TOURING bands often describe Glasgow as a memorable place - whether it's the traffic cone on The Duke of Wellington's head, the erratic weather or the frenzied gig crowds that stick in the mind.

But for Kahn Morbee, singer with South African band The Parlotones, one thing stands out as particularly memorable from his last visit to Glasgow - the grub at King Tut's Wah Wah Hut.

The Parlotones last played Tut's in 2012, to a crowd made up of curious Scots and ex-pat South Africans.

And while most gigs on a long tour blend into one long, hazy memory, the Johannesburg group remember how well they were treated at the self-styled 'best small venue in the world'.

Kahn said: "I remember King Tut's well. It's a famous venue and all the big bands have passed through there.

"It's got strange load-in arrangements where you come through an alley and down some old stairs.

"But the people who work there are very cool to the bands and it's one of the few venues where you get a good, home-cooked meal."

The band, signed to German-based indie label earMUSIC, are coming to the UK to promote new album Stand Like Giants.

They will play at King Tut's again on Thursday, April 3.

Splitting their time between Joburg and Los Angeles, The Parlotones have slowly but surely built an international fanbase while they continue their massive success in South Africa, where they are a multi-platinum selling act.

Compared to Coldplay, Starsailor and Keane among others, the band win fans wherever they perform live.

Support tours with Ash and Ocean Colour Scene have built them a strong following in the UK, but they do love to see ex-pat South Africans at their shows too.

KAHN said: "Some of the support tours have been great for us. We got quite lucky and were in the right place at the right time.

"But there's always the South Africans in the crowd too when we play the bigger cities in the UK.

"At the end of a long tour, it's nice to hear those accents again.

"We're very proud of our heritage and love that so many South Africans around the world come to see us."

One of their most famous fans is Virgin boss Sir Richard Branson. He is even flying them to the UK for their dates in London and Glasgow, and the band will play an acoustic show onboard the flights.

Kahn said: "That will be very weird. It was an idea our management and Virgin came up with.

"I just hope we don't irritate some guy who is trying to watch the in-flight movie.

"It's definitely a first for us, and when we were asked if we were keen to do it, we said yes of course."

While fellow South Africans Die Antwoord have burst onto the international scene with their brash and over-the-top personas, The Parlotones prefer to let their music do the talking.

Kahn puts the band's success down to a mixture of hard work and good luck.

He said: "Die Antwoord and us operate in entirely different worlds, but anywhere we go people ask about them.

"They have been very smart.

"They saw what people were looking for and said 'Okay, if you want to be freaked out we will freak you out'.

"For us, it was playing at the World Cup opening ceremony and having a song used in a TV advert that launched us overseas."

Calling your album Stand Like Giants could be seen as a big statement, but Kahn remains humble when explaining its meaning.

"I guess it's maybe a reflection of our career.

"I feel like we're always trying to punch above our weight and have this persona of a big band, when really we're from a small and insignificant musical territory.

"It's also an aspirational motto I think, because we know where we want to be but we're not there yet."

l See The Parlotones at King Tut's on Thursday, April 3. Tickets cost £12.