Ahead of A Plastic Rose's appearance at Bristol's Hit The Deck festival Andy Howells chats to Ian McHugh

Who are you and how did you come together?

We came together in Belfast in the naughties. After a brief time studying at Queen’s University, we decided music was our way out. Gerry and I met Troy (Bass) working in our local off licence, and Dave joined after we met on a Belfast music forum called fastfude.org. We had some jamming sessions in the very scary Blackstaff mill on Belfast’s famous Falls Road, and a bunch of drunken gigs for our mates before we decided to take things seriously.

Where are you from?

Gerry and I are from Sligo in the Republic of Ireland, a small town in the west of Ireland by the Atlantic Ocean; Troy and Dave are from Tyrone in middle of the North, but we’re a Belfast band living in Nottingham!

How would you describe your music style?

We play emotive pop, rock and post-hardcore with an Irish/Northern Irish tinge.

What’s been your best live experience?

In 2012, we played the O2 in London and the Odyssey in Belfast with Snow Patrol and Everything Everything on the ‘Fallen Empires’ tour. In terms of sheer numbers it was absolutely mind blowing. Our sound suits the bigger stage and we love feeding back off the crowd, so we really enjoyed the moment.

You have a new single and album coming soon can you tell us more about that?

We are working on our second album at the moment. We’ve just finished tracking with Chris Coulter at Stakeout Studios near London, and we’ll be mixing next month. The second single from the album, ‘Someone’s Daughter’ was released on March 10th. It’s been getting some great coverage, with regular plays on Radio 1 on a number of different shows. It’s available on itunes or amazon to download!

What can people expect from your forthcoming Bristol gig?

Expect to see a passionate live band who love playing. Expect to do a dance and have a clap. Expect the unexpected!

Will you be coming to Wales sometime in the future?

We’ve played a couple of shows in Wales, including in Cardiff and at Boardmasters festival in Cardigan bay. We’ve always had a brilliant time and we love the Welsh, so you can guarantee we’ll be back when we can!

Where can people hear your music?

The new single and debut album are on itunes and amazon, and we have videos for the last few singles on youtube, but make sure to come see us live!

Hit The Deck takes place at various venues across Bristol on april 19. Visit .hitthedeckfestival.com for details.