War Child Records has officially announced HELP(2), a new all-star collaborative charity album that revives the spirit of its original 1995 release HELP. That first record united artists like Oasis, Blur, Radiohead, Massive Attack, and Paul McCartney to raise funds for children affected by the Bosnian conflict. 

This year’s proceeds will be given to aid children affected by conflict in countries including Sudan, Gaza, Ukraine, and Syria. 

The album brings together an expansive and cross-generational lineup including Anna Calvi, Arlo Parks, Arooj Aftab, Bat For Lashes, Beabadoobee, Beck, Beth Gibbons, Big Thief, Black Country, New Road, Cameron Winter, Damon Albarn, Depeche Mode, Dove Ellis, Ellie Rowsell, English Teacher, Ezra Collective, Foals, Fontaines D.C., Graham Coxon, Greentea Peng, Grian Chatten, Kae Tempest, King Krule, Nilüfer Yanya, Olivia Rodrigo, Pulp, Sampha, The Last Dinner Party, Wet Leg and Young Fathers. Arctic Monkeys open the record with Opening Night, marking their first new release in nearly four years since 2022’s The Car.

Rumours of the project have been circulating since War Child’s independent label first posted on Instagram on January 7, announcing that “there is a group of artists who are working on something important in support of War Child”, suggesting a new charity album was in the works. Since the original HELP was released, the proportion of children affected by conflict has nearly doubled, now impacting an estimated 520 million children worldwide.

Recorded at Abbey Road Studios and produced by James Ford, HELP(2) spans 23 tracks, mixing original songs with covers and unexpected collaborations. Damon Albarn, Grian Chatten, and Kae Tempest come together on Flags, joined in the studio by Johnny Marr. Olivia Rodrigo’s cover of The Magnetic Fields’ The Book of Love features guitar work from Graham Coxon. Elsewhere, Arooj Aftab and Beck reinterpret Jeff Buckley’s Lilac Wine, Ezra Collective team up with Greentea Peng on Helicopters, and Fontaines D.C. offer their take on Sinéad O’Connor’s Black Boys on Mopeds. Foals contribute their first new material since Life Is Yours with When the War Is Finally Done, while Depeche Mode cover Buffy Sainte-Marie’s Universal Soldier.

Academy Award–winning filmmaker Jonathan Glazer serves as Creative Director, leading a concept titled “By Children, For Children.” Children were given cameras to document recording sessions freely, while additional footage was filmed by children living in conflict zones, including Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, and Yemen. 

The Full Tracklist:

1. Arctic Monkeys – Opening Night
2. Damon Albarn, Grian Chatten & Kae Tempest – Flags 
3. Black Country, New Road – Strangers
4. The Last Dinner Party – Let’s do it again!
5 . Beth Gibbons – Sunday Morning
6. Arooj Aftab & Beck – Lilac Wine
7. King Krule – The 343 Loop
8. Depeche Mode – Universal Soldier
9. Ezra Collective & Greentea Peng – Helicopters
10. Arlo Parks – Nothing I Could Hide
11. English Teacher & Graham Coxon – Parasite
12. Beabadoobee – Say Yes
13. Big Thief – Relive, Redie
14. Fontaines D.C. – Black Boys on Mopeds
15. Cameron Winter – Warning 
16. Young Fathers – Don’t Fight the Young
17. Pulp – Begging for Change
18. Sampha – Naboo 
19. Wet Leg – Obvious
20. Foals – When the War is Finally Done 
21. Bat For Lashes – Carried My Girl 
22. Anna Calvi, Ellie Rowsell, Nilüfer Yanya & Dove Ellis – Sunday Light
23. Olivia Rodrigo – The Book of Love 

The album will be out on March 6th; pre-order and full information are available on their website, with all proceeds supporting War Child UK.