We’re Bairn entertainers

Outlaw country boys Danko are putting Falkirk on the map and have Glasvegas in their corner

DESCRIBING themselves as “outlaw country boys” Danko are getting a name for themselves, with top acts such as Glasvegas the latest to rave about them.

Frontman Lewis White, guitarist Michael “The Rattlesnake” Garner and drummer Matthew “Big Dawg” McAlister all hail from Falkirk while bassist Jamie “Plum” Burns is a Bonnybridge boy.

Lewis shoots from the hip:

As Falkirk Bairns do you feel part of any scene?

It’s a strange one for us. We’ve made Glasgow more of a home for shows but aren’t heavily involved in either.

There is a nice little scene in Falkirk right now.

Is it harder for a band outside Glasgow and Edinburgh?

As “outlaw country boys” it can be tough to break into the cliquey big city scenes.

How was lockdown for an up and coming band?

It stopped us practising and gigging but we did get to write.

And we penned our first deal with Distiller Records.

When did you all start playing music?

Matthew started playing the drums when he was 14, And Michael has been playing guitar since nine which is why he’s better than the rest of us! Lewis started playing guitar when 16 and has sung since birth, and Jamie has been playing the bass since 16.

When did you meet up?

We’ve been playing music together for a while and started as Danko since 2021.

Why Danko?

We are huge fans of The Band and it’s a tip to the bass player.

Previous single Gecko sounded very Kings of Leon. Are they your main influence?

We all have separate influences which mould our sound. The Kings of Leon drummer influenced ours when he was growing up. We also have many group influences mainly through me, such as The War on Drugs, The Replacements, Twin Peaks, Wilco, The Band and many others.

Did your sound evolve?

When we started the band our goal was to just write some country songs and have fun with that.

But we quickly got a buzz for loud guitar music and the songs became more upbeat.

With bands like The Snuts, Shambles and Lewis Capaldi, this a golden age. Why?

There’s always been good music in Scotland if you know where to look.

West Lothian seems to be the centre. But will Falkirk,with a Bay City Roller and Arab Strap, be taking over again?

You missed the Cocteau Twins, they’re from Falkirk as well!

Check out Brogeal and Pleasure Heads too.

You played King Tut’s this year. How was that? Barrowland next?

There is always a buzz there.

Playing the Barrowland would be a dream and hopefully the next step for us.

What’s your next release?

The Farewell EP on September 16. We’re very excited to get all these songs out there at last.

It will include singles Gecko and I Need plus Weed Farmer and Farewell. Both are big songs for us all. We’re hoping to release an album at some point next year.

There’s talk of a Danko beer for Christmas. What’s that all about?

We played an intimate release show for Gecko in July at