WATCH: Inverness and Black Isle band This Machine plan Tooth & Claw date
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This Machine – with band members from Ross-shire and Inverness – play their first gig in a while at the Tooth & Claw on Saturday, April 15. They explain how the band grew out of earlier band The Rites. And how a closely-related band SBPtR will support them at that gig!
Q What is This Machine’s story?
A Robin Johnston, guitarist: I think it was 2014 I got a phone call from the Strathpeffer Pavilion who were coming up to 10 years since the venue’s refurbishment and decided to put on a Christmas gig and asked if I could re-form The Rites. And I thought I couldn’t because our former drummer doesn’t play any more and George our keyboard player lives in London now. Off the cuff, I said: “Maybe the best we could hope for is me and Rory [Hutcheson] doing an acoustic set?” They said that would be great. So Rory and me had a couple of months trying to change these full-on rock tunes into acoustic versions, then rehearsing them! We played on the acoustic stage that night and you couldn’t have got another person in the room! There were folk standing behind me and Rory as we were playing! Afterward Bob and Steve Bull, who run Glachbeg Studio and the acoustic folk stage at Belladrum, came up to us and asked if we fancied playing that stage at Belladrum the next year. We did, in 2015, playing 5pm on the Saturday night and we were told we’d had the biggest crowd. But I think that was a fluke – it had just stopped raining and people came along and stopped and then that encouraged more and more people to stop! After we came off the stage, I said to Rory “We are starting a band again!” That was me getting the ‘show off’ bug again! In the crowd that day was the drummer James Hendry, ex-Echo 20 drummer, and he messaged a few days later saying ‘If you’re ever forming a band again, give me a shout!’. Myself, Rory and Greg Adams from The Rites, we had all stayed friends, so we started trying to write some songs. James joined us and we haven’t looked back – we call it Black Isle rock!.
Q Why the gig – and why now?
A Robin: I guess because we haven’t actually played a gig since April last year as we were recording over last summer. We’ve just released some music. But with spending last year at Belladrum basically seething with jealousy, I’d like us to be doing the hard miles again! And as the Tooth & Claw is now the place, the Tooth & Claw is the place for our gig!
Q As The Rites, you played big stages in your time. This one is pretty small .... and you are six foot four!?
A Robin: We have been told that our sound and look – just us – suit a big stage. But I am also very conscious we are not U2! The venue takes 75 and the last time we played the Tooth & Claw we sold it out, but it was Christmas time and we had support from people like Moteh Parrott who brought heads through the door too.
So I’ll be delighted if we have 75!
Personally, I’ve got to watch where the lights are. If I stand with my legs wide apart that takes my height down a wee bit!
Q You recorded a rehearsal you played in the Ironworks before it closed – when will we see/hear that?
A Robin: We had “a shot of the venue” on the Tuesday night before the closing night. We played a half-hour set three times and the third time we came out as if we were performing to 1,000 people! We’ve a video of each song and will also be making a documentary.
Q Your support at the Tooth & Claw SBPtR is something special for anyone who remembers Highland bands Toaster (signed to Creation) and Raar!?
A Robin: It’ll be the band Toaster without keyboards. It’s the first music Sinclair Hutcheson [Rory’s brother] has written in almost 20 years and Sinclair and Marcus Mackay have put the songs together remotely. Innes Forbes from Raar!, and later Toaster, will be on bass, plus drummer.
This Machine and Toaster play Tooth & Claw, Inverness, on Saturday, April 15. Gig details Facebook: @thismachineuk
