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Young Fathers have always been familiar faces in Edinburgh’s Cowgate nightlife scene, having first met at a hip-hop night at the Bongo Club while still in their teens. It was a few doors down, though, at Sneaky Pete’s, where they first felt properly at home as a band in their Scottish hometown. Fast forward to 2023 and the band’s new album, ‘Heavy Heavy’ – a joyfully eclectic record fusing rap, gospel, churring percussion and reverberating bass – has been nominated for a Mercury Prize, nine years after the trio took home the award back in 2014. Ahead of the awards ceremony on Thursday, Alloysious Massaquoi, Kayus Bankole and Graham ‘G’ Hastings speak to Time Out about how integral Sneaky Pete’s is to their hometown’s music scene.
‘Sneaky Pete’s is a dingy wee place on Edinburgh’s Cowgate. It’s dark, sweaty and very loud, and it never disappoints. As soon as you walk through the door you can see the stage straight away. It’s only about 100 capacity, so it’s very social – you’re so crammed in, you kind of have to be. The space doesn’t even have a dressing room: if you’re playing, you have to walk through the crowd, which is a really nice, humbling thing.
It’s a sad fact that Edinburgh doesn’t have as big a scene as other cities for up-and-coming bands or alternative artists
‘The first time we played at Sneaky’s, we got changed at Alloy’s flat – he lived across the road for about 14 years – and just walked over. At this point, we’d already played some shows in Glasgow, but hadn’t really done that much in Edinburgh, so we wanted to do something special. We served everyone Jollof rice and chicken, and had made 100 cassettes of our release, Tape One, to hand out. That gig was a real turning point for us. For years, we’d never felt like we had the backing of people in Edinburgh: Sneaky’s was the first place where we felt people were getting behind us.
‘If Sneaky’s didn’t exist, Edinburgh would really be lost on the circuit of touring bands. It’s a sad fact that the city doesn’t have as big a scene as other places for up-and-coming or alternative artists – a lot of the older [music] venues have been turned into Wetherspoons and offices, have closed down or have had to revamp and change clientele. But you can still go to Sneaky’s on any night of the week and discover something. The owner, Nick, is a vital campaigner for grassroots music in Scotland. It’s commendable: he’s held up a flag and fought for his club, but also fought for everybody. Graham was at Sneaky’s just last week, seeing Etran de L’Aïr. The bookings are always great. It’s a venue that’s no lost its prestige, and that’s a hard thing to keep.’
‘Heavy Heavy’ by Young Fathers is out now. They’re touring Brighton, London, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Manchester and Birmingham in October 2023. Buy tickets here.
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