Music
Rishi Shah
Interview
Jack Cochrane reflects on the Scottish indie starlets' hard-fought rise, as they gear up for a massive UK tour
The Snuts were always destined to force their breakthrough. Ambition, determination and hard work was built into the very fabric of the four-piece when they formed the band out of West Lothian – which sits between Glasgow and Edinburgh – in 2015. Nine years later, they’ve kicked and scratched their way to the summit of the Scottish music scene, in the form of its largest indoor venue: Glasgow’s OVO Hydro.
“When the Hydro presented itself, it felt like a great time to do this,” says frontman Jack Cochrane of the momentous occasion, which takes place on 6 December at the conclusion of their UK tour. “I think we’re also capable of it now. Not just in terms of putting bums on seats, [but] the show that we deliver now, and what we’ve been trying to put together as a band. I think our fans also know that we’re ready.”
Since releasing their acclaimed debut W.L. in 2021, the quartet (completed by Callum ‘29’ Wilson, Joe McGillveray and Jordan ‘Joko’ Mackay) have remained obscenely busy, churning out sophomore LP Burn The Empire one year later, before third album Millennials arrived this February. Grafting away on the live circuit and becoming a beloved mainstay at festivals like TRNSMT and Reading & Leeds.
We spoke to Cochrane about their work ethic, building a fanbase the old-fashioned way and what to expect from their massive OVO Hydro show.
The Snuts - Circles (Official Video)
How’s your year been so far?
We did quite a heavy run of touring at the start of the year. We’ve been hitting it pretty hard in terms of making records – three records in three years – so we’ve got to the point with festivals where I feel like we have the best songs to pick from. I think this was our most confident festival season. It’s been a nice period of rest after festivals, trying to do as much writing as possible. We never seem to stop doing that!
Have you experienced any burnout from such a busy period, or are you just enjoying riding the wave of momentum?
I think it’s been quite useful to the process, being on the road and really living it. But towards the end of our dispute with our former label [Parlophone], I think there was burnout going on. Now, bands have to create all the time… you’re no longer just a musician, you’re this ‘creator.’ That became exhausting for us, being part of this major label system of constant creation, when all this other stuff was expected of you. By the end of album two, we needed to bring this back on our terms, and that’s what we managed to do with Millennials.
The Snuts - Deep Diving (Official Music Video)
How do you reflect on taking that leap to become independent, given how well Millennials was received?
There’s definitely a level of satisfaction that comes with being able to take that leap. There’s so much fear for young artists inside the industry at the moment. Opportunities are less, the financial benefits of being an artist are less, there’s venues closing down, left, right and centre. We are very lucky to be in this position, having a loyal fanbase that we’ve built up over the years, giving us that safety net. We feel much more relaxed as humans. I think we’ve managed to soften the anxieties that come with being an artist now, which is really important.
Onto your massive Glasgow show at the OVO Hydro – how did it feel when you realised headlining an arena was a possibility?
I think it comes back to the values we’ve always had as a band. We always had these bucket list things that we felt were achievable, that we’ve been trying to tick off over the last six years. We wanted to play the most iconic venue that there was in Scotland for us at the time, at our level, and that was King Tut’s. Then we moved up to St. Luke’s, and then there was the Barrowlands. Then the Hydro was something we [wanted to] put off, until it was the perfect time. The way the story has unfolded with the band – we love that story, as well – it’s really close to home, everything that we do.
The Hydro only opened in 2013, but was it somewhere you always dreamed of playing?
Scotland’s quite unique, because we don’t have an arena in every city, like most of the UK probably does. Over the last 10 years, I’ve seen loads of people in the Hydro. Stereophonics, Ben Howard, I also went to see Deep Purple with my dad. These arenas can be quite intimidating… I’ve seen bands triumph in the Hydro, and I’ve seen bands not triumph in the Hydro. Sometimes, these venues feel like they were created for megastars. But what we do on stage, and the energy in the rooms with our fans – it’s going to be pretty special in there.
You supported Kings Of Leon there in 2022 – did that give you a taster for the occasion?
We kind of bricked it, to be honest! We don’t generally support people in Scotland too much, but when Kings of Leon ask, you’ve got to do that. You’ve got to treat these venues with the respect they deserve. I don’t know if that’s a bit too mythical for a gig. You’ve got to design your show to make it an immersive experience for people. I want people to not feel like they’re cut off from the show, if they’ve been used to seeing us in academies. The whole show is designed around [keeping] that feeling of intimacy.
Take us back to those early West Lothian shows at The Clachan in Whitburn and Fauldhouse Cricket Club – what do you remember from those times?
Being from West Lothian and these small sections of Scotland, any artists outside Glasgow and Edinburgh were outsiders. We had to put on our own gigs, hire a PA in a local pub like The Clachan. We only had five songs – we actually had a demo of ‘Glasgow’ and we opened with that, because people knew it from SoundCloud. When people ask me how it feels playing festival main stages, it’s honestly the exact same if you’re playing to 50 people or 20,000 people. If the people who are there to see the show are loving it, there’s no difference in adrenaline.
After that, we couldn’t get a gig in Glasgow and Edinburgh – a lot of that scene felt quite closed off. We put on a show in Fauldhouse Cricket Club, like a working man’s function room. We sold maybe 250 tickets, so we took that money and then recorded an EP with it straight away. No proper studio, no producer, just a room where you could record stuff – and it was awful! But this was all part of the plan, building a fanbase before trying to be a recording artist. It was all about getting people to the shows, getting them singing along. That felt more important than getting into streaming or working out how to get followers.
The Snuts Perform Gloria Live At TRNSMT | TRNSMT 2024 | BBC Scotland
Do you ever feel nostalgic for those times?
It’s almost like a mantra, those early memories and what it meant to us. Whenever there’s hard decisions to make or there’s friction amongst the band, it’s always nice to go back to that place and chat about why we ever did it [in the first place]. It helps your judgement not be clouded by the pressures of the modern-day music industry.
Does your story reinforce the importance of grassroots venues and building a physical community, for any emerging artist?
Nowadays, it’s so intense having to create in this new way, constantly putting your face online. But I always try to explain that these are the things you can achieve, if you get out into these venues and get in front of people. That physical connection with live music is second to none. It’s a story as old as time, artists doing it that way. I don’t think that’s ever changed, even in 2024. People connect to it in a way that’s so genuine. That community is something that we’ve always tried to build.
We’re proud of what comes out of Scotland. We are looking to make a place, through our label, [where we can] give a home to some of these artists. We want to try and create a safe haven for young artists to come up and make these industry connections, and find a place where they can record. There’s always music coming out of West Lothian, but the opportunities don’t come as often.
After the Hydro, where’s left for you to play in Scotland – is headlining TRNSMT festival the ultimate goal?
Headlining TRNSMT is on the list – we do have a list of things to try and tick off. It’s just about being patient, and trying to make the music that warrants it. Songs are the things that do that. We’ve been lucky enough, when we’re playing Scotland, there’s always been a demand, so we can be creative with what we do. I think it’s so important to try and design the shows for the fans, without sounding too righteous.
Finally, how is new music coming together?
It’s still in its infancy. We’re like hunter-gatherers when it comes to music. There’s a lot of these ‘30% songs’, I like to call them. I’ve just built a studio at home, so we’re constantly in there, bashing out ideas. We feel no rush on this [album], which is quite nice. All the rest of the records have felt like we must make music so we can get to this point. We’re at a point now where we can make sure that we’re enjoying it.
The Snuts will tour the UK from 19 November – 6 December. Find tickets here.
