BIG BIG TRAIN
We caught up with one of the most unlikely – but also one of the most deserving – Top 40-hitters of 2019.
An ‘overnight success’ more than 25 years in the making, the seven-piece Big Big Train are now not only critical darlings – something they’ve got used to over the past few years – but also a band capable of making a commercial splash too. For those who might have missed it, this year’s Grand Tour album showcased their sublime, pastoral prog rock at its whimsical best. Full of great songs, it was a showcase for traditional prog reimagined for the modern age. We had a few words with Nick D’Virgilio (drums, backing vocals, percussion, guitars, keyboards) and David Longdon (vocals, flute, keyboards, guitars).
Chart success, winning awards… 2019 has been a good one for you. What was the highlight for you? Nick D’Virgilio: Winning the Album Of The Year at the Prog Awards, that was pretty darn cool. You’re with a lot of folks from the same genre, that you’re fans of, and you know that fans vote for that particular award. That was pretty great. David Longdon: Our genre is all about the album, that’s our art form, so to get that and to be recognised in that way is a great honour, especially when you consider how much music is out there.
In a year full of surprises, is there one that stood out particularly for you? NDV: Having a record in the top forty was a good surprise. It proved that there was momentum and that each record we’re making is getting us a little bit of notoriety. That was a nice surprise.
DL: And that the music within the band is diversifying, in terms that Nick’s been writing on the last album, which is great, that’s another side. We’re finding out more about ourselves as a band, and we’ve been doing this for a long time.
Many would say that Grand Tour is the band’s best and most complete record yet.
DL: It’s the best we could do at the time. We try and do the best with what we’ve got at the time, and then it’s all hands on deck, as it will be on the next record.
2019 was also the year in which Big Big Train finally became a fully functioning live band that actually tours.
DL: We’ve always wanted to go out and do a proper tour. Getting that together, the logistics of it, it’s been a good year for that as well, learning how to do it. Just things like moving the sound-check along for so many people. It’s not like we’re a trio. The problem with BBT is that there are so many of us in the band, and with the crew that’s a lot of mouths to feed and people to move around, so if we make mistakes they can be extremely costly. So it’s been exciting planning all this. NDV: I think what really put us over the top was playing NightOf The Prog festival in Loreley in 2018. After something like that, you have to give it a go.
How do you top a year like 2019? What does 2020 hold for the band? NDV: They’re coming to the States, headlining Rosfest in Florida in May, and Ramblin’ Man in July and then mainland Europe around that. There’ll be US and Canadian dates too.