Discopolis are arguably the hottest band in Scotland right now. Up until a few months ago I had never even heard of them, in fact I doubt very many people had. This years T Break panel changed all of that, as their submission became one of the most talked about entries by this years panellists.

Since being announced to play at T in the Park, the band have been snapped up for several more festivals, they’ve supported FOUND as part of Detour’s ‘Wee Jaunt’ in Edinburgh and next month they’re releasing a single through the innovative Eli & Oz label.

I caught up with the band ahead of their appearance at T in the Park to ask them a little about how they feel about being “hot”, their influences and what we can expect to see and hear from them before the end of this year…

Would you care to introduce yourself?

We are Discopolis- a mild mannered trio from the tiny hamlet of Stockbridge consisting of: Fergus Cook on vocals and Keyboards, Dave Lloyd on MIDI keyboard and Laurie Corlett-Donald on guitar and synth.

How would you describe the music you make?

Like a pleasantly treacherous stroll in the Swiss Alps.

Where did the name Discopolis come from?

We were sold when we set our eyes on the ‘Tidy’ in the video for the Lifelike and Kris Menace song of the same name.

How did you get to know each other and come together as a band?

We all went to school together and hated each other at one time or another but it all worked out in the end.

How do you feel about being a so called ‘buzz band’?

We’re genuinely shocked and humbled. It’s not what we expected, but we’re going to do our darnedest to live up to it.

What process goes into the way you create songs?

We don’t have a set formula, our best songs either take two months to finish or have been written in one day.

Who would you say are your big musical influences?

M83, The Whitest Boy Alive and Deadmau5. We are also hugely proud to hail from the same city as Boards of Canada.

Your due to release your new single next month through Jen Anderson’s label, Eli & Oz, how did that come about?

She’s a T break judge and she got in touch with us shortly after the announcement, but the fact that Scotland is such a small place doesn’t hurt.

What can people expect to see/hear from your live shows?

It’s early days yet, we’re working on visuals to make everything more aesthetically pleasing, for now you’ll just have to settle four our ugly mugs. The lead singer has been attending zumba classes in order to keep fit and keep up to date with all the coolest dance moves.

How are the nerves holding up ahead of your appearance at this years T in the Park?

In a way it hasn’t completely hit home that we’re playing T. We’ve gradually reached the point that we don’t feel nervous before our gigs, but somehow we expect T will be pretty daunting.

What are your plans for the rest of the year and beyond? Are you still working on new material?

We are playing a few festivals during the summer as well as a few dates in Glasgow and Edinburgh. We don’t have any major long term plans yet but things may change after T. We try to write as much as we can. We like the idea of having a lot of tracks, allowing us the freedom to cherry-pick our favourites for an album. We ‘re taking a leaf out of Justin Vernon’s book and taking a week in September to isolate ourselves in Laurie’s cabin.

Discopolis – Cold Summers Turn To Scottish Winters

Discopolis new single ‘Lofty Ambitions’ is due out on Eli and Oz in early August, and you can watch the video for the single below.

httpv://youtu.be/kMTp40b4ycg

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