Tucked into the UnionÔÇÖs cluttered backstage area with an unassuming air, you would never guess that the synthpop trio were in the middle of their international tour following seemingly instant success with 2013 debut album The Bones of What You Believe. Lead singer Lauren Mayberry is quick to defend the hard work itÔÇÖs taken to get this far: ÔÇÿFor us, it doesnÔÇÖt feel that instant because weÔÇÖve been touring quite hard for eighteen months, but weÔÇÖre really pleasantly surprised by the response to the record and how supportive people have been thus far.ÔÇÖ

ÔÇÿPeopleÔÇÖ is an understatement; ChvrchesÔÇÖ success has exploded on an international scale. Having recently polished off a set to a hefty Coachella crowd, the bandÔÇÖs stateside profile is growing rapidly. Martin Doherty, on synths, voices his enthusiasm for the reception theyÔÇÖve been getting across the pond: ÔÇÿItÔÇÖll be fun to go back to America. I think thatÔÇÖs where we had the strongest connection and the most recognition immediately.ÔÇÖ Chvrches wonÔÇÖt be abandoning their British roots anytime soon, though. ÔÇÿThe UK is always gonna be important to us, to succeed here,ÔÇÖ added Martin. ÔÇÿItÔÇÖs important to make the most of what you have in your home country, you know?ÔÇÖ

It seems those home roots will be getting stronger in the future, in fact. Having recorded their debut record, released via Virgin Records, in Glasgow, Martin reveals that the group have no plans to move further afield for their next project. ÔÇÿOur plan is to go back to the same place that this all started, which is just a wee, dingy basement studio in the South side of Glasgow. We wouldnÔÇÖt really change anything, apart from maybe having more synthesizers to play with! WeÔÇÖre all really comfortable there and itÔÇÖs a familiar space; we know that it sounds good. ThereÔÇÖs no need to spend loads of money going to LA or the Bahamas or whatever to record an album.ÔÇÖ (Nevertheless, approving murmurs ensue at the mention of sunnier climes.)

One of the bandÔÇÖs major assets is how deeply involved they are in the record-making process from start to finish; that craftsmanship surely explains why the public has latched on to the innovation that Chvrches brings to the electro scene. Synth, bass and guitar player Iain Cook explains where each of their strengths lie: ÔÇÿI think itÔÇÖs a really interesting creative dynamic between the three of us; itÔÇÖs unlike anything that IÔÇÖve ever been involved with before. Things happen in the studio; we donÔÇÖt tend to bring ideas into the studio, we just kind of fire it off each other and roll with it. ThereÔÇÖs a momentum and a dynamic that happens with us that is really refreshing, and it comes together really quickly. We all have a lot of cross-over skills. Martin and I came from a music production background, so I guess we were a bit more knowledgeable in that area, and LaurenÔÇÖs really good with words and melody, so we get on pretty well as a creative team.ÔÇÖ

It quickly becomes clear that having such solid authorship over their music is essential to the workings of the trio, and that extends to how they treat feedback from fans and critics. While their appreciation for those responses is unquestionable, Martin asserts that it doesnÔÇÖt affect their approach to making a record. ÔÇÿThatÔÇÖs a very definite approach from us. WeÔÇÖre not in the business of making music based on the reactions of other people, you know; I think thatÔÇÖs a particularly cynical and negative way to approach a creative process. For me, as a listener, I can tell immediately when something comes on that has been made to order for a specific situation or for a specific audience, and to adhere to the fashion of the moment. ThatÔÇÖs not what weÔÇÖre about at all.ÔÇÖ Martin sees this approach becoming increasingly accessible with the means that so many of us have at our fingertips in the technological era: ÔÇÿBeyond anything else, I think that itÔÇÖs a good time for people making the music that they want to make, because there are so many avenues that you can use to exploit your band. You can reach people a lot more easily now than you could even five years ago. I mean, we just keep doing what weÔÇÖre doing. DonÔÇÖt take your eye off the ball. ItÔÇÖs about concentrating on praise too much, isnÔÇÖt it? DonÔÇÖt be doing that.ÔÇÖ

On top of their creativity, Chvrches arenÔÇÖt afraid to speak out about issues in the music industry. Hit by misogynistic and sexually aggressive Facebook messages, Lauren tackled the influx in an article published last year by The Guardian. She explains the situation since then: ÔÇÿI think it was helpful for us to nail our colours to the mast, as it were, so that people know where we stand on things. We didnÔÇÖt really do a properly controlled experiment, because we turned off the direct messages at the same time as we wrote the piece in the paper. I think it would be na├»ve to think that suddenly people are amazingly respectful, but by and large I would say that most of the people who follow our band are really great. They share interesting stuff with us and, for me, thatÔÇÖs the point of having an online community. ItÔÇÖs just a minority of people who ruin that for everybody. I guess at this juncture itÔÇÖs just part of the job, but you can only call people on their bullshit as and when it comes up. I donÔÇÖt really think that the better option is just to ignore it.ÔÇÖ

ItÔÇÖs pretty contemptible that, in 2014, gender discrimination is still considered inevitable for female artists. With sexual exploitation in the music industry coming under fresh scrutiny in recent months with the likes of Miley Cyrus and Rihanna making questionable choices, is raising awareness the way to bring about a change once and for all? ÔÇÿI think so,ÔÇÖ considers Lauren. ÔÇÿI think it was refreshing that a more mainstream audience was discussing it towards the end of last year and start of this year. ItÔÇÖs hard to tell whether thatÔÇÖs actually gonna promote positive change, or whether itÔÇÖs just a fad that everyone wants to discuss because itÔÇÖs in the popular consciousness. There are a lot of minorities who arenÔÇÖt represented effectively in music, and unfortunately not all get talked about. Hopefully people will come to have a more open and intelligent discussion about those issues.ÔÇÖ

Speaking of biased representations, despite the success of Chvrches, they have yet to receive a nomination for the UKÔÇÖs major music prizes. However, they have already been recognized by the Mercury PrizeÔÇÖs cheeky counterpart, the Popjustice Twenty Quid Prize, for best British pop single with ÔÇÿThe Mother We ShareÔÇÖ in 2013. Martin laughs, calling it their ÔÇÿcrowning achievement of last yearÔÇÖ despite never having seen the twenty quid (ÔÇÿwe had to hold up our own for the photo as we werenÔÇÖt there to collect it!ÔÇÖ). Joking aside, Lauren discussed her view of industry awards, giving preference to poll-voted accolades having come second in The Blog Sound of 2013 and fifth in the BBC Sound of 2013. ÔÇÿObviously weÔÇÖve never been nominated for a Mercury so donÔÇÖt know much about the voting structure, but I would say that the blog vote meant a lot to us because thatÔÇÖs the way this band started. People were writing about us on the internet and before we got to radio it was all blogs and social networks, people passing it around to their friends. Our band wouldnÔÇÖt have got to do the things weÔÇÖve been doing so quickly, had it not been for that base level of support.ÔÇÖ

With festival mania fast approaching, Chvrches have a busy season ahead, not least with the highly anticipated Glastonbury. Martin hesitantly fills us in: ÔÇÿNot all of them are public knowledge ÔÇô thatÔÇÖd be a really good way to get us kicked off the bill! WeÔÇÖll be at T in the Park in Scotland, and the most recent confirmation is Reading and Leeds, which weÔÇÖre really looking forward to. We played there last year but we were on a tiny stage; itÔÇÖs really nice of them to have us back. ItÔÇÖs a nice feeling to see your name on a poster in a print that you can actually read.ÔÇÖ Lauren laughs, ÔÇÿWeÔÇÖve gone up a font size post-album.ÔÇÖ

Once the fest hype is over, the band is keen to get underway with some new material. ÔÇÿHopefully weÔÇÖll get to write later in the year,ÔÇÖ Lauren explains. ÔÇÿI guess right now weÔÇÖre on the road an awful lot. WeÔÇÖre okay at finding time to record on the road, but writing is quite hard. You donÔÇÖt get a huge amount of head space to do that. But hopefully things will be a bit more structured later in the year, when we get a few more breaks. We definitely want to start writing again ÔÇÖcause thatÔÇÖs kind of where the band began; it was just writing without a view to playing live. ItÔÇÖd be interesting to get more of a balance between the two.ÔÇÖ