The Rolling Stones tease London show under The Cockroaches alias

The Rolling Stones could be set to drop new music under an alias, The Cockroaches, which the band has used once before.

The Mick Jagger-fronted group heavily teased new material late last year, saying there had been further recordings made after the release of 2023’s Hackney Diamonds. QR codes and teaser images for a gig by The Cockroaches in London has fuelled a theory that The Stones could be back just three years after their last album release. The Cockroaches is a name The Rolling Stones used once before, for their El Mocambo 1977 gig, where they were joined by keyboardist Billy Preston. The El Mocambo 1977 album was released in 2022, with a 300-capacity show played to winners of a contest invited to see The Cockroaches.

The Cockroaches turned out to be The Rolling Stones with keyboardist Preston and percussionist Ollie Brown. The show was to promote songs from Black and Blue. The Rolling Stones could be set to repeat the secret gig with The Cockroaches reappearing in advertisements seen across London.

Fans believe The Cockroaches are The Rolling Stones in disguise as their record label, Polydor Records, is mentioned on the website linked to a QR code spotted in London.

Matt Everitt took to Instagram with pictures of the QR code and wrote: “I could be falling for an elaborate April Fool’s hoax, or I could have dropped down a rabbit hole of obscure Stones folklore, but this would appear to be some form of cryptic Rolling Stones announcement, right?”

Another fan took to Instagram and shared similar QR code sightings, adding: “I’ve got form on spotting these – it was me that first clocked the Hackney Diamonds advert in the Hackney Gazette before they announced that album – and now I’m intrigued by this advert, which has popped up in London.

“The QR code takes you to thecockroaches.com, and a holding page that shows a sparse ‘70s bedroom complete with various ephemera dotted around – some plectrums, concert tickets, and vinyl records – plus a poster for The Cockroaches and a clock stuck on April 11th.”

Further information will likely be available on April 11, if a clock seen on The Cockroaches website is anything to go by.

A twenty-three song live album was released just four years ago of the legendary show where the Jagger-fronted group performed under the name of The Cockroaches. A full tracklist for El Mocambo 1977 can be found below.