“WE’VE PLATEAUED” DICTATOR ON PLAYING TRNSMT FOR THE FIRST TIME
INTERVIEW | DICTATOR @ TRNSMT 2025 by Anne Kelly
One of my own personal highlights from TRNSMT weekend 2025 was seeing the mighty Dictator conquer the BBC Introducing Stage on Sunday afternoon. Hot on the tails of the local trailblazing West Lothian music scene which has launched the likes of Lewis Capaldi and The Snuts in recent years, Livingston’s Dictator are carving their own path of success.
With backing from BBC Introducing, This Feeling and even BBC 6 Music radio airplay, the trip-hopping, genre bending four piece (extending to a 5 piece on stage) have achieved their fair share of “bucket list” achievements over the past few years. From becoming runners up for BBC Introducing Scottish Act of the Year in 2022, to supporting Scottish household names such as The Fratellis, Kyle Falconer and even Young Fathers at last years Stirling Summer Sessions, Dictator continue to smash their goalposts.
Releasing their second EP Middle Of The Road at the start of the year, and a debut album in the pipeline, it seems just the right time for the band to make their much anticipated first TRNSMT Festival appearance, on the newly renamed BBC Introducing (formally River) Stage this summer. We caught up with frontman Michael (Mic) and guitarist Zach following that standout Glasgow Green set.
So guys, first time at TRNSMT. How was that?
Mic: Yeah, it was good! It was class to be fair. I was saying before that we weren’t that nervous for it, but then everybody started messaging us saying ‘good luck, good luck, good luck’ – and then I was suddenly quite nervous for it (laughs). But aye, it was class.
So is that you peaked then?
Mic: Aye, yeah we’ve peaked (laughing)
Zach: We’ve plateaued!
Mic: Zach was telling everybody that this was the ‘next step’, so, yeah, we’ve just plateaued now.
What do you do next then? What’s the next goal?
Mic: Actually, do you know something? I stupidly said on stage ‘see you next year’, as if we’ve somehow got a place already! No one has contacted us by the way, so we’ll see. But I think for us, just maybe getting on the King Tuts stage would be a class. But It’s just class to be able to play these festivals and I don’t want to start wishing the world away either, it’s just nice to be living in the moment.
So Bemz introduced you to the BBC Introducing stage today, which was a lovely throwback moment from when you competed against each other for Scottish Act of the Year in 2022.
Mic: But he got some digs in there, didn’t he?
(laughing) He did that,yeah….
Mic: We did ask him, but still.
But I mean, look at him. He played that same stage three years ago and then on Friday there, he headlined the stage. Does that seem like a next goal for you guys then, to headline the BBC Introducing Stage?
Zach: Just because we’re really competitive with Bemz, we would just like to not bother headlining the introducing stage, we’s like to jump right to the King Tuts stage.
Mic: Actually the main stage. Everybody would call him out and we’d be like “you beat us once, Bemz, well look at this” (laughs).
Always one step ahead…
Mic: Yeah, then we’ll plateau.
You guys have had so many amazing opportunities from BBC Introducing over the years, what does that kind of support mean to you as an emerging band?
Zach: It means a lot, we definitely don’t take that kinda stuff for granted because we know just how difficult it is to get any sort of foot hold in the industry. Like all our favourite artists came through BBC Introducing and we’ve followed them forever. I still remember the very first time they ever played one of our songs, and I still remember it to this day that every one of us were all gathered around our phones listening to it and absolutely buzzing. Since then we’ve been part of BBC Introducing Act of the Year too, which was a huge milestone for us…
Mic: We lost (laughing)
Zach: We lost but we were on the telly. I got to tell my mum about that.
I’m sure she was very proud!
How do you feel to be part of the bigger picture of the West Lothian music scene?
Zach: It’s just an amazing community, and people look out for you and stuff. They know what it’s like to have gone through these things, and it’s nice to someone there who has done that before, so they can tell you. I mean, the likes of Lewis obviously shot to mega stardom, but seeing it from like a business perspective and that if someone’s done something like that before then they can tell you, ‘don’t do that’ or ‘do this’.
Mic: We actually got Bemz to say earlier that we’re the fourth best West Lothian band (laughs).
Who’s the first 3 then?
Mic: So The Snuts, Lewis Capaldi and Sharpy…
So is Sharpy (Mark Sharp & The Bicycle Thieves) getting to go ahead of you then?
Zach: Yeah, Sharpy gave us one of our first ever opportunities actually.
Mic: He gave us our first ever gig.
Do you know Lewis?
Mic: I mean we’ve played with him, but we don’t know him personally, we’re like acquaintances . We used to play together and stuff.
Zach: He actually unfollowed me on Instagram (laughs).
Mic: Zach used to put an event on at Club Earth (Livingston, West Lothian) and he used to come along and play some acoustic tunes and stuff like that. He was class.
So I’m getting pushed for time now, so I’m going to skip ahead and ask one of the burning questions: when is the debut album coming?
Mic: So we’re not finished it yet. We’ve never done an album before to be fair, but like perfectionism doesn’t get in the way with us; we know what we’re trying to do, and we just want to try to do the best that we can at the time. But we’re near enough done, we’ve recorded the majority of it now so really it’s it’s just a case of the production side of things.
Will it be all new material on record?
Mic: Yeah, it will. Personally, I don’t like it but I can understand the logic behind it [reissuing songs]. When I see acts chuck in songs that have already done really well I do get how it can push you on, but for me personally and how I write, that part of me is done. I’d say we’re like 90% done. Once I know for sure that it’s done, then we can start saying when we’ll release it and then go from there.
I’ll finish up with a ‘Winner Stays On’ challenge of TRNSMT headliners past and present.
Mic: Oh go on…
So tonight we have Snow Patrol headlining the main stage, but we’ve also had the likes of 50 Cent and Biffy Clyro this weekend. So if you had to choose one, would it be Snow Patrol or 50 Cent?
Mic: 50 Cent
50 Cent or Biffy Clyro?
Both: 50 Cent
50 Cent or Kasabian?
Mic: Kasabian
Zach: 50 Cent
Oooh, so which is it then??
Zach: Ah, go Kasabian!
Ok, so Kasabian or Liam Gallagher?
Mic: Kasabian
Kasabian or Sam Fender?
Mic: Kasabian
Kasabian or Arctic Monkey’s?
Zach: Right, so still Kasabian, but unless it’s purely like first three albums of Arctic Monkeys.
Mic: So you’re just gonna go and shade Arctic Monkeys and get us cancelled, aye?
So we going Kasabian or….
Both: Kasabian
Kasabian or Paolo Nutini?
Mic: oooh…Kasabian
Finally, Kasabian or Lewis Capaldi?
Both: ahhh, still Kasabian.
Traitors!
Mic: But do you know something, we watched Lewis and we were there [when he headlined TRNSMT]
Zach: Lewis doesn’t follow me on Instagram!
Does Kasabian?
Zach: Actually aye, their guitarist does!
Okay, fair enough then...
Mic: It would be class to see Lewis again, but see Kasabian playing something like LSF with some flares in a pitch black Glasgow Green. That would be special.
Dictator will be heading on tour this November with stops at Glasgow King Tuts Wah Wah Hut, London’s Dingwalls and Manchester’s Eagle Inn. Remaining tickets can be picked up via This Feeling here.
