Exclusive Interview with The Snuts in Stoke-on-Trent

Words: Darci Jackson

Photography: Lewis Pettitt

The Snuts are back, and it’s as simple as that.

They’re back with a cautious buzz surrounding them, with talks of new music, and a possible new record on the horizon. Having them back around feels like finding your favourite jumper from a year ago that you lost and getting to wear it again and still having that same overwhelming feeling of it being a staple in your life. There’s nothing quite like it, is there?

We sat down with frontman Jack Cochrane and bassist Callum Wilson of the West Lothian four-piece ahead of their show in Stoke-on-Trent as part of a headline warm-up tour across England.

"A lot of artists kind of just bypass all these places, and we're from a place that's not too dissimilar. I think it's important to come and do these, come and play these shows, and we enjoy it, so it's win-win, really," admitted Cochrane when asked about playing smaller cities on their current run of shows.

"We wanted to kind of mix it up a bit and just, like, test ourselves a bit more as well and get some new songs to people who have genuinely supported us throughout it all. We’ve got quite a few mad memories of Stoke, especially with The Sugarmill and stuff."

"It’s definitely like coming back to a scene of a crime or something! But we’re a bit more professional these days." added Wilson.

The Scottish indie rockers took over Victoria Hall on Friday night, playing a fresh set of nostalgia-ridden favourites intertwined seamlessly with perky new material. Cochrane anecdotally told us of their management asking if they really wanted to play Stoke again. His answer?

"Try and fucking stop us."

Opening with the gloriously sun-drenched riff of Gloria, the band then catapulted way back in their discography to Seasons, a fan-favourite that just hits the spot time and time again.

Brand new single Summer Rain was up next, marking a new era for The Snuts.

"It's always a worry when you go away for a bit that they'll forget about you, but every time we release again and everybody rallies around us, it's amazing," started Wilson.

"We do it all ourselves. And not in that way that's like, kind of chip on the shoulder like kind of cosplay that you probably get, we just generally get to do now what we want to do. And I don’t think we’re like ‘please love us for that,’ but we love doing it now in that way, and getting to produce it, and just take our time with it, and just get to enjoy the process of making it, and then when it goes out, because we've enjoyed it so much, the pressure feels off when it goes out.

"If you can get anybody singing your songs in middle England or middle Scotland or anywhere, it's a good indicator if people actually fucking dig this shit," added Cochrane.

The band spoke about the human connection felt in their new music, something that feels deep-rooted in Summer Rain. The music itself feels like letting out a breath you’ve been holding in, a sense of relief enveloping each and every note. It’s classic big-chorus, melodic Snuts, but with a more mature and honest undertone.

As Cochrane stopped and chatted between songs, an intimate atmosphere cast itself over the room, something not easily achieved against the grandeur of a historical place like Victoria Hall. And that human connection felt rife throughout, an electricity coursing its way through bodies, creating a community for just one evening,

The Snuts teased several new singles from their upcoming project, but the standout was Motherlands, written "about places like this."

"This type of interaction with music is relevant and people are kind of forgetting that, I think," mentioned Cochrane.

"I think if we ever speak to any younger artists I always kind of try and say to them: 'just go and be in front of people.' That's where you're going to find these fans that will come for life. There’ll be people here tonight who will have been at the first ever time we came to Stoke and I'll just say, how hard is that to do with a TikTok?"

The Snuts first played Stoke-on-Trent in 2018, at the city’s crown jewel The Sugarmill, playing a series of demos and early singles from their back catalogue; one of those being Glasgow.

As an angelic light cast itself on the band, the opening riff was met with roars and arms in the air, fans beaming at such a heart-swelling anthem.

"It's been so long, since we've actually been properly away. We’ve done quite a bit of acoustic stuff and some support stuff but nothing like a full headline tour, so we're in rehearsals, and it's quite a shock to the system, playing, like, 20 songs a day when you're used to playing six," revealed Wilson.

"I think we’re just quite in control of what we do, and it's something we're quite a big advocate for inside the music industry, is, like, you do have to have some boundaries and a bit of control over what you do. It's a cliché, but you do need to live a bit to write. We've got [into] a weird place with music now where people expect humans just to be on the go 24-7," added Cochrane.

"I think that throughout our career we’ve always been making a record, touring that record, and while we're touring that record, making the new record, I mean, we've never really had that, we've never, like, allowed ourselves or rewarded ourselves the time to go, ‘let’s just make a record and then let’s tour.’"

On their warm up tour around England, The Snuts have gladly been joined by fellow Scots Brògeal.

"They’re the boys!" started Cochrane.

"I listened to their record, maybe the week after it came out, and I was out running, and I was listening to this record, and I was like, this makes me feel proper 16 or something. If I heard this when I was 16, I would love it. I love it now. I love that they play stuff that’s really different from what people are expecting. A lot of people in Lincoln I would imagine have never seen a band that’s got a banjo and a fucking accordion and stuff."

The set was worthy of a ‘greatest hits’ tour (although we’re extremely grateful The Snuts are currently nowhere near that state!) but Dizzy Magazine idly wondered if perhaps there was any songs missing.

"This is actually a controversial issue in rehearsals, I would have That’s All It Is but he hates it," laughed Wilson whilst looking at Cochrane.

"I would genuinely just play new songs all the time if it was up to me. I need to stop introducing old ones as ‘I fucking hate this’ and then playing it."

And if there’s one thing we’re certain of, it’s that Stoke-on-Trent is eagerly awaiting The Snuts return once again.

Before striding off stage, Cochrane left us with a "see you next time motherfuckers."

And see them we will.