Stag Firm Collapse from East Kilbride are playing in the finals of the Surface Festival in London. They will be taking to the stage at the Indigo2 within the O2 Arena to perform to a selection of judges and a baying crowd in the hope of winning a fantastic swathe of prizes.
I met the band to have a chat about what getting to the finals means to them and their plans for the future.
Stag Firm Collapse formed over two years ago, while the members were still at school. Bearing in mind that they are only aged between 16 and 17 currently, this should give you an idea of the talent and drive for success that these boys possess! They all knew each other from school and met through various activities like football. After becoming friendly they realised they all had a thirst for music and decided to form a band. Stag Firm Collapse was born.
I was curious about the name and asked Kris to explain it. He said “We had a few names and put these into a hat with the intention of pulling out the winner. We went through a few changes before settling on Stag Firm Collapse, which came from taking a random page and random sentence on a newspaper. The relevant article was one about the collapse of a firm which runs stag nights!”
I asked the band about what different musical influences each member brings to bear on the sound of the band. Kris said “we all come from a different musical background, from heavy rock to techno and gabba. Declan, our vocalist, loves bands like The Strokes, The Shins and the Beatles. Rage Against the Machine is a band we all love and we all have common ground with them.”
I was a bit overawed by the achievements SFC have gained in their short time in the band. I asked about what getting to the finals of Surface meant to them. Kris said “The prizes are brilliant. They come to £100,000 in total and include things like a 40 hour recording session, a video recording, photo shoot and promotion.”
The boys are a bit surprised about the extent of their success. They explained “We entered the competition for experience, we never expected to win. During each round of the competition more and more people were coming to see us and we have picked up a loyal following.”
You would expect the band to be understandably nervous about performing in front of such a large audience but they seem to be taking it in their stride. Kris said “we’re just buzzing, but we probably will get a bit nervous nearer the time. We’re just going to treat it like any other gig and play our best.”
Stag Firm Collapse are running a bus trip down to London for their loyal fans to give them well-needed support on the night of the finals. You can support them in your own way by texting Scotland 7023 to 64343.
