Samuel Taylor delivers a gripping black comedy for the British psych-rock outfit Crows' thunderous Wednesday's Child, where a group of young people come together in a big house, to build the perfect community, but descend into chaos.

At first it's all sweetness and light and mutual trust. But then the community's team spirit starts to fragment, the activity and sport develops a more competitive edge. Then things get completely out of hand...

Just as the song references the Salem witch trials, Taylor has channelled a few major literary works, from The Crucible to Lord of the Flies, and directs a large cast with aplomb, to bring us this timely satire on the fragility of civilization.   

SAMUEL TAYLOR:

"Crows are an underground band loved by devoted, loyal fans and anyone who's introduced to them. After seeing them live a few years back, I was instantly taken in by their live show that even those who have witnessed can barely describe. My closest approximation was possession. If as the band and the audience had been taken by the devil and formed one screaming organism. Quite a Tuesday night, but it was clear, once it came time to do a vid for the guys (especially with a track written about the Salem Witch Trials) that this first and visceral experience was going to lead the story.

"We were essentially left to it. With the trust of the band and their manager, a long researching and writing process began with 5 or 6 completely different stories and 5 or 6 completely different ways of the telling the stories. Dan Hawkins (who also shot the film) and I couldn't stop chatting about the state of the West during breaks in writing and whilst going through notes on Arthur Miller's 'The Crucible' the idea snapped into place. Who doesn't love a metaphor.

"It was a long writing, shooting and editing process with a big cast and film stock running out fast but an amazingly dedicated and creative crew, along with the trust we knew was there from the band and management meant we could really lose ourselves in the project. Always a dream when you get that opportunity.

"With many years of keeping things a secret in sweaty venues, Crows' debut album has just been released by way of Balley Records, run by Idles' Joe Talbot who the band have just toured with."