Radar Meets: Model Aeroplanes

Dundee indie four piece Model Aeroplanes formed in January 2013 and went on to receive a great response after performing that same year on the BBC Introducing Stage at T in the Park, whilst also still being in high school! Since then they’ve performed at Radio 1’s Big Weekend in Glasgow, have even performed with The View and were invited on tour with Twin Atlantic. I had a chat with guitarist and backup vocalist Grant, who then decided to turn the interview on to me...

Hey, how are you guys doing?
We’re doing very very well. We’re all being our happy selves and happy to be taking on festival season.

You all went to high school together but what’s it now like being in a band with your friends and touring all over the place?
It’s unbelievably exciting. We’re all so fortunate to be doing what we’re doing and what we enjoy at a fairly serious level and the fact we’ve all been best mates for the past seven or eight years it’s really amazing.

What would you say is your best memory as a band?
There’s certain things that are up there. For example playing T in the Park for the first time, finding out about getting to play at T at 17 years old, it was the best thing ever. Certain gigs with Little Comets were just unbelievable and sometimes the simplest of times like sitting for hours with your best mates.

You played a few freshers shows last year, are you looking forward to performing at RGU Freshers this year?
Yeah I think it’s gonna be class. Freshers gigs are always good to do as everyone’s always up for a laugh. I’d say one of our best gigs we did last year was for St.Andrews University Freshers.

You’re all from Dundee, so what do you think your fans in Aberdeen will be like?
We seem to have a pretty solid fanbase, Aberdeen is up there with Dundee and London.

Have you got crazy stories from any freshers?
In St.Andrews we’d been booked in to a four or five star fancy hotel but we all just ended up crashing at a mates house, we were all steaming. However Rory wandered back to the hotel at 3 in the morning with a bottle of wine and just sat and drank in the lobby for a bit then went to bed. That’s not really that mental but we’re not the most mental people. I reckon though we’ll have some stories after Aberdeen.

What do you think you’d all be up to if you weren’t in the band?
I’d like to think we’d all be at Uni, none of us were overly academic. I wanted to go to Uni and do physics. Rory was wanting to go to Duncan of Jordanstone in Dundee and do Art and Ben and Kieran went to Perth College and did music business and music engineering.

I’ve heard you’re all fans of Taylor Swift. What are the bands favourite songs by her?
That’s a hard one. Ben will probably have a list of favourite songs, but for me I’d have to say Style. We all really like her face too, it’s pretty good.

Yeah I’d have to agree. Besides T-Swift, if you could have any other female musician join your band who would it be?
Whitney Houston, I’m a big fan. To be realistic, somebody who is alive, Rae Morris, that’d be pretty cool, we’re all pretty big fans of her. Who would you musically collaborate with?

Oooh probably Paolo Nutini but I think I’d just stare at him.
Yeah I don’t think I’d be able to say a word, I’d just be in awe of him.

Finally, are you planning any special gigs or maybe releasing some new music soon?
I’ve got to tread carefully here, I dunno what I’m allowed to say. We’re working on a body of work. Nothings concrete yet but we’ll probably have an EP or maybe two out before we bring an album out, it shouldn’t be too long.