Glasgow indie stars Acrylic thread-y for headline gig at Inverness's Tooth and Claw

Glasgow's rising indie stars Acrylic return to the Highlands next week, headlining the Tooth and Claw off the back of two new singles already in 2019. Kyle Walker sat down with the band to get the lowdown

Q Hello chaps, cheers for answering these! How are things? Whereabouts are you reading this from?

A Hey man, we’re sitting in our kitchen in Glasgow, drinking coffee, getting sweaty.

Q You’re back in Inverness next week for a show at the Tooth and Claw (Wednesday, March 20) – looking forward to being back up north? How was your last visit? And what can Inverness expect from you this trip up?

A Yeah, we’re pretty buzzing to be back up! Last time we were up there was for Belladrum, which was an absolute blast. Anyone who was at our last Tooth and Claw show can expect shiny new tunes. The highlight of the trip, however, will be a debaucherous night in Johnny Fox’s.

Q So talk me through a little bit of Acrylic history – how did the five of you meet? And what was the point that made you decide to start a band?

A We formed the band when we moved through to Glasgow from Edinburgh (Lewis from Perth) for University. A shared interest in tight jeans and Arctic Monkeys covers led us to start playing together. We played around Glasgow for a few years but started to take things seriously towards the end of 2017. We released our debut EP in March 2018.

Q How would you describe yourself and your music as a band? Who would you say are your big influences when crafting your tunes?

A This is always a difficult question. It’s probably easier to borrow other people’s descriptions of us. Clash magazine called us “taut, visceral pop-edged indie” which we really like. Some big influences on our musicianship and songwriting are bands like The National, Interpol and Foals, who we are often compared to.

Q 2019’s been a busy year for you – and we’re only two months in! Already there’s been two singles out – I’ve Got Too Many Friends and Money from Home! How did these come together for you? And how do you feel your sound has evolved from last March’s All I Am EP to these new singles?

A Yeah it has! We just wanted to get the year off to a big start. We started writing these two singles shortly after the EP came out last year. The EP was sort of a culmination of songs that we’d been sitting on for years, and that we had always been really proud of, but after releasing that we wanted to write songs that felt fresh and exciting to us. The new tunes are definitely more poppy, but also a lot more mature in terms of instrumentation and lyricism.

Q What has been the best gig that you’ve ever played? And what’s been the weirdest?

A I think all five of us agree that our favourite gig was supporting the Ninth Wave last December at St. Luke’s in Glasgow. They’re one of our favourite Scottish bands, and there was such a great atmosphere throughout the show. The weirdest gig we’ve ever played would probably have to be one at Fat Sam’s in Dundee about three years ago. We’d been put on the bill of a charity gig between catwalks for a fashion show. I think the audience were as confused as we were.

Q As a band, what has been the best bit of advice you’ve been given so far, who gave it to you, and why was it so important for you?

A When we supported the View a few years ago, Kyle Falconer walked into the green room in a drunken stupor and told me “ashkehgs nanshiefthk firecracker chicken.” It’s stayed with me ever since.

Q What’s been the best/nicest thing somebody has said about Acrylic and what you do?

A That’s another difficult one. One of the biggest audiences we’ve played to was at OnBlackheath festival in London last year, and it was lovely to have lots of people approach us afterwards to tell us how much they enjoyed the show. One American couple on their honeymoon told me that they could tell how much we believed in the music we were delivering, which was very kind.

Q With it officially being 2019 now, what are your plans throughout the rest of the year?

A We’ve got a few more banging tunes coming out imminently, headline shows across the UK, and we’ve got time in the studio to do a lot more writing. Hopefully for a larger body of work, who knows.

Acrylic play the Tooth and Claw on Wednesday night. Doors open at 7pm, and tickets cost £5.