De Rosa - Hopes and Little Jokes

Forget Franz or The Fratellis, De Rosa were Scotland's shining light of 2006. Debut record 'Mend' was an engorging patriotic triumph; delicately blending heather strewn paeans with turgid urban soundscapes. Its melodic beauty was rewarded with a place in MOJO's end of year Top 50, confirming the Lanarkshire quartet as the current heartbeat of the Scottish music scene.

As The Skinny chats to founding member Martin Henry, we discover this success has been a long time coming: "My sole ambition from the age of twelve was to record, release and tour an album - all of which we did in 2006," he affirms. "This has been a great year for us. There's been so many highlights; Chemikal Underground putting out our album and touring with Mogwai and Arab Strap being the most memorable.

Having formed the group with school chum Chris Connick, Martin claims De Rosa never fulfilled its potential until brothers Neil and James Woodside joined in 2003. He adds: "When we left university we put all our energy into songwriting. There was no distinct purpose other than to create music that was ours. Most of the other bands from Lanarkshire were still playing covers of Oasis or maybe something as recent as the Strokes, so it was a big step in the dark."

This leap into the unknown culminated in the release of Mend, an immaculate reflection of Scotland's cultural idiosyncrasies. "Mend took every bit of energy, knowledge and intuition I had." concedes Martin. "At every stage I was concerned with being honest about who I was and where I was from. Recording helped me make sense of this stuff but it's really down to luck that my own investigation can be viewed as a reflection on Scottish culture."

Mend's pensive lyricism has drawn predictable Arab Strap comparisons, particularly after De Rosa played their farewell tour, but Martin remains unruffled by these languid analogies. "In all honesty, Arab Strap are my musical heroes," he admits. "They taught me you can make music and be Scottish without being in a folk band. People compare my voice to Aidan Moffatt's because I sing in my accent, but that's fair enough - I sang in an American accent until 'The First Big Weekend' came out."

So how has De Rosa developed in the wake of Mend's release? "The band is becoming much bigger and better than I could ever have hoped for," says Martin ardently. "Individually we've never been very confident people, but when we play together I feel like I'm part of something good. Now we've been through the whole first album experience we're more confident in what we're trying to do."

The "first album experience" introduced Martin to the music industry's more insidious side; where economics supersede artistic development. It's a topic he's happy to discuss candidly: "All these major label guys aren't even real to me," he says forcefully. "They started bands to make money and get famous and haven't an honest, creative, imaginative cell in their skulls. We have full creative control but our relationship with the record company is such that we appreciate and value their opinions."

Having finished touring Mend, Martin is prudently plotting De Rosa's progression in 2007: "At the moment I'm writing every day for the next record," he explains. "We're starting recording in late January, but I don't expect it to be finished until May. Playing together has taught us what we're capable of and given us a chance to explore what sounds we can make, so I hope the next album will be more mature and experimental in equal measures."