The time to wage war on advertisement-friendly, indie disco background music draws near. Discopolis walk the tightrope between it and potential pop royalty.
DISCOPOLIS will be headlining the BBC Introducing Stage at this Summer’s T in the Park music festival in Scotland. That’s one of two stages that features a mix of the best unsigned and up-and-coming talent, the other being the Tbreak stage.
My last visit to the festival in 2011 was primarily to see unsigned bands Bronto Skylift and United Fruit play on those stages. Foo Fighters were headlining the main stage and although I wanted to hear White Limo live, I left early because everything inbetween was painfully dull and the site was rapidly turning into a swamp.
So here’s the question. Do indie disco bands inspire any sustained level of passion in their fans, or are they just another entry in the long line of advertisement-friendly, indie disco background music? The type easily interchangeable with any other similar act of the genre without anyone noticing.
What’s the yardstick these days anyway - Boards of Canada, Miaoux Miaoux, Homework, or Roman Nose?
The hashtag #indiediscolandfill is only one letter short of containing the word Scotland, which must mean that I’m onto something. There’s no real evidence for it — but it is scientific fact.
Headlining a small stage is a tough gig in that your stage time will more than likely clash will at least one big act that many people will want to see. The reality is they may end up playing to less people directly listening to them than if they played a gig at King Tuts. Which would be a shame. If you’re going to T this year, see if you can pop along to hear their set. At least that way you can make your own mind up.
About Discopolis
‘If there’s one new band setting the heather alight in Scotland this year, it’s Discopolis.’ NME
‘They are the absolute triumph of this year’s T Break, the epitome of what the project is designed to do. These guys will be playing bigger and busier shows in no time.’ The Scotsman
Discopolis are a young, emerging three-piece band from Edinburgh. They create electro/indie/house music with synthesizers, computers, guitars, drum machines and more. The three school friends, Fergus (vocals, synth and guitar), Laurie (synth, guitar and samples) and Dave (synth and drum effects), formed in 2010 and began playing live in 2011, being selected for T in the Park’s T Break initiative after just 2 live performances.
BBC Introducing Stage Lineup at T in the Park 2013
VISIT DISCOPOLIS’ SOUNDCLOUD PAGE
As previously discussed, I really like them. Caught a bit of their set supporting Wild Beasts and Friendly Fires on Princes St for Hogmanay a couple of years ago but can’t really remember much about it. Absolutely love the recordings.