Teenage Kicks (From Oxford Mail)

Teenage Kicks

6:00pm Thursday 22nd July 2010 in

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Teenage Fanclub’s Big Dave tells TIM HUGHES why Truck is the ‘best festival in the UK’.

BIG Dave is in a good mood. Not only is he in the enviable position of playing with his favourite musicians, but he is on his way to his top festival.

“Big” Dave McGowan (the “Big” is obligatory) is the fifth member of cult Scottish melodic-indie band Teenage Fanclub, joining his own teenage heroes six years ago to take up keyboard duties.

And on Sunday, he and the band will be heading to Steventon, near Didcot, to headline the 13th annual Truck Festival.

For Dave it’s an event to savour. While “The Fannies” have never before graced the Truck stage, Dave has, with previous band Veracruz.

“We played Truck a couple of times with the band and loved it so much that I came back as a punter a couple of times too.

“I’ve always enjoyed it; it’s my favourite. There’s a really nice atmosphere and it feels safe – which is more can be said for some of them – like T in the Park with its stabbings. It’s something to do with the family atmosphere and the fact it’s in a small village with a real community spirit.”

Dave, 35, met songwriters Norman Blake, Gerard Love, Raymond McGinley and drummer Francis MacDonald in their native Glasgow, having been a fan since their debut album, A Catholic Education, in 1990. His keys experience stood him in good stead, and he was offered a job.

“Glasgow is a pretty small city,” he says, talking to me this bright July evening from his home in a tenement block in the south of the city. “Geographically, at least. And if you’re involved in music and hang out, you meet everybody. I knew the guys in the Fanclub to say ‘hi’ to, but I’d seen them play and I knew and loved their songs. So when they asked me to join I guess I was in a good position; I certainly had a headstart. And it’s still thrilling for me!”

So with the band having just released their new hook-laden, critically-acclaimed album Shadows, how does he account for their longevity. “Well you never hear anyone say anything negative about the band,” he answers. “Everyone is so down to earth. The first time I rehearsed with them, they had me at ease within a couple of minutes. There’s no egos – which is the main reason why bands break up.

“With Teenage Fanclub, it’s all just about the songs.”

The album took five years to release. So why the delay? “Well, it’s not like the band had their heads down for the whole of that time,” he explains.

“I guess the band just felt the time was right. The record is self-released and all the music on it was written for the album. And, after all, Teenage Fanclub are not the sort of band that get together five times a week.”

So how does it feel to be a part of one of Scotland’s most admired, even loved, bands? Dave is modest. “Well, it’s true the band is held in high regard,” he says, keen to play down the adulation.

“And we all like having a good time, which makes touring fun.

“The enjoyable part of being on the road is socialising, and the people that come on tour with us are good friends who have been working with us for a long time – so we like to enjoy ourselves. With the band following Truck with a US and then European tour, the opportunities for enjoyment are going to come thick and fast. But for Big Dave, Truck is undoubtedly the year’s highpoint.

“I love it there,” he reiterates, “and I would urge everyone to come along because it’s the best festival in the UK!”