Dancing on Tables, an up-and-coming pop-rock band from Scotland, gave us an insight into their journey as a band, their upcoming tour supporting Cassia and what the future holds. Robbie McSkimming, one of the lead vocalists and keyboardist, answers my questions below...
What’s the journey been like, from the formation of the band up until now? Has it been what you expected/hoped for or have there been unexpected experiences?
We started when we were all still at school and quite young, so didn’t really have any idea of how far we could take the band. It’s been five years since our first show and it’s quite fun to look back at what we’ve done in that time. We take each day as it comes and try not to think about what the future holds, so most experiences up till now have been unexpected.
How does it feel to be included in Variety’s ‘10 Brits to Watch in 2018’?
That was a real pleasure. The talent that was on the list alongside us was incredible and it’s great to see people go on to even more since the awards. The night itself was the first awards show that we’ve been to, and ended with us befriending Simon Pegg (the nicest person) for the evening.
Out of touring regularly or playing festivals, do you have one you enjoy more?
Tours are fun because you get to see places that you’ve never been to before, but festivals are my favourite. There is a mentality at a festival that I doubt you get anywhere else, so it’s always enjoyable being a part of that. Could do with sleeping in a bed, though.
What are the band dynamics like – who writes the lyrics, the music, who makes sure everyone’s ready for the gig?
Callum and myself will write the original ideas and lyrics, but we work on developing tracks together as a band. Normally, we all go away to a studio in the middle of nowhere for a weekend and work on ideas. Gregor is the daddy of DOT and makes sure we are ready for the shows. It helps to have a sensible person to look after us.
Did any of you have any particular career/life plans in mind before starting the band at the end of high school?
We went off to do our own thing after school finished, but I think we all had the same dream of making the band work. I did an accountancy degree, Gregor and Callum both studied music and Hamish was a lumberjack (a job I didn’t know existed in real life till he got it!)
You’re touring alongside Cassia this month, what are you expecting from those shows? Do you already know the guys from Cassia or will the tour be the beginning of a new relationship there?
We played with Cassia in Glasgow at the start of the year which was a great show, so I have high hopes for the tour. We shared a few drinks at a party we were both at recently and they are the nicest guys, so I’m sure we’ll have a fun time.
You worked on your EP, Space Race, in Nashville – how was that and any plans for travelling again for an album or the next project?
Working in Nashville is really intense as the standard of musicians there is arguably the highest in the world. We are lucky to have a great team behind us in Nashville who are really supportive of us and let us do our own thing, so it was a really enjoyable experience. We felt that it worked so well that we have already recorded our next EP when we were over a couple of months ago.
What do you see in the future for Dancing On Tables?
The next EP will be out in 2019 which we will tour, before we have a summer of festivals. I prefer to take each day as it comes, so that’s as far as my predictions go for now!
Dancing on Tables will be supporting Cassia live at The Cluny on 26th October. Tickets are available for £11 online from seetickets.com, with doors opening at 7.30pm.
