TRNSMT PREVIEW | INTERVIEW | SLIX
Tucked away on Scotland’s West Coast is the harbour town of Gourock. A pretty, seaside town famous for it’s coastal views, ice cream stands and a Scotland’s oldest outdoor swimming pool. It’s also home to Slix. One of Scotland’s most exciting, energetic young bands.
Making their debut just 4 years ago, the Inverclyde outfit have rapidly built a dedicated following across the UK. But it was last year which really saw Slix graduating from the amateur league. Following from the release of their debut EP Jingle Jangle in February 2022, word was swiftly travelling of the bands electrifying live performance. They sold out the infamous King Tuts in just 5 days, supported The View on 2 sell nights at Glasgow’s O2 Academy and then sold out an end of year homecoming Gourock show in literally 3 minutes. That’s the kind of impact Slix have on their fans.
In just over a week, Slix will again join The View on another line up when they take to The River Stage at Scotland’s biggest music festival, TRNSMT. We had the fun of catching up with the band before it all kicks off.
Congratulations on the upcoming TRNSMT appearance, how are you feeling about that?
Still can’t really believe it’s happening to be honest. We’ve been going to the festival since it started and to have the opportunity to perform at it and share the bill with some of our favourite bands, is surreal. We’ve been working away in the background and have a really special performance planned, don’t miss it – 12.45pm, Friday at the River Stage, be there for a mad one!
But before that, brand new music – Rewind is out 28th June. Can you tell us about the song? What does it mean to you? How does it differ from anything you have done before?
Rewind is an honest reflection of what it’s like growing up in a wee town in Scotland, by the river Clyde, being appreciative of where we came from whilst ready and anticipating the next chapter in our lives while always faithful to where we are from and the memories that we’ve created. Hopefully people can relate from their own stories and where they’ve grown up too.
How does it differ from anything you have done before?
We feel like we have really established the latest installment of the Slix sound with Rewind. With jangly guitars, punchy bass lines, melodic hooks and even a cheeky disco beat, this is our most refined sound yet.
So singles Regular, With You and now Rewind. Is this part of a bigger release to come? What does the newer singles represent for Slix going forward?
Yeah, so our plan is to keep the music flowing, we are really focused on keeping the hype train alive with consistent single releases and content (@slixtok on tiktok if you want a laugh). Our plan for the future is to keep banging out the singles, keep fans engaged and play some more class gigs to showcase our new sounds at.
How has your writing process developed over the years? Do you feel the growth within with band?
We have a much more intricate/stripped back approach, starting with the bare bones of a tune writing from an acoustic guitar, keyboard and a focus on melody and structure rather than just banging something out in the practiec room and saying “job done”. We record demos and tear them apart before getting the finished product, we are definitely now more focused on more of a long term plan to develop the tunes and make sure they are oven ready for hitting the studio.
Do you feel the growth within with band?
The growth within the band has been huge over the last 12 months and we’ve really went from treating it from a hobby to a full time job, and this is really reflected in our upcoming releases.
Who inspires you? Do you have any current favourites?
We have loads of different inspirations between the 5 of us, from various perspectives. Stone are doing bits at the moment and inspire us for their image and content creation, the way they engage with their fans is class. From a live perspective we love Gallus, their live presence and energy is unmatched and inspires us to evolve our own unique energy and presence. To see the success that the Snuts or Lewis Capaldi have achieved, coming from a similar background to us, hitting that level through hard work and brilliant tunes just shows what is possible for young Scottish musicians and is incredibly inspiring.
You have a good reputation as a live band and have sold out many headline shows – is there any in particular that stand out?
With a doubt our last show at the infamous King Tut’s is a huge stand out for us, selling out such a iconic venue in just a few days was unreal and the night itself was absolute carnage. Hearing a sold out room belting back to you songs you’ve written in your bedroom with your pals, while simultaneously erupting into chaos is an unmatched feeling and we are so grateful for the continuous support and will make sure to top it at the next one! Aside from Tut’s, we played a very special hometown show at the end of last year and all tickets were snapped up in under 3 minutes, which we still can’t comprehend now!
So I hear you are kicking off the TRNSMT party early at King Tuts on Thursday 6th July – what can gig goers expect from this show?
One word – Carnage.
What else has Slix got planned this year?
We’re just out of the studio again with some fresh tunes and more studio time lined up very soon, so expect plenty of even bigger and better releases over the rest of the year. We’ve got some more festivals lined up, including our first fest down south with Twisterella, in terms of headline shows we have our most ambitious show to date in the works, so keep your eyes peeled!
Who are you most looking forward to catching at TRNSMT?
There’s plenty of class Scottish acts that we are buzzing to catch: Declan Welsh, Joesef, the Big Day and Uninvited to name a few. We can’t wait to see the View again, after sharing the stage with them last year at the 02 Academy and of course we’ll be throwing it back to the year 2000 when we see the legends that are Pulp!
You can catch Slix opening the TRNSMT River Stage on Friday 7th July at 12.45pm. If you can’t make the main event – or just super keen – then Slix will be joining bands The Big Day and Uninvited at King Tuts for an official TRNSMT pre-party on Thursday 6 July.
Brand New Single Rewind is OUT NOW!
By Anne kelly
Author
