Biffy Clyro

Biffy Clyro

Biffy Clyro are an alternative rock group from Kilmarnock, United Kingdom, active since 1995. The line-up is Simon Neil, James Johnston and Ben Johnston. Neil sings and plays guitar, while James Johnston plays bass and sings, and Ben Johnston plays drums and sings. Simon Neil and the Johnston twins are all credited with vocals, and the band’s sound is rooted in alternative rock with elements of acoustic rock, emo, indie rock, pop rock and post-hardcore.

Formation and early years

The band begins in 1995, when Simon Neil forms the first version of the group under the name Screwfish with Ben Johnston and another drummer/bassist known as Barry. Barry is later replaced by James Johnston, Ben’s twin brother. The three spend the next two years rehearsing, writing and covering songs. Their first live show takes place in 1997, supporting Pink Kross at a youth centre. They then move to Glasgow, where Neil studies at the University of Glasgow and the Johnston twins study at Stow College, with the twins taking Electronics with Music and Audio Engineering.

After playing gigs around Glasgow, they attract manager Dee Bahl, who arranges an independent single on Aereogramme’s Babi Yaga label. The single, “Iname”, appears in 1999. It leads to a release on Stow College’s Electric Honey label: thekidswhopoptodaywillrocktomorrow..., which comes out in 2000 and receives airplay from BBC Radio Scotland DJ Vic Galloway. The band is then seen at the Unsigned Bands stage at T in the Park 2000 by a Beggars Banquet representative and is signed to the label soon after.

Albums and recordings

Biffy Clyro release a long run of albums beginning with Blackened Sky in 2002, followed by The Vertigo of Bliss in 2003, Infinity Land in 2004, Puzzle in 2007, Only Revolutions in 2010, Opposites in 2013, Ellipsis in 2016, Balance, Not Symmetry in 2019, A Celebration of Endings in 2020, The Myth of the Happily Ever After in 2021 and Futique in 2025. Balance, Not Symmetry is the soundtrack to the film of the same name and is not counted by the band as a studio album.

Blackened Sky is preceded by singles including “27”, “Justboy” and “57”, and includes “Joy.Discovery.Invention”, which is later issued as a double A-side with “Toys, Toys, Toys, Choke, Toys, Toys, Toys”. The Vertigo of Bliss follows in 2003 and is noted for a more experimental approach and the addition of string sections; its singles include “The Ideal Height” and “Questions and Answers”. Infinity Land arrives in 2004 after recording at Monnow Valley Studios in Monmouth, Wales, with “Glitter and Trauma”, “My Recovery Injection” and the digital download “There’s No Such Thing As A Jaggy Snake” preceding it. “Only One Word Comes To Mind” follows as a later single from the album.

For Puzzle, the band records at The Warehouse Studio in Vancouver and The Farm Studio in Gibsons, Canada. The album is released after the singles “Semi-Mental”, “Saturday Superhouse”, “Living is a Problem Because Everything Dies” and “Folding Stars”. “Saturday Superhouse” becomes their highest-charting UK single to that point, and Puzzle reaches number two on the UK Albums Chart. The album also includes “Folding Stars”, and the band tours heavily around this period, including support slots for Weezer, Muse, The Who and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.

Label history and releases

The band initially releases material through independent labels, including Babi Yaga and Electric Honey, before signing to Beggars Banquet. In 2006 they leave Beggars Banquet and sign to 14th Floor, an offshoot of Warner Bros. They also contribute a cover of Weezer’s “Buddy Holly” to Kerrang!’s High Voltage!: A Brief History of Rock, which is distributed with issue 1110 of the magazine. A live cover of Franz Ferdinand’s “Take Me Out” is performed for BBC Radio 1’s Zane Lowe from Maida Vale in 2005.

Other projects and related activity

Simon Neil’s side project Marmaduke Duke releases The Magnificent Duke in 2005, with the Johnston twins joining the UK tour on bass and drums. The band also becomes known for its quiet-loud dynamic, moving between restrained guitar passages and loud, distorted sections with heavy drums and complex time signatures. Fans often shout “’Mon the Biffy!” between songs or before the group appears on stage.