If you speak to anybody involved in the underground UK music scene at the moment, one of the first bands they will tell you about is Keo.
The London-based four-piece rockers are led by brothers Finn (rhythm guitar and vocals) and Conor Keogh (Bass), with support from Jimmy Lanwern (lead guitar, backing vocals) and Oli Spackman (Drums).
These four lads have come together to create something really special and have not only curated a cult following, selling out 1,500 capacity venues in a matter of minutes, despite only having 5 released songs.
They have also begun to lead the return of the 90s style of music back into the forefront of the music industry.
Keo’s fresh blend of grunge, rock and roll and folk music, along with some crazy guitar tunings are the structure of Keo’s captivating sound that is ringing around music venues up and down the country.
I had the opportunity to not only attend 3 shows from the current sold-out headline tour, but also to talk to Aga, a fan of Keo who runs an Instagram fan account for the band, called KeoHQ, where she has amassed over 1700 followers.
The first thing I wanted to know about Keo was about their secret formula. What is it that they put in their music that is capturing the attention of everybody?
Aga said: “For a long time, I was looking for an artist whose lyrics and music resonated with me 100%, it all started when I found fly, their unreleased song on SoundCloud.
“I thought at first, not my type of music, but after giving it a second chance, I immediately wanted more and more.”
She believes that the band’s success can be attributed to how “real and honest” their music and lyrics are.
Finn Keogh’s songwriting is something not only recognised by Keo fans, but also by the music industry, with the 21-year-old being described as “generational” by both NME and BBC Radio One.
Songs like “Stolen Cars” and “Thorn” are some songs where Finn has been able to pour so much emotion into the tracks, and you can “feel their emotions in the music”, something Aga feels is very important to the band’s identity.
When asked about the emotion Finn puts into his songs, Aga said about the “authenticity” and “personal lyrics”, which really separate the band from the rest of the music scene, and how Finn’s songwriting is so powerful that you can “feel it in your bones”.
The most important part of any band is their ability to perform an electrifying live performance; for me, this is what really separates the great bands from the rest of the pack.
Keo do not disappoint live.
After seeing them last night in the Electric Ballroom in London, I can assure you this band is something seriously special.
Aga mentioned the energy between the band and the fans being “really strong” during these shows, and that is something you really notice during every song of their set.
The energy radiates off the band, and the stage presence of both Jimmy and Finn
feels almost magnetic; you cannot take your eyes off them while they play.
Keo’s debut EP, Siren, was released on the 19th of June 2025 and to this day is still the only music they have officially released on Spotify.
Aga added: “Definitely the EP everybody was waiting for, people were thrilled with it even before it was released.
“When it finally dropped, it was just a confirmation of how good they were.”
Keo’s live sets are longer than 5 songs long, though, with the band often playing 15-plus songs during their performance, despite there being no official release of many songs; every word is still roared back at the band from everyone in the crowd.
Aga says that the passion from the fans to learn the unreleased music word for word is “incredible to see”.
Keo are currently in the midst of their biggest headline tour ever, with them blowing up from 200 capacity venues to 2000 in less than a year.
Aga said: “It’s just unreal to see them in venues this big, especially since it all happened within a year.
“They’ve worked so hard to be here, and it’s so deserved.”
With big outdoor shows already booked for summer, supporting fellow Island Records band Wolf Alice and a big slot booked at the UKs biggest festival this year in Reading and Leeds. Keo are here to stay.
The only thing left for Keo is to release their debut album, something Aga believes will happen “much sooner than we all expect”.
