February 19, 2007
Web-zine interview..
Some friendly types over at God Is In The TV interviewed the brothers Johnston at the Southampton date of the Kerrang! tour. Quite a nice read, enjoy.
Headlining a sold-out Kerrang! tour, receiving regular airplay from admiring DJs, and recording in the States, GIITTV caught up with the Johnston brothers to discuss how Biffy Clyro are still the same band we've always adored.
Last time you played Southampton was 2 years ago at the Uni, a venue somewhat smaller than tonight's (Southampton Guildhall has a capacity of around 1750). Do you find it heard creating the kind of intimacy that is often so prominent at Biffy gigs, in larger venues?
Ben: There’s no point trying to create intimacy in a place that has none. A place like this it’s just not possible because the kids are just to far away, it’s more of a show than a joint experience. But it’s better for different reasons than a smaller gig...
James: Aye, it’s a good challenge trying to reach the people at the back of the room as well as getting the energy from those at the front. We still really enjoy playing small venues, but we enjoy the challenge places like this bring.
Given the success that ‘Puzzle’ is expected to bring, are venues such as the Guildhall going to be more suitable for future tours?
Ben: I’d hope so yes, obviously depending on how well the album does! We’ve sold out similar sized venues in the past so anything smaller would seem like a step back, although we’ve been out of the limelight for a while...
James: Where we ever in the limelight?!
Ben: (laughs) it’s been 2 years now so there’s a chance the numbers could drop, but we’ll wait and see.
So, we know you’re playing as part of the Kerrang! tour tonight, and obviously with the new label and album it’s a very exciting time for the band, and it’s obviously helpful Kerrang! have taken you under their wing. However, the front cover of this week’s issue read something like;
‘this week, Evanescence, Good Charlotte, My Chemical Romance and Biffy Clyro’. Does this kind of juxtaposition ring any alarm bells for you? Is there any danger of Biffy becoming an‘in’ band?
Ben: I don’t think so no, none of those bands are particularly our favourites. I don’t think becoming an ‘in’ band would be particularly detrimental to us because of the work we’ve put in in the past, I think it only kills a band if they have nothing to start with and it gives them a short shelf life. I think because we have such a loyal fan base and have done a lot of work, being a kind of ‘hit’ band at this point would actually be good, I don’t think it’d hurt us at all.
James: We’ve always been ambitious as a band and we’ve always wanted to take our music to as many people as possible, so like Ben said it’s important to have the progression we’ve had up until now. I think now we’ve built up such a loyal fan base we’re now ready to take a step and to reach the people that haven’t yet heard about that band. It is an exciting time for us and we what to play to lots of people, if that means being mentioned in the same paragraph as Good Charlotte and Evanescence then so be it. There are always bands who come and go, and many have done in our careers so far, but we’ve just got to try and stick to our guns and do what we do. We haven’t changed anything, it’s not like we’ve changed something and now we’re getting coverage, we’re still doing what we do.
So ‘Puzzle’ is your 4th album, but it may have been the 5th. There’s been talk of a lot of demos kicking around which is unsurprising given the gap between releases, what’s become of those?
Ben: Most of the songs that didn’t make this album will end up being B-sides for the up-coming singles.
James: What we’ve always liked to do is keep our singles more like EPs, and the demos may not be as suited to the album we’ve made which is why they didn’t make the cut. I don’t think there are many guys who kind of rush out and buy singles anymore, so if we can make ours as mini-albums or EPs it will kind of give more exposure to the B-sides and give a broader picture of the music we’re making.
‘Puzzle’ is the first album you’ve recorded without Chris Sheldon, who’s obviously played a huge role in the making of the last 3 CDs. How did you adapt to new surroundings/people and how did this effect the recording process as a whole?
Ben: Chris was always in the same mindset as us;”let’s work hard and get it done’. Not to cheapen what we’ve done or anything but there was always a lack of funding and time constraints, but with this one there was none at all, we could basically taken as long as we wanted, so it was strange to adapt to that at first.
James: We were working half-days here and there and then relaxing, but we were always itching to get it done because it had been a year and a half in the making, so it was really strange to have to slow down for 2 months.
Ben: We do kind of prefer just getting stuck into it, but in retrospect at the time doing it it was tough doing it slowly but the results are there and they speak for themselves. We’ll look back at it with fond memories though.
The first real taste we’ve had of ‘Puzzle’ is ‘Semi-Mental’, which you released on Jesus’ 2006th birthday! How did that date come about?
James: We’d been away for such a long time so we really wanted to get something out as quickly as possible, and we just though it’d be nice to try and compete with Santa. It was really more of a re-introduction to our existing fans just to remind them that we’re still there, but it got picked up in a way we didn’t realise, a lot of radio stations are playing it and it’s sparked a lot of interest in new fans so it has taken a different way entirely but it’s fun.
Ben: When it was suggested that we’d put it out on Christmas day we were like....’Really?!’, but then we started really getting into the idea and thought it was quite cool.
It was a nice extra present getting onto itunes and downloading some new Biffy material...
Ben: Unfortunately the song was listed under the band ‘Semi Mental’ so the download counts were illegible because of that.
That’s a shame because obviously ‘Jaggy’ did so well as a download single in the past...
Ben: Aye, not to cheapen that at all but I don’t know how! We’ve never been a band for chart positions though, success for us is just if people like it.
A lot of fans, myself included, find it hard to pick a favourite Biffy album, as they’re all very unique in their own way. Despite this, you rated ‘Puzzle’ as 10/10 in a recent interview, so what makes this album stand out for you?
James: Without comparing it to the other albums I think it’s just a really strong album with great songs. With the year and a half we’ve had in between albums we’ve had a long time just to work hard on the songs and make sure that they were as strong as they could be. We’ve always tried to make sure the stuff works on acoustic guitar because we feel a good song should always be able to do that and I think that’s apparent on the album. I think it’s definitely our best work to date, it’s got the strongest songs, it sounds the best, it flows really well, and I think it has all the characteristics of a good Biffy album.
It’s already been tipped as being one of the albums of the year, and in a local magazine Gordon from Bloc Party said yours was the album he was most looking forward to. Are there any releases you’re anticipating in 2007?
James: Well we’ll return the compliment and say the Bloc Party album, the track we’ve heard, the single’s brilliant...
Ben: ...it’s pretty awesome, aye
James: ..and we’re big fans of that band so the new album should be exciting. There’s a new Aerogramme album coming out in the next couple of weeks, which again we’ve heard and it’s fantastic. There’s a lot of cool bands releasing stuff at the moment, Reuben, The Coopers have got something coming out as well...
Ben: I think ours will be the best though! (both laugh)
James:....naturally!
Biffy rarely cover songs, although the ones you have taken on (‘Take Me Out‘, ‘Buddy Holly’, ‘You’re The One That I Want‘) have been real gems. If you could choose a band to cover a Biffy song; which band and which song?
Ben: It’d be quite funny if Pharrell Williams had a go at Jaggy Snake, or maybe the Sugarbabes!
James: I’d quite like it if Bonny Prince Billy did one of our songs actually, there’s a song on the album called ‘Loving..’, which is the first track which is a great song with lost of bits that’d be interesting to see how he took them on with an acoustic guitar, and although I’m contradicting myself here, there are parts in that song which would be quite interesting on an acoustic guitar (both smile knowingly)
Obviously it’s early days but any plans for festival appearances over the summer? I’d imagine T would be quite high on the list again?
Ben: This year especially we’re looking at trying to nail them all, it’s a bit early in the year to be getting confirmation at this stage but we’re looking at the Carling Festival, T in the Park, maybe do our first Glastonbury as well and also head over to do some European stuff, maybe even Japan and Australia, so just really everything!
Well you’ve got to really push it (Puzzle) because it’s out around then, isn’t it? Mayish?
James: Aye, it might be pushed back until June though...
Ben: It’s getting later and later every day!
Yeah, it’s odd because initially it was scheduled for February!
Ben: That’s right, but it’s been put back for the right reasons. The singles that we thought we’re just going to be little introductions have ended up being quite a big deal and a lot of DJs have picked up on it so it’s more about giving these singles time to breathe before the album.
I’ve always grown up with Biffy as a cult-band, and I’m sure you feel the same, so how do you feel given the position you’re in?
Ben: As James said before we’ve always been really ambitious and even from the first album we wanted to be at a high level and up there with the best, so it’s not scary at all, it’s just always what we’ve been working to do. I understand that a lot of kids, like the way I have with certain bands when they get to a certain level, you get a bit upset because it’s not ‘your band’ anymore because everyone can hear it. It was really good fun going ‘have you heard this band?’ and meeting someone else who knew, you’d get a wee shiver, but if it’s all over the radio you can’t have that chat anymore because everyone knows who you are. Inevitably that’s going to happen with any band if you want to try and break into a bigger market.
James: You’re always aware of the danger that kids are gonna go online and start saying ‘ah, they’ve sold out’ even though the music hasn’t changed at all, you know it’s gonna happen but you just have to roll with it.
Ben: We’ve always just done what we’ve believed in so if people want to question that then they’re welcome to, but we know we’ve always been true to ourselves and done what we want to do, so if there are some people who have a problem with it then it’s their problem really, without trying to sound to harsh about it.
Just to finish then, can we expect any surprises in your set tonight?
Ben: We’ve got four new tunes tonight, ‘Get Fucked Stud’ which you can hear on our website, obviously ‘Semi-Mental’ and ‘Saturday Superhouse’, and I think the other one is ‘Now I’m Everyone’, which debuted at Tut’s I think.
James: It’s kinda hard, we wanna play them all, but obviously with the album not being out we have to hold some back for the album tour, but it will definitely be a fun show. We’ve got a good mix from across the albums.
Well I was going to mention that, obviously you have quite a back catalogue now, so how do you find getting the right blend at shows?
Ben: Well, writing the set list is one of the hardest parts of our job! Even if we do a set of just the singles we’ve released then that’s the set filled up really...
James: Fuck!
Ben: If there’s no favourite album track, we’ll always get someone coming up at the end saying ‘you didn’t play this’, but we can’t please everyone you know? But it’s a good set and we really enjoy playing it.
Posted by Johnny at 03:58 PM | Comments (0)
February 08, 2007
Milton Keynes Interview
Voices in the wilderness
IT'S been a while since we caught up with the Biffy Clyro boys, and since our last meeting the Scots trio have stepped over the line and are now firm favourites on the British rock scene.
Their sound is unique, their musical principles? Still intact. Biffy are now on their fourth album, and as fresh and exciting as they've ever been.
But plenty has changed in the camp – not least the inking of a new record deal with 14th Floor. Beggars Banquet are now an act down, so why the switch from the label that had resolutely stood by you?
"I think we knew that if we stayed there, we knew that we could always do another album and it would have a similar release, but it wouldn't really take us any further," drummer Ben explains. "But we've got a lot of respect for the label.
"It's been hard too with the legalities. Before, we would put out an album every year, and so it's been pretty horrible for us, and this new one has been a while coming – some of the songs on the album are new, but some feel pretty old now...we've got different ambitions, y'know? We always though that we could be the biggest band in the world," he says directly. "We write songs and we want them to be heard."
So to this new, fourth elpee release, and you can expect to hear Puzzle in the summer.
Their first two albums were put to reel here in Milton Keynes, at the famed Linford Manor Studios, but not so this time around...what's wrong with us?
"You've got too many roundabouts!" is the quip.
Biffy actually employed the knob-twiddling talents of Garth Richardson (aka Gggarth) – who has previously given the magic touch to artists including Rage Against The Machine, Melvins and Red Hot Chili Peppers – and de-camped to Canada to work with the chap.
"It was strange and wonderful," Ben says with hindsight. "Although we did butt heads a few times along the way. It took us two and a half months and we recorded in Vancouver City and in the wilderness at Garth's farm in the middle of the woods.
"It was a different process for us – before we were used to banging the stuff out fast, with this punk ethic.
"We spent a long time on this one, getting it right, playing it really well and song-wise things are more direct. A lot less messing around and a lot more direct.
"We have definitely been guilty of playing around and going off on tangents...."
It sounds as though this album will be simpler – more cut and dried in the song department...
"Yeah, it'll be easier to get into, and I think that the new extra quality outweighs anything else...it's about the song structures and the quality of writing."
Ben admits that his band's third album – Infinity Land – sold well, but how well, he won't divulge...
"I don't know..." Come on, you must. "That's for the money people...I don't know really, I just hit things!" he giggles.
And he'll be hitting those skins again imminently, when the band embark on their largest British tour to date.
It'll be extensive in size and length: "It's going to be the biggest one we've ever done, yep, it's the next step up for us.
"In Britain it's just a joy, the hard work has paid off and we always come off stage buzzing.
"It's been a slow steady build getting there though...and we'll be starting all over again when we head to America," he says with relish.
Biffy Clyro issue a new single, Saturday Superhouse, on Monday March 5.
By Sammy Jones
08 February 2007
http://www.miltonkeynes.co.uk/ViewArticle2.aspx?SectionID=2250&ArticleID=2033219
Posted by Chris at 09:24 PM | Comments (0)
January 09, 2007
Kerrang Cover Stars!
That's true... the one, the only, Biffy Clyro, on the FRONT of Kerrang. Loverly.
We'll get the rest of the article tomorrow.
Good work, Toe!
Posted by Chris at 07:16 PM | Comments (5)
December 13, 2006
Biffy Interview on STV
Nice little video courtesy of XFM and STV.
Posted by Chris at 03:00 PM | Comments (0)
December 14, 2005
Interview - Scotsman
'There was no reason for anybody to like Biffy Clyro... we have never been cool' by Fiona Shepherd
IT'S ALWAYS the quiet ones you've got to watch. Not that Biffy Clyro are all that quiet - musically, this spiky Ayrshire power trio are considered to rock like demons, and they don't sit around meekly waiting for permission to tour either.
While a nation has gone giddy for the more audacious and ubiquitous likes of Franz Ferdinand, Mylo and KT Tunstall, Biffy Clyro have diligently plugged away on the margins in old-fashioned dues-paying style. Even their own record company biog describes them as being "tortoises". While no-one but their insanely dedicated fanbase has been watching, though, these tortoises have crept up the ranks to become the biggest cult band in Scotland.
"We've taken tiny steps, but we're still doing it five years later," says their hirsute and friendly frontman Simon Neil, who formed the band with his childhood friends James and Ben Johnston when they were in their mid teens.
"At the time you don't really appreciate the steady progress of it, but now we're moving on to our fourth album. People are still finding out about us and nobody's written us off. A lot of bands are thrown in at the deep end, whereas we have had the chance to release albums and not worry about whether everybody went crazy for us and thought we were the greatest band of the last ten years."
There are plenty who do subscribe to that view, however, and their steadfast support has been instrumental in the band's word-of-mouth rise. Biffy fans are a particularly staunch and tight-knit breed, the most fervent of whom have organised themselves into a nationwide wrecking crew dubbed Team Biffy. Neil describes them affectionately as "maniacs".
"There was no reason for anybody to like our band," he says modestly. "We weren't a cool band, we weren't all over the magazines, and it was people who love music, who went out and found new music who discovered us and kept coming back to our shows."
One such confirmed fan is Dave McGeachan of Df Concerts, who has encouraged the band's gradual ascent from their days on local-band bills at King Tut's.
"They are my favourite band," he declares without hesitation. "They do have a cult following but they have a wide and varied mix of fans of all ages now.
"They must have the most loyal and dedicated following of any UK rock act - everyone at a Biffy gig knows every word of every song."
This week, there is an opportunity for those fans to test their memories as Biffy return to King Tut's to play each of their albums - Blackened Sky, The Vertigo Of Bliss (recorded in a day - now that's the work of a tight unit) and Infinity Land - in their entirety on consecutive nights. "We wanted to say thank you to the people who have helped us to make three albums," says Neil.
"A lot of fans ask for certain songs that we never play, so we thought we'd do a few shows where we play the entire albums and nobody can moan about the set we're doing. We were worried that people would think we were being pretentious but it's purely a fun thing for us and the fans who have been to see us 20-odd times."
Their Tut's mini-residency extends to a record-breaking four nights at the venue. The final night will be their last show of the year and will be the first airing of the tracks the band have chosen for their still-to-be-recorded fourth album.
Although the track listing is not set in stone, for tantalising preview purposes Neil describes the new material as "more rocking but maybe not as aggressive as previous stuff. It's not got any screaming on it. We're more confident to let the song do the talking on this one, and that's come from having a year or so to find the best songs that we've got. There's no flab." As testament to their fans' hunger and loyalty, it was this resolutely non-greatest hits show which sold out first.
Will their fourth album send Biffy Clyro supernova? Probably not. The humble Biffy boys know that's no way to win the race anyway. "Our only real ambition is to be our own favourite band," said Neil a couple of years back.
Now, he declares that "one of the first things I think of when I wake up in the morning is the band, and I know Ben and James are the same - it's like your best friend. If we're not out gigging or recording, then we're not a band. We are still big fans of ourselves but as soon as we are convinced that we are better than every other band in the world it will be time to retire."
• Biffy Clyro are at King Tut's, Glasgow, until 16 December. All nights are sold out
Posted by Chris at 08:00 AM | Comments (0)
August 28, 2005
Short NME Interview
Following their Reading and Leeds Main Stage slots, the NME caught up with Ben and Simon for a few words about the two shows...
The full interview / article can be found on the NME site via here.
BIFFY CLYRO rounded off their triumphant summer at the CARLING WEEKEND LEEDS FESTIVAL today.
2005 has seen the hardcore heroes make their mark on the festival circuit, with main stage sets at Download, T In The Park, Oxegen, as well as headlining the Truck Festival.
And after being added to the line up at the eleventh hour due to public demand, they stormed the stage with old favourites like ’57’ and recent hits like ’My Recovery Injection’.
Drummer Ben Johnston told NME.COM: “It was wonderful. Leeds was better than Reading. It was mega, there was a really good turnout, seeing as its a Sunday and it was early we thought people would be in their bed, but the loyal fans came out and watched and it was awesome.”
And for singer/guitarist Simon Neil, the weekend was a welcome second chance at playing the legendary festival. he said: “We did the Main Stage two years ago and we just weren’t quite ready for it, so it was great to come and do it properly.”
“It’s the end of the ’Infinity Land’ tour so we wanted to play a mixture with a few off that. But next time we play we’ll play for two and a half hours. And it’ll all be new shit!”
Biffy will now return home to work on their fourth album.
Posted by Simon at 12:47 AM | Comments (0)
June 09, 2005
Biffy, their fans, and the NME.
From Biffy Clyro Dot Com :
"Calling all Biffy Fans...
If you're based in Glasgow, and enjoy all things Biffy, we want you...
This Thursday (9th May) we are inviting Biffy fans to come and take part in an article that the NME is writing about the band and their fanbase.
We want lots of fans to come down, resplendent in their Biffy t-shirts if possible, to take part. You'll be part of a large group photo with the band and the rest of the biffy army, and the band will be around to say Hi! Tentatively, we're also looking at bringing down an acoustic guitar for a campfire singalong... oh yes.
As well as that, if any of you have particularly devoted Biffy tales to tell (travelled far and wide to a biffy show? Crazy ebay purchases? Stalking outside the tourbus at all hours?), the NME journalist wants to hear them, and will be speaking to many of you. Just make yourselves known to the band's tour manager Neil (hello), who will be around to help.
The meet is due to take place at 1pm, at the Glasgow Science Centre (a cool place for a cool bunch of people), next to the SECC. There is a plaza outside the Science Centre, where we will all meet up at 1pm. Please note, the initial meet will be OUTSIDE the science centre."
Needless to say... much wailing and gnashing of teeth was heard from the non-Glasgow fan contingent. Followed by much booking of Megabuses.
We have some rather lovely videos, courtesy of Stephen "Greenboy" Blythe - The Rip Offs
Convex Concave
Less The Product
(Windows Media Player, 10Mb and 3Mb respectively, workplace safe!)
And some lovely (if slightly huge) AVIs courtesy of Neill and Lynsey. (neill videoed it, on Lynsey's camera.)
I think one of these is The Kids from Kibble... i've not even had a chance to peruse them myself yet. :)
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The full setlist for Simon's little solo acoustic set was comprised of five requests from the crowd. The running order of these tracks was as follows:
Less The Product (Acoustic)
Convex, Concave (Acoustic)
Liberate The Illiterate (Acoustic)
The Kids From Kibble And The Fist Of Light (Acoustic)
27 (Acoustic)
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A copy of the article is available in the press scans section, or here
Posted by Chris at 01:00 PM | Comments (5)
September 30, 2004
Kerrang Interview
Nice little interview with Kerrang TV
Posted by Chris at 07:00 PM | Comments (0)
June 05, 2004
Interview - Download 2004
F caught up with UK rockers Biffy Clyro backstage at Download 2004
VF: What have you been up to the past few months?
BC: We’ve been finishing off our third album, just putting the finishing touches to it like getting it mastered and doing the artwork.
VF: What kind of feel has the new record got?
BC: We wanted to make it slightly more diverse just to keep it interesting for us and for the fans, but still keep it sounding like a Biffy record.
VF: Are you trying to incorporate any other sounds?
BC: Well, we’re always looking to do that. I couldn’t mention any bands off hand because there are too many to mention, but we’re always looking to expand our sound.
VF: How do you feel about the success of the last album?
BC: Yeah it did really well, it would have been nice for people further a field to listen to it, maybe in America and in Europe but in this country we were really happy with the way the fans received it and the way the press received it.
VF: The artwork for the new record is a bit racy isn’t it?
BC: That was just a bit of a fluke. We were sitting having dinner in Marseille, as you do, and we saw the print on the wall and we thought that’s the one, and the rest is history as they say. By the way we like clichés a lot!
VF: We heard there is a side project in the offing called When the World Explodes?
BC: No, it’s just me and my mate messing around, so it’s not really a side project. It wont be released or anything.
VF: How are you finding Download Festival?
BC: Yeah excellent, though we’ve experienced very little of the festival so far, but we’ve had a wash and went to the signing tent which was cool.
VF: Were there a lot of people there to see you?
BC: We thought there would be about 5 but in the end there were 10 so we were impressed! There were quite a lot of people wearing Cradle of filth t-shirts, which is a bit worrying, but you can like Cradle of Filth and Biffy – so that’s cool.
VF: Are there any bands you really want to see?
BC: Yeah. We're going to see Your Codename is: Milo and thisGirl.
VF: Actually they’re on now!
BC: Well we’d better wrap this up then, thanks. [runs off towards the Barfly Stage!]
Posted by Chris at 07:38 AM | Comments (1)
April 15, 2004
Kissing Just For Practice Interview
An amusing interview with Ben and James just before their Manchester show can be found by following this link:
Posted by Simon at 01:09 AM | Comments (0)