wire, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Joy Division and The Cure, it is entirely possible to detect the influence of late-1960s psychedelic bands such as The Doors, Love and The Velvet Underground (particularly the album White Light/White Heat), or of artists such as Scott Walker and Jacques Brel, through the dramatic and theatrical tension found in most of their tracks, the importance given to atmosphere, and the care taken over melodies. Justin Jones's guitar sound is one of the band's distinctive features. His unconventional playing style most often evokes a mandolin player whose sound has been amplified and reverbed.

Strangely, it is outside the United Kingdom that And Also The Trees have gathered the largest number of their fans, with the British public remaining clearly unconvinced by the band's imagery and Simon Huw Jones's lyrics. A quip from John Peel, who invited them to record one of his famous Peel Sessions as early as 1984, sums up the situation: And Also the Trees were said to be "too English for the English". In its early days, And Also the Trees' imagery was deeply rooted in the landscapes of Worcestershire and the history of the place where they grew up. This distinctive pastoral world permeates the music, the lyrics and the record sleeves.

With their status as a cult band, And Also The Trees benefited from a marked resurgence of interest with the release, in 2007, of (Listen for) the Rag and Bone Man, an acoustic project, When the Rains Come, in 2009, and the album Hunter Not The Hunted, in 2012. The band are praised for the longevity of their creativity. After releasing Mother-of-pearl Moon in 2024, an album regarded by the press as a new cornerstone of their career, they released their sixteenth album, The Devil's Door, in February 2026. The latter earned the band a radio session on France Culture.

Robert Smith, who has followed the band since their early days, invited And Also the Trees to open for the three concerts The Cure gave at the Arènes de Nîmes, on 24, 25 and 26 July 2026.