Biffy Clyro

They visited our island earlier this year for a stellar set at Soundwave, and Biffy Clyro vocalist Simon Neil recalls fondly how he and twins Ben and James Johnston had “the time of [their] lives”. Oh, and that slight head injury.

“When I play music I kind of lose my mind sometimes and I disconnect with my motor skills,” Neil says with an audible smile and a thick Scottish brogue. “I fell off one of the side pillars and smashed my head off one of the speakers. It looked as though it was going to be soft, but it very much wasn’t soft. I did split my head open a wee bit, so that was no fun.”

Their upcoming show at Enmore Theatre will make up for this tarnished (fuzzy) memory of the last trip. This tour was announced less than a month after finishing up with Soundwave and Neil explains that this time they wanted to do things a little differently.

“Every time we have played Australia, it seems like we have done it at two or three weeks notice. This time, because we’re desperate to come back and it’s been a while since we’ve played a run of shows, we tried to formulate a plan,” he explains. “But we also want to do it for any fans that we do have and play a proper show instead of playing for 30 minutes. When you have six albums that’s really fucking hard to do.”

An intimate gig may create a challenging set list for the Scottish rockers, but it’s the atmosphere that gets Neil every time. “Nothing beats when you’re in a smaller room and you get to see everyone,” he says. “It’s more like a moment in time with so much energy that could go either way. Kind of like an open communication with the people there. It makes it more exciting.

“We’re used to being the underdog and playing first on the main stage at festivals to not that many people who are just confused and perplexed. But we do relish that feeling,” he adds.

So can we have a guarantee that they will definitely be arriving in Australia this September, unlike their South By South West “Where is Biffy Clyro” hoax?

After initial laughter, we have the response and explanation we need.

“We thought it would be pretty funny to create this illusive show at SXSW but there was actually no show,” Simon Neil explains. “But I’m 99 per cent sure that we will definitely be in Australia for this tour. It’s definitely not a hoax.” (CD)

Sep 5, Enmore Theatre, 118-132 Enmore Rd, Newtown, $70+bf, ticketek.com.au