With the world in self-isolation and gigs coming to a halt, except for broadband-dependent live shows, we thought we'd keep our favourite artists and their fans entertained with a series of interviews.
You'll soon learn everything from their German supermarket of choice to favourite pick 'n' mix and of course some hard-hitting music journalisms inbetween.
SECRET PUBLIC
Nice to cover a band from the East Coast, and especially one of our favourite newcomers, it's Edinburgh's very own indie-rockers, Secret Public. The young band are only two singles in to their musical journey, but already showing massive promise. Their debut single 'Breakthrough' has hooks for days and an anthemic chorus to boot.
We caught up with the boys as they released their follow-up single 'A Common Trend' to discuss their origin story, band dynamics and of course, the big one... Mcfly or Busted.
Q1. What’s the Secret Public origin story?
We all went to the Craigmount High School in the west of Edinburgh and were friends long before we ever thought about forming a band. Joe, Calum B, and Calum C got together to jam one afternoon in early 2018, and David decided to learn how to play the bass as soon as he heard about it.
We spent most of that year learning Buzzcocks, Pixies, and Franz Ferdinand covers before starting to write our own songs and playing our first gig in at The Bungalow in Paisley in November 2018.
Q2. Describe each member in three words?
Joe – Frontman. Songwriter. Technophobe.
David – Bassist. Weather enthusiast.
Calum C – Drummer. Cocktail connoisseur.
Calum B – Guitarist. Killie scum.
Q3. You recently released 2nd single - 'A Common Trend' - how do you feel it differs from your debut single?
Our first single Breakthrough was very much an unashamed pop song which relied on a big chant-filled chorus, whereas A Common Trend is maybe a bit more guitar driven and has a different structure which builds up to a big finish.
Q4. If you could be in any other band, which would it be and which instrument would you want to play?
Calum B – I think it would be a lot of fun to be in Arcade Fire. There’s already loads of them so I’d be quite happy standing at the back playing the bongos or something.
David – We once supported a band in Glasgow who had a man in lederhosen running around playing a cowbell. I’d like to be that guy.
Calum C – I’d like to join The Streets. Reckon I can do the accent.
Joe – My voice always gets compared to Brian Molko from Placebo, so I could replace him if he ever wanted a break (although I’m not sure I could pull off the makeup!)
Q5. Who's your favourite Scottish artist at the moment and of all time?
There are so many brilliant new Scottish bands right now – we're all big fans of Declan Welsh and the Decadent West.
It’s hard to pick just one all-time favourite – Biffy Clyro, Frightened Rabbit, and We Were Promised Jetpacks to name a few.
Q6. Which track do you currently have on heavy repeat?
The new Biffy single “End Of” is pretty epic.
Q7. What is the writing process within the band, is it very much a collaborative effort?
Joe is definitely the main songwriter in the band. Most of the time it’s him that will bring an idea into rehearsal and then it becomes a collaborative effort from there.
Q8. Favourite live music venue?
We love playing at Sneaky Pete’s. We also played one of our favourite ever gigs at The Hug and Pint.
Q9. It seems isolation is affecting bands in two ways, either inspired to write more music or struggle to tap into their creative side, how are Secret Public managing?
Not being able to rehearse has definitely made it difficult to put new songs together, but we are still writing songs at home (none isolation-themed yet).
We have also been recording a few demos on GarageBand at home to varying degrees of success, and we have another song that we recorded at the same time as A Common Trend which we’re planning on releasing soon.
Q10. What would you change about the music industry?
Bands being paid less often in ‘exposure’ and more often in actual money.
Q11. With everyone now at home, what are you top tips to avoid waves of boredom?
We’ve found that Zoom and Cans™ has become a good way to stay in touch with pals, and is definitely worth overcoming the initial weirdness for. A lot of our free time has been spent playing Football Manager and binge-watching It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia.
Q12. What’s the first thing you’ll do post lockdown?
Calum B, David, and Joe: Go to the pub for pints of said juicy T.
Calum C: Get a proper haircut.
Q11. Aldi or Lidl?
Unanimous vote for Aldi
Q12. Favourite sweet from Pix N Mix?
Calum B: Fizzy cola bottles
David: Chocolate eggs
Calum C: Gummy bears
Joe: Mushrooms
Q13. Do you sing in the shower?
Calum B: I don’t.
David: Sometimes but it’s not a specific set of songs, just whatever I feel like at the time.
Calum C: Yeah, usually anything by Blink-182 or the Backstreet Boys.
Joe: I usually just sing whatever song is stuck in my head at the time, it was Chamber of Reflection by Mac DeMarco this morning.
Q14. Are Avocados strictly for Hipsters?
Calum B: I don’t know about hipsters but they’re not for me, Clive.
David: Bogging
Calum C: No they’re class.
Joe: Not for hipsters if it’s guacamole but if it’s on toast then it seems pretty hipster to me.
Q15. You host a dream dinner night but can only invite 3 musicians guests. Who are they?
Calum B: Joe Strummer, Chuck Berry, and Pete Shelley
David: John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, and David Bowie.
Calum C: John Bonham, Keith Moon, and Mitch Mitchell
Joe: Elvis Presley, John Lennon, and David Bowie
Q16. McFly or Busted
Calum B: Busted
David: Busted
Calum C: Busted
Joe: McFly
Q17. Can you remember what the original Irn-Bru used to taste like?
Calum B: I don’t drink Irn Bru so I wouldn’t know.
David: Yeah I can’t describe it, but it was better.
Calum C: Sugar mainly.
Joe: It tasted like heartburn, but yeah it was better.
Q18. Buckfast, Dragonsoop or MD20/20?
Calum B: They’re all shite, a nice cold pint of Tennents every time.
David: Probably MD20/20 out of that lot. Buckfast second.
Calum C: Dragonsoop
Joe: Buckfast, never tried the others.
Check out their insanely addictive debut single 'Breakthrough' and see if Joe's comparison to Molko is actually true...
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