I tried to make this like the other interviews I have written up but it, for me, will never be like the rest. Hence why I have left it unedited and untouched. All my interviews start out in a Q&A style, until I write them up, however I am leaving this particular one as it is. I think
you learn a lot about people from what they say and write. It can bring
out their character and let the reader learn what type of person they
are, which I think comes across a lot in this interview with Ben Buist, bassist for Model Aeroplanes.
When I was trying to edit this, it felt as if I was trying to manipulate it into something it isn't. It felt as if by changing the wording or layout I was taking something away which I would never like to do.
In short, this is the most basic interview I have ever posted with an incredible Scottish band I adore. I've bought their singles, EP's and been front row at their gigs. What I love the most about this band is their lack of fear and how they don't seem to hold anything back from their fans, whether its simple social media posts, tweets or small clips from their lives. It helps bring people together and allows us, as non-band members, to see what creating music is really like.
SBLM - For the people who don't know you so well, who are you and how did you form ?
Ben - "We are a bunch of lifelong
pals that basically spend all of our time hanging out and
writing music. Ben plays bass, Grant plays guitar, Rory sings
and plays guitar and Kieran plays the drums. We all met when
we started high school in 2007/2008 and soon after, we started
a band playing covers and questionable math/rock music."
SBLM - Is there any kind of meaning behind your name or is it just
words together which you thought sounded good together
?
Ben - "There is a meaning, however we're not at liberty to reveal it at
this point in time. The world will know one day."
SBLM - Who inspires you as a band and do you think they have an impact on your sound ?
Ben - "Lots of people, musical and non-musical inspire us. There are
certain artists in particular like Tame Impala, Michael Jackson and
Earth Wind & Fire that we are really digging at the moment and
feel that they're impacting our sound at the moment."
SBLM - Your music always reminds me of summer, probably because of
the
festival season. How would you describe your sound ? Is it
different
from other bands who fall into the same genre ?
Ben - "I like to think we have our own sound, some words spring to mind
like 'voodoo soul', 'nu disco' if that makes any sense. We struggle
to describe our sound which I think is a good thing."
SBLM - What are your favourite albums, EP's and singles at the moment ?
Ben - "Favourite album at the moment is probably Remain In Light by Talking
Heads. Lisbon have a new video out for their song Vice and we love
it."
SBLM - There always seems to be a lot of hype when you announce
tour
dates, for Scotland at least from what I experience. What do
you
think makes gigs good ?
Ben - "Lots of things can make gigs good in my opinion, but it's completely
subjective, I guess. If the crowd is buzzing then that can sometimes
be more important than the number of people there."
SBLM - I've saw you play at small venues like King Tuts which
were
amazing shows, as were your sets at festivals like T in the
Park.
What do you prefer to play, small venues or festival stages,
and why
?
Ben - "We totally love playing festivals like T in the Park but sometimes
the smaller gigs can be just as mental!"
SBLM - What would be your ideal tour and why ?
Ben - "Our dream gigs would be to support Prince on a world tour of academy
sized venues because, he is one of the wonders of the world and
academy sized venues are the most buzziest."
SBLM - Have you met other bands through
touring/heard other bands, who are just making a name for
themselves,
who you think are going to go far ?
Ben - "There's so many great bands and artists
around that we have had the pleasure to play with and meet.
Lisbon, Indigo Velvet, Sahara and Vladimir just to name a
few."
SBLM - What's the best show you've played so far and why does it
stand
out for you ?
Ben - 'We did a hometown show in Dudee on our UK tour in March. That was a
really special show as we didn't expect so many people to be there."
SBLM - So far this year you've released the new single. What
else can
we expect from this year ?
Ben - "We've just released our first EP Something Like Heaven at the start
of March. We will be releasing more music this year and have begun
writing for an album."
SBLM - If you could only listen to five songs for the rest of
your life what would they be ?
Ben - "Easy Lover - Phil Collins, Human Nature - Michael Jackson, Give Me
The Night - George Benson, What a Fool Believes - The Doobie
Brother, Let it Happen - Tame Impala. All total bangers."
SBLM - What 5 words would you use to describe yourselves as a
band and
your music ?
Ben - "Groove. Rhythm. Hangs. Pushes. Groove."
SBLM - Most importantly, for me anyway, why did you start making music together ?
Ben - "Simply because we weren't incredibly interested in academic studies
and we just loved the idea of starting a band."
You can follow the band on the links below and find their newest EP Something Like Heaven here.