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For those of us who have yet to hear the new song, can you hint as to what we can expect from it?

Yeah, I think it sounds quite Scottish. It sounds quite folky in a way. I think it’s a song that sits perfectly in acoustic. We might never ever play it again. This might be the only place it ever gets played, which I think would be quite special. Just to leave it as a little snapshot in time. I mean never say never, we might end up playing it again in the future. I think it’s a lovely little snapshot of who we are as a band. It came a little bit too late to make it onto the last album, and this was the perfect place to play it. It was one thing that really stood out on the night. You can’t really sing along to a song you’ve never heard, so it was great to watch the audiences reactions, and to all of a sudden be playing to a near-silent room the nerves stand up even more. You could probably hear out hearts beating out of our chests!

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Simon also performed a cover of ‘God Only Knows’ by The Beach Boys. What was the decision behind that?

It was a beautiful cover. We’ve done covers for radio stations before, but its not something we do as a part of our main set. We were a little bit nervous about choosing a song that is of the moment. We didn’t want something that maybe in 5 years time people would be questioning why we made that choice. ‘God Only Knows’ is a very personal song to Simon. He has the lyrics tattooed across his chest & It was the first dance at his wedding. It was an amazing song to have a go at. I think it was the right choice for us.

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The stage design for the show at The Roundhouse, London was spectacular. Was the forest scene your idea?

It was a collaboration with us, a designer named Misty Buckley, & the folks at MTV. We just wanted the venue to feel like our own. To do that we wanted it to feel like it had been taken over by nature, like we were witnessing the demise of the venue or something. It’s a really historic venue in the UK, we wanted it to feel really special to us and the audience. The MTV guys really went to town on the set, there was grass everywhere and there were even snails and slugs and stuff (laughs)! It was like being in the middle of a garden centre or something like that! The room is really metallic and harsh, so it was nice to bring in a bit of that warmth.

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You mentioned in regards to the new track ‘Different Kind Of Love’ that you weren’t going to play it again, does that include the upcoming Unplugged tour?

Well that’s the thing, I don’t know Kelsey. It’s a difficult one. I don’t wanna paint myself into a corner. There’s definitely a part of us that don’t want to play it again, which would make the roundhouse show quite special. At the same time it’s a great song. We just don’t know. I played a show last night and I’m a little bit tired and a little bit emotional (laughs), I can’t think straight.

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You’re only doing a few shows for the Unplugged tour so that in itself will be quite special. Is the tour solely in promotion for the Unplugged album?

It is good to promote the album, but we’ve always wanted to do some sort of an acoustic tour. This has just given us the perfect chance to do it. We’re a little bit concerned that people will think “Oh, the guys are old. They’re sitting down. They’ve got their tops on (laughs). They’ve forgotten how to rock.” But that’s definitely not the case. Its gonna be fun to do a tour where you’re not beating yourself up every night. It will just have a totally different feel from our regular shows. We’re really looking forward to it. It’s a shame we’re not going to make it back down here (Australia) to play a few of those shows, but life isn’t over yet.

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To contrast the Unplugged stuff a little, you guys were nominated for NME ‘Best Festival Headliners’! You guys have played pretty much every major festival in the world. I saw you guys play TRNSMT festival in Glasgow last year and you were incredible. I was blown away! What’s your favourite thing about playing festivals?

Well TRNSMT is a good example of a new festival, and its in out home city. It’s a good example of what happens at a festival. You never really know what you’re gonna get. You never know if its gonna be thunder and lightning or snowing or raining. I think that’s what’s so special about having 20, 30, 40,000 people come and share the atmosphere. You can’t plan it. Not as a band, or as an audience. You just have to go with the flow. You get everyone together and everyone starts having the same thoughts, well, similar thoughts. Nobody has the same thoughts (laughs). People are there for a common purpose. That’s my favourite thing about festivals. Plus TRNSMT being at home makes it doubly special. Its also a chance to play to an audience that don’t really know who you are potentially. Or a chance to convince people you’re worth listening to. I remember a few years ago we came down to do Soundwave tour. We played quite early, at like 11:30am or something. It was mostly so we could dodge the heat (laughs), we would’ve never had survived it. To play to people that early in the morning who were just waking up themselves, for sure most of the audience didn’t know who we were. I think it’s such a great opportunity to make some new fans, and turn peoples heads a little bit. And that’s a good example of the kinds of festivals when you feel you’ve got a bit of a challenge ahead of you. That’s what’s great about festivals too. You have to push yourself, you can’t assume the audience know your songs. You have to work quite hard, and that’s something I enjoy.

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I was at your show in Melbourne the other day and I just wanted to acknowledge the diversity in age of the show’s attendees. Young women aged 18, up to Men in their (seeming) late 60’s. I think that’s such a testament to how your music connects with people. How does it feel to have such a broad range of fans?

I cant say enough! It’s a bit emotional to hear that. It’s really quite special. I remember a few years ago thinking about who our audience was & realising that you cant choose your audience, as that would be such an arrogant and stupid thing to do. You make the music & you hope that it connects with people. The fact that it connects, I wouldn’t say universally, but to a wide range of people is something really special. I mentioned earlier on how we’re all people and we all have those similar emotions. We don’t all think the same but we can come together in certain moments & share certain passions and interests. I think it shows how people aren’t that different. People have the same wants & the same fears. Maybe our music talks about things that can apply to a load of different people. That’s so special. We’re always happy to have anyone come to the shows, everyone’s welcome. Its nice that that can bring people together. Its incredible. And thank you for saying that, and coming to the show, and supporting us.

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Of course! Thank you so much James for taking the time to have a chat with me, I really appreciate it.

My pleasure. It was nice to talk to you! Thanks Kelsey!

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Pre-Order BIFFY CLYRO‘s MTV Unplugged Album Here

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