The Zutons will be ‘well oiled’ for Lancaster’s Highest Point festival in May

The lead singer of Liverpool band The Zutons - who are set to headline Highest Point in Lancaster next month - says their sound will be “well oiled” by the time they perform at the festival.

Dave McCabe said the band’s set in Williamson Park on Saturday May 18, alongside Feeder and Stealing Sheep, would be “a lot of fun”.

The Zutons released their debut album Who Killed...The Zutons? in 2004, and put out two further LPs before quietly splitting in 2009.

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They reunited in 2016 for a one off show, and then in November 2018, announced a tour in Spring 2019.

Speaking to the Lancaster Guardian whilst setting up for a show at Rock City in Nottingham last week, he said: “We’re doing a tour of the first record and the set is quite long.

“There will be a lot of harmonies, I don’t think many bands are doing that.

“The dynamic of the band has changed in that now we’re not being horrible to eachother anymore.

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“None of us have gone off to be Robbie Williams or Beyonce so we’re all just a bit more chilled out now, and I suppose that’s because we’re older. I’m not saying this makes the shows more ‘nice’, we’re just playing better, there’s more going on, we’re tighter as a band. It feels good and it’s getting better. We should be well oiled by May.”

The band will be playing an hour-and-a-half set at Highest Point, and Dave said people could expect a good run of songs. The Zutons’ song Valerie - covered by Amy Winehouse and Mark Ronson, is likely to be part of the set.

“I don’t even feel like it’s my song anymore!” said Dave.

“It’s amazing what’s happened to it. I need another one of those!”

He also described working in factories in his early 20s and how this affected his music.

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“In the factories you’d get different rhythms from different machines and it would make me think of them as musical rhythms, and I guess that’s influenced my music, maybe even Zutons songs,” he said.

“I’m just so grateful that I got off my arse, though. That’s where I’m from, I haven’t changed that much really.”

The second annual Highest Point festival takes place on May 17-18 at Williamson Park.

BBC Introducing will be hosting a stage (line up here), and other acts on the bill include Sister Sledge, Grandmaster Flash, Alabama 3, Anna Calvi, James Zabiela and Greg Wilson, plus loads more.

Tickets from www.highestpoint.co.uk.

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