Watch CHVRCHES play first live performance in two years at surprise London gig to launch ‘Death Stranding 2’

CHVRCHES performed together for the first time in two years at last night’s Death Stranding 2: On The Beach celebration event in London – check out footage below

• READ MORE: ‘Death Stranding 2: On The Beach’ review: arty masterpiece sequel is loads of fun

The Scottish synth-pop band wrapped up their touring commitments for ftheir ourth album ‘Screen Violence’ in June 2023, supporting Coldplay at Milan’s Stadio Giuseppe Meazza. Since then, vocalist Lauren Mayberry has toured in support of her debut solo album ‘Vicious Creatures’, but CHVRCHES haven’t played a gig together in two years.

Last night (June 30), the trio reunited onstage at the London leg of the Death Stranding 2 world celebration tour to perform their 2019 track ‘Death Stranding’, which was written for the first game.

The gig also saw Caroline Polachek perform ‘On The Beach’ for the first time live. Check out fan-shot footage below:

Caroline Polachek AND Chvrches in one evening?! My tiny heart could barely take it. Thanks Kojima for coming to London!!#DeathStranding2 pic.twitter.com/aulLZi8QKu

— Ed Nightingale (@ed_nights) June 30, 2025

After their performance, CHVRCHES sat down for a brief interview with Geoff Keighley, where Martin Doherty confirmed the band had been “secretly making a record for about six months”.

Death Stranding creator Hideo Kojima took to social media after the event and said: “It was a truly special night in my life. I’ll never forget what happened today. Thank you to everyone involved in the event and its operation, the friends who came all this way to see it, and all the fans. I will treasure these connections and keep pushing forward. There may be all kinds of things waiting in the future, but I hope to face them by remembering this very day.”

“We all came together to reconnect the ‘strands’ that were once severed by the pandemic. I’m so glad we never gave up on making this game. I won’t let go again,” he added.

We all came together to reconnect the “strands” that were once severed by the pandemic. I’m so glad we never gave up on making this game. I won’t let go again. Thank you. https://t.co/QGX12yOsxS pic.twitter.com/Hy3VJfpE82

— HIDEO_KOJIMA (@HIDEO_KOJIMA_EN) July 1, 2025

Last week, Mayberry confirmed that while the band don’t have any new music in Death Stranding 2, the band members do cameo as NPCs that work for the We Love Animals organisation.

Speaking to NME about going solo shortly after the release of her first single ‘Are You Awake?’, Mayberry said: “It would be weird to be in any job for 12 years and not do anything else. Four albums in a row is pretty solid, so it’s important to get new stuff into our brains. Then, as and when we come back for the fifth album, it has to be moving the conversation forward – it can’t just be a different version of the same thing.”

“After 10 years and four albums, this is a good time to take a minute,” she added. “Everyone go on your own adventure so when we come back we’re not just having the same musical conversations over and over.”

In other news, Ludvig Forssell’s orchestral score for Death Stranding 2: On The Beach is available to stream now alongside Woodkid’s more pop-leaning soundtrack.

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