English Teacher Artistfacts

2020-
Lily FontaineVocals, guitar
Lewis WhitingGuitar
Douglas FrostDrums
Nicholas EdenBass
The band's roots date back to 2018, when a group of friends at Leeds Conservatoire formed a dream-pop group called Frank. By 2020 it had reincarnated into English Teacher.

Guitarist Lewis Whiting recalled to Consequence joining the group after befriending vocalist Lily Fontaine. He said it just "clicked."

"There was a bit of a name change, a rearranging of Lily's previous band," he said. "I had an idea of what kind of music Lily's other bands were into at the time."
While often categorized as post-punk, the band members resist such a strict label. They incorporate elements of funk, art rock, humor and even wry social commentary into their music.
English Teacher released their debut EP, Polyawkward, in April 2022. The title is an adaptation of the word polyorchid - a term that refers to someone with more than two testicles.

"I just thought it was so interesting since an orchid is such a beautiful flower and... yeah, anyway!"said vocalist Lily Fontaine to The Line Of Best Fit. "Polyawkward sounds like polyorchid and it's how I'd describe myself: I'm just uncomfortable and awkward around everyone."
The title of their debut album, This Could Be Texas, is a bit of a joke. It originated from a sweltering heatwave in England, not from the US state. Guitarist Lewis Whiting jokingly uttered the phrase while stuck in a hot car park, and it stuck!
Fontaine's go-to guitar is her Fender Mustang, "because I'm five foot two and every other guitar makes me look so tiny," she laughed to Guitar.com. "I love it. I feel like it's diverse enough for me."
This Could Be Texas was lauded by critics and won the 2024 Mercury Prize. In a statement, the judges said the album stood out for its originality and character, calling it "a winning lyrical mix of surrealism and social observation, alongside a subtle way of wearing its musical innovations lightly, displays a fresh approach to the traditional guitar band format."
Why English Teacher? The band derived their name from Lily Fontaine's personal connections. The frontwoman explained that many members of her family have been English teachers at some point, and she wanted to keep that tradition alive through the group's name. Additionally, Fontaine attributed her love for writing to the influence of her English teachers. "I do a lot of creative writing," she told Northern Life magazine. "I got into that through English teachers and all my English teachers have been amazing people."

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