Interview The Xcerts

Scot-rockers The Xcerts are due to release their new single ‘Just Go Home’ via Sam Duckworth’s new imprint Mannequin Republic on 19th November. We caught up with the band to find out about touring with Brakes, comparisons with other bands from north of the border, and that Radiohead question.

You’ve just been picked up by Sam Duckworth’s label Mannequin Republic - are you flattered?
We are very happy about this, and very grateful that he decided to release our single. There are so many good bands out there, so for Sam to spot us, and enjoy us enough to release our single is fantastic.

What does ‘Aberdeen 1987’ mean? Was it much different then than it is now?
I wouldn’t know,as it was the year I was born. The title was inspired by a selection of Poems by Edwin Morgan, where he uses a date and place as the title. The song is very nostalgic for me, so the title seemed fitting for the song.

Your 7’ is going to have individual polaroids as cover art. Jack Penate did something very similar. Do you have anything else in common with Jack Penate?
I believe we both grow our own hair… yeah, that’s it.

What was it like being on tour with Brakes?
It was really great and possibly the best tour we’ve been on. Brakes are an amazing band, and they are such a great bunch of boys. Watching them night after night never got boring, as they are a pretty unpredictable live band, and we are so grateful that they took us out with them.

According to your biography, you relocated from Scotland to the south coast. Wasn’t this a bit scary?
At first it was, moving away from home is a scary prospect for anyone, but it was something we needed to do. Our original drummer had already moved to London, so staying put in Aberdeen wasn’t really an option. Myself and Jordan (bass), aren’t big fans of England’s capital, so we decided to move to Brighton, as we knew it was pretty close to London, and it seemed like a lovely place.

Undoubtedly, because it’s what people tend to do, you’re going to be compared to the likes of Franz Ferdinand, The View, or even The Fratellis. Is there a Scottish band you’d actually like to be judged against?
We’re actually getting compared to the likes of Idlewild and Biffy Clyro, more so than the bands you’ve mentioned, which is fine for us as we’re big fans of both bands. If we were getting compared to The View or The Fratellis, i’d be a little worried about the general public’s hearing.

And finally, on your MySpace blog, you say you’re listening to Radiohead. How much did you pay, and what value would you put on your own tracks?
I paid £5 first time round, but i accidentally gave them the wrong email address, so i decided to pay £0 for it second time round. Technically they got £5 out of me, so I didn’t feel like I had robbed them, unlike alot of dodgers out there. I guess we’d do what Radiohead did, and let people decide for themselves, the fear is though that the £0 sign would be clicked on far too much! I’d make my family buy it repeatedly for about £10, that way, we may have some pride left in us to do another album!