ANTHEM-loving rockersFutures KNOW their debutalbum will do the busi-ness in a sold-out Wem-bley Stadium.That’s because they did a trialrun BEFORE laying it down.The Buckinghamshire bandare signed to giants Mercuryand nothing is being left tochance for their big launch.Frontman Ant West said: “Wewrote a lot of the album inanother studio, before going into record it. But, when we actu-

ally started, our producer got usinto this room with a massivePA system and said, ‘OK, we’vegot the songs, now let’s make itfeel like a band’.“That really made us thinkabout playing them live, sosome of the songs were adapted— it was a real eye-opener.“That session was just as loudas a gig at Wembley — it wasthe biggest PA I’d ever seen.”Fitting perfectly with theirdreams of packing out stadiums,the album — due out on in May— is rammed full of huge rocktunes. First up is single Start A

Fire, which is released onDecember 19.Ant, 22, explained: “It’s theperfect introduction to the band,it’s the crossover song that peo-ple will get. If we could pickone song for people to hear —this would be it.“Our stuff is quite anthemicand that’s a theme runningthrough the album but withoutbeing contrived.“All the songs have the hooksand big choruses for people tosing along to.”And Futures are using Ayr-shire rockers Biffy Clyro for

inspiration as they aim tosilence would-be critics by deliv-ering crowd-pleasing tunes with-out losing their cutting edge.Ant said: “It’s hilarious, thebigger you get the more somepeople hate you. Biffy Clyro andNirvana got that.”Despite coming a long way ina short time, the guys are keep-ing their feet on the ground.Ant added: “Where a lot ofbands can go wrong is whenyou sign the deal. We even didit — we assumed the label wouldtake the reins.“But that’s not the case. It’s a

positive pres-sure as yourealise it’s yourjob and you’vegot to workeven harder, asthere is abunch of peo-ple sittingaround desksworking hardto get youwhere youwant to be.

“Once you get a record deal,it’s not just on your back —you’ve got to represent a wholebunch of other people and suc-ceed for them.”Futures have also lived up totheir name — and forged a newpath to the top. They haven’tdone the toilet tours or used sup-port slots to get exposure.Instead, they were thrust intothe spotlight when Rock Soundmagazine gave away their EP.

TicketsAnt said: “Until last monthwe’d never supported a bandbut we’ve somehow sold outtours off the back of that CD.“For example, coming up toGlasgow and selling out KingTut’s — that was a really bigdeal for us.“We came up thinking wemight sell 100 tickets. Then, onthe night, it was sold out. Wedidn’t expect that and it’s hap-pened all over the place.“That gave us an instant step-ping stone to becoming biggerthan we thought we were.“But you always have to valuewhere you are. That’s easy to doby thinking about where youwere a year ago.“We want to be bigger andbetter but we remember wherewe’ve come from.”Q Check out the single and its videoat wearefutures.co.uk

chris.sweeney@the-sun.co.uk

THE LITTLE KICKSWHO: Steven Milne(vocals/keyboards/guitars),Tobiaz Brunning (guitar),Lewis Porter (bass), ScottKelman (drums)WHERE: AberdeenFOR FANS OF: The Strokes,Bombay Bicycle Club, OrangeJuiceJIM SAYS: The north-eastmusic scene has revolvedround these boys in recentyears — not just through theirown music, but by hostingtheir own highly successfulclub night.The Dirty Hearts Club ran

for over five years, bringingguest DJs like Hot Chip, FranzFerdinand and MSTRKRFT tothe Granite City.It was wound down in

August, but they continue torun a monthly bash calledLoosen Up! — also the nameof a track on their newself-titled album.The Little Kicks released

their first album — BoxingClever — in 2009 and keepthe pace going perfectly withthe follow-up having just hitthe stores.The new album may be a

DIY affair, but doesn’t soundit. Based around thekeyboards of frontman StevenMilne — who released acritically acclaimed soloalbum last year — this is abig, confident collection.Highlights include the epic

indie stomp Call Of Youth, theglorious brass-laden electro

pop of The First Place and thecatchy as heck Before Today.Running a club night hasprobably given the band anunderstanding of creatingsongs to fill any dancefloor.You can mask average

songs with some neatproduction, but the sessionthey did for In:Demand Uncuton Sunday showed thestrength of the tracks — evenwhen stripped right back. Youcan hear the session online atindemandscotland. co.ukUK-wide they’re pretty low

profile, but a 7/10 review forthe new album in the NMEwon’t do their cause any harmand they’ve already notchedup support slots with acts likeFoals, Vaccines, FrightenedRabbit, Glasvegas, MaximoPark, Kooks and Editors.The Little Kicks are

currently on tour with fellowScots Broken Records andplay play PJ’s in Dunfermlinetonight, and Sunday at theTunnels in Aberdeen.They also appear at

Aberdeen’s Hogmanay bash,Granite Rocks, at the AECCalong with The View andWhite Lies. That’s a great wayto round off the year for aband going into 2012 on thetop of their game.MORE: thelittlekicks.co.ukQ Jim’ll be playing The LittleKicks on In:Demand Uncut— Sunday 7-10pm on Clyde1, Forth One, Northsound 1,Radio Borders, Tay FM,West FM & West Sound FM.See jimgellatly.com

BY JIMGELLATLY

!CHEZ DAMIER @ La Cheetah,Glasgow, tonight: A wel-

come return to Scotland forPrescription Undergroundlegend Chez, pictured — oneof the most revered figures inhouse music.He’s played a key role inshaping the scene since thelate 80s, and he and erstwhilepartner Ron Trent released aseries of hugely influentialproductions through theirown Prescription and Balancelabels which still changehands for silly money today.As a DJ he brings decadesof experience to the party,along with a peerlessselection of house old andnew. Support comes fromJamie Thomson and Wardy —do not miss.And it’s a bigweekend for LaCheetah — tomor-r ow n i gh tLondon’s uber-hip Night Slugscrew hit town,

with Bok Bok and L-Vis 1990playing back to back for fourhours.

$SUBCULTURE @ Sub Club,Glasgow, tomorrow: After

some storming sets for Num-bers over the past couple ofyears at the same venue, Float-ing Points returns to playalongside Harri and Domenic.The producer — real nameSam Shepherd — has becomeone of the most revered onthe scene with his expansive,jazz-tinged productions, andhis DJ sets are an eclecticfeast for the ears.Techno fans are in for atreat at the Subbie tonighttoo, with Detroit’s godfatherof the minimal sound, RobertHood, taking to the decks.

%SAMEDIA @ TheThird Door, Edin-

burgh, tonight: Expecttropical voodoovibes galore at thisintriguing newventure from thecapital’s Departure

Lounge crew. A mysteryline-up of DJs promise ablend of funk, reggae,afrobeat, salsa, delta blues,samba, rock’n’roll and ska.

&TWISTED KALEIDOSCOPE &OUTRAGE @ Ice Factory,

Perth, tomorrow: The city’spremier underground houseand techno events team up topresent a showcase forGlasgow’s Sleaze Records.Hans Bouffmyhre andSimon Stokes man the turnta-bles, with support from localsFindlay Jamieson, GarryTraill and Gary Robertson.

(HUNTLEYS & PALMERS @Stereo, Glasgow, tomorrow:

This super-cool night returnsto Stereo to mark its fourthbirthday.Man-of-the-moment JohnTalabot — who’s makingwaves with his remixes ofThe xx and Teengirl Fantasy— headlines, with supportfrom rising star Auntie Flo.Q Email your news and listings totom.churchill@the-sun.co.uk

FILMSMUSIC DVDsGAMES BOOKSCOMEDY

BYCHRIS

SWEENEY

BYTOM

CHURCHILL

NEWMUSIC

POP babe Yasmin hasteamed up with drum ‘n’bass royalty.The Glasgow girl is

joined by Ms Dynamite andShy FX on her new tune,Light Up. And they shot thevideo out in Cuba — withsome strange scenes ofYasmin buying fruit.But it’s a cracking track

and should fill plenty ofdancefloors. Hear it atyasminsworld.co.uk

FOLK gang Kassidy areset for a superb year.The Scots’ debut

album went well andthey’ve built up a solidfan base. So they’rerounding off 2011 with atour on home soil.It starts on Sunday at

PJ Molloy’s in Dunferm-line before hitting Inver-ness, Aberdeen, Dun-dee and Glasgow. Infoat kassidymusic.com

CLUBBING

ONES2WATCH

Friday, December 9, 2011 SFTW 7