After playing together for just over a year, Glasgow band The Imagineers have achieved a lot. A gig in the Edinburgh Fringe followed by the launch of their debut single caps off a lot of hard work.
Alastair Greig, bassist, said: “We have been putting all our energy into our single launch and organising a tour to support the single.
“We’ve been together as band just over a year, but only really gigging for the last six months.”
The Imagineers spent months writing and practising together and playing small venues in what they describe as “chaotic nights in Scotland’s seediest lounges.”
“We had to get good first so we spend six months as a bar band to learn the ropes,” said Alastair.
“Like all things it is all about practice and persistence.”
The four-piece band got off to a lucky start when Alastair met lead singer Steven Young the very moment he was putting up his advert for a bassist.
“I met Stevie putting an ad up in shop looking for a bass player and I had my bass on me,” recalls Alastair.
“We just started talking and we had the same sort of ideas. We went to play straight away and hit it off.”
A combination of similar and varied interests and influences brought the members of the band together and honed their sound; a mix of sixties and seventies pop with a distinctive west of Scotland twang.
Alastair said: “We all have really different influences.
“Me and Stevie are both into Spanish rhythms, and our guitarist (Lee Ballard) is into surf and bluegrass, and when you put that together you get a kind of hybrid feel. Plus I like a lot of retro music, which I think shows.”
The retro feel is apparent in their upcoming double A-side single Fairground/Mariana.
Both songs combine catchy lyrics with tight rhythms and harmonies and showcase the band’s techincal abilities.
“I used to jam with local musicians and played in a blues band for brief spell,” says Alastair.
“Our drummer (Stephen Forbes) was in a soul band, I think some of that comes through in his playing.
“It is important to have a good rhythm section.”
Hailing from East Kilbride and Larkhall, The Imagineers brought their music to Glasgow earlier this year before getting picked up by local independent label Sunstone Records.
Alastair said: “Glasgow’s a great place to start out because it’s so diverse, with all its musical sub-cultures.
“It’s good for all sorts of music. People who like pop and people who like metal all have bands to go and see. It’s so diverse.”
The Imagineers have played several gigs with label colleagues and fellow Glasgow band, Figure 5, including supporting them at their album launch last month.
The band are now gearing up for a launch of their own next month at La Cheetah in Glasgow, plus a few other gigs, including playing the Festival Fringe at Edinburgh’s Banshee Labyrinth.
Alastair said: “We are all excited about a gig at the Fringe. Hopefully we can generate a bit of interest with all the cigar smokers – you know, the people at the top.”
Their single launch on September 3 will be followed by a short tour playing Stirling, Falkirk, Cumbernauld and Liverpool’s Zanzibar club.
“Quite a lot of good bands have played the Zanzibar, so we are pretty excited. We are taking a coach down with another Glasgow band, The Rudiments, so it should be a great night.”
The Imagineers will then return to Glasgow for a gigs at Nice N’ Sleazy’s and King Tut’s in October.
- The Imagineers play Banshee Labyrinth, Edinburgh, on August 31, 8pm, and launch their debut single at La Cheetah, Queen Street, Glasgow, on September 3, 7.30pm, £2.
