Juno About The Mill?

We’re in the mouth of the Fringe. The Edinburgh and Glasgow band scenes are thriving, as fertile as ever, with Auld Reekie making substantial headway on its more celebrated rival. Local promoters are doing fine jobs with individual and collective band nights in both cities: our ears are most certainly in good hands. All of which make it seem far-fetched to state that one corporate-created initiative could be a godsend to a scene that on paper, may not need it... But it's true. The addition of The Mill as a regular event in the calendars of both areas presents a unique opportunity to artists plying their trade in Scotland, one that doesn’t come around very often.

Having pumped considerable amounts of money into the set-ups of both Oran Mor and The Caves (lighting, sound systems etc), Miller Genuine Draft are hoping their flagship Scottish event, The Mill, will help separate the wheat from the chaff, in an industry that is becoming more competitive than ever and present the results to an audience that is being heinously misinformed by the mainstream media.

With a manifesto of “supporting bands that are pushing the boundaries, both in their music and their approach,” The organisers will be professionally mixing, recording and filming all live performances that are put on under the banner. The sets will then become available as free downloads from themill-live.com, with selected bars in Glasgow and Edinburgh distributing them through Bluetooth enabled downloads. With the financial, time and commitment constraints placed on bands recording that crucial demo and cutting their teeth in the studio, The Mill offers an alternative avenue to those participating, whilst also giving them the chance to share a stage with some of Blighty's more established acts.

Things kick off in earnest on August 20th with performances from Southampton’s Thomas Tantrum, Glasgow's own Juno! and a DJ set from The Futureheads' guitarist, Ross Millard. The Skinny caught up with James Barker of the Scottish outfit on his way to rehearsal at a converted barn in Fife recently to get a quick low-down on the band, and find out that they're unsurprisingly delighted to be involved.

It would seem Juno! are more of a collective than a band. Sure, they've got a dedicated core, but their hospitable disposition extends to an open invitation to their sprawling periphery. “We're a bit like the Brian Jonestown Massacre”, jokes Barker, “in that anyone that leaves the band is welcome to come and play with us again!” It's a stance, coupled with their guitars n samples stylee, that has garnered some inevitably superficial comparisons. “I think any band that uses live guitars and samples confuse people. They tend to throw us in with the Go! Team. We’ve even had the CSS thing too. But no,” he quickly announces, before The Skinny has the chance to fire off the accusation, “I don’t wear a catsuit.”

Juno! got involved with The Mill after being spotted playing at a gig with the Kopparberg Collective in a Glasgow arts warehouse. Despite attracting label interest from as far afield as Japan and having their first single released through Oxford imprint Shifty Disco, Barker is still delighted to be given the chance and is sure it opens the realms of possibility further still.

“I think it’s great. It’s given younger bands the chance to do something in front of a decent crowd but they’re also getting something out of it. The fact that they’re taping and recording it is obviously a big plus for emerging bands too. I think it will be an opportunity for publicity people can’t afford to get off their own backs. There’s a lot of competition right now and people are finding it hard, so this is a helping hand really and I guess then it’s what you make of it. I think bands need to stick by their guns, be it fashionable or non fashionable. “

One thing that will never go out of fashion is a good show. Dynamic and effervescent performances are integral to what Juno! are as a group, which is perhaps why they’re so enthusiastic about their upcoming shows. “The live element is a huge part of what we do. We tend to have three of us ready to collapse at the end of a show; there tends to be a lot of jumping about, gesticulating and shouting. So yeah, its core to what we do as a band.”

Whilst Barker acknowledges the difficulties faced by up-and-coming bands in getting their music heard, he freely admits that by some simple associations, they’ve had it easier than some. The band are friends with some of the members of Glaswegian legends Bis and the fact that they've been involved in some of Juno!'s material, has had an undeniably positive outcome. “Well, the fact that we had Amanda McKinnon on guest vocals on our debut single didn’t hurt! It gave us a bit of listener exposure we might not have picked up otherwise, as well as extra radio play. To be honest, things have been a lot less difficult from that point onwards. Steven (Clarke – Sci-Fi Steven) has always produced our work and we met her through him, so she's a friend.”

A useful friend to have, no doubt, but, given the unceremonious dumping of stage-mates, The Futureheads from their record label (679 Recordings) in November 2006, Juno! are certainly not home and dry. The music industry is a fickle business, as acknowledged by the band. “Situations like these can certainly help you, but there’s still gonna be a lot of hard work no matter what sorts of exposure we get.” So with the roster for future events at The Mill featuring established names as Frightened Rabbit and Errors, shouldn't it be a platform made available for those starved of such publicity levels?

“Well obviously I’ve seen Isosceles and Broken Records in NME recently, but at the same time, these are bands that are going to attract crowds, so I can see why they are being involved. Sure, it’s difficult to break through. The reason those bands are there is because they are good. They’re there on merit and will draw a crowd for smaller acts to play to. To play alongside them should be a huge boost to many.”