Bastille spent a hot minute playing delightfully grubby little venues up and down the country before surprise global megahit ‘Pompeii’ swiftly put an end to that. Over the next couple of years, the crowds got bigger as the band took their debut album ‘Bad Blood’ around the world. “We were all clinging onto the rocket ship, not knowing what was going to happen next,” says Woody, the foursome scared the success could end as quickly as it began.

When second album ‘Wild World’ was released two years later, Bastille found themselves headlining arenas. “It was a real sink or swim moment,” he admits. “I knew that first show was either going to be a life-changing moment, or it was going to be dog shit.” Nine years on, the band still call arenas home. “We’ve just felt like we belonged in rooms of that size ever since.”

But, for one night only, Bastille are throwing things back with a headline gig at the iconic, if slightly cramped, 100 Club to celebrate 100 issues of this very magazine. “It doesn’t seem that long ago that playing somewhere like the 100 Club felt like an unattainable goal,” says Dan.

“There was a sick joy in those early days,” adds Woody, with the band spending most weekends piling into their friend’s mum’s people carrier before driving for hours to play a gig. If they were lucky, people would actually show up. “There certainly wasn’t much glitz and glamour before we released ‘Bad Blood’. We definitely earned our stripes along the way.” Even when they signed to Virgin Records, the four-piece found themselves living in an abandoned school in Birmingham, sleeping on grubby mattresses on the floor. “We figured out how to cook sausages in a kettle,” says Woody with a surprising amount of pride. “It’s really gratifying to see where it’s ended up.”

“We went from rehearsing in my flat to playing all over the world quite quickly. And then we didn’t really stop. We were worried that if we did, everything might fall apart,” says Dan. He’s not exaggerating, either. Since ‘Pompeii’ in 2012, Bastille have released four studio albums alongside various mixtapes, orchestral remixes and the collaborative ‘&’ record. They’ve also taken their ever-evolving cinematic live show around the world numerous times.

But, right now, Dan, Will, Woody and Kyle haven’t shared a stage since the end of 2023. “It’s been weird; normally, I see them more than I see my own kids,” says Woody. Coming back with a gig at the 100 Club just felt like an exciting way to return, explains Dan. “We’ve all been doing different things and had some distance from the big Bastille machine.” He recently proved all his mates right by spending the last few days of a holiday working on a very sad soundtrack to a short film (“I guess I can’t switch off”) while Woody’s Away Days football podcast recently took him and co-host Piers Hewitt to Wembley. “The imposter syndrome kicked in pretty hard,” he admits.

Now, they’re all raring to go again. The show is also the perfect way to warm up for Bastille’s upcoming From All Sides: Songs From The First 15 Years tour, which kicks off in November. “We’re challenging ourselves to do it differently,” says Dan. This time out, Bastille want to make the music the star of the show rather than the soundtrack to a theatrical, immersive concert experience that’s big on tech. “It’s less about world-building and more about us having the best time together onstage. This gig at the 100 Club is the first step on the way to that,” says Dan.

“There’s a lot of fear about AI at the moment. And sure, technology can probably write a good song, but people connect to the person singing it and the meaning behind it. Humans are pack animals. They want connection and a shared experience,” says Woody. Being together in a sweaty room or singing along with 20,000, “it’s a feeling you can’t get at home with a laptop. If it sounds exactly like the record, what’s the point? People want to see a band bring a record to life,” he adds. “And sometimes life isn’t perfect, so we might fuck up.

To prepare for the tour, Bastille have gone back and listened to all their old albums. “It’s been really nice to do that and not cringe at it all,” says Dan. He and the rest of the band are currently having “healthy debates” about what will make the setlist. They’ve rediscovered songs they forgot existed and come to the bittersweet realisation that the themes of corruption, division and the erosion of truth that originally fueled ‘Wild World’ are “depressingly relevant” once more. “It’s forced us to acknowledge the massive contrast in the music we’ve made,” says Dan. “We want the tour to be a celebration of that.”

It is a journey worth celebrating. Debut album ‘Bad Blood’ took the buzzy energy of blog mixtapes and combined it with the band’s love of cinema to create something arty that made perfect sense on daytime radio, while their ‘Other People’s Heartaches’ mixtape saw them collab with Lizzo, Skunk Anansie and Haim.

“I am really pleased that we stuck to our guns,” continues Dan. “We were always a really odd band. We started on a laptop in a bedroom and never really wanted to be one thing.” Their early tracks were influenced by Frank Ocean, Odd Future and The Weeknd, but also by being a four-piece band who spent their weekend driving around the country, playing pubs and clubs before crashing on someone’s floor. “Combining that felt natural to us, but I think it confused some people.”

Others really connected to the messy polish. “That album is about growing up and trying to figure out what the fuck to do with your life, while asking what life is. There are lots of those big, complicated, sprawling, unanswerable things. The fact the record was so uncalculated is perhaps why it resonated with people,” says Dan. It entered Number 1 in the UK Album Charts and saw the band go from supporting Two Door Cinema Club at Brixton Academy to headlining two nights of their own at the venue within six months.

“That success, which was so beyond anything anyone imagined, lit a fire within us to constantly prove ourselves – to ourselves and anyone that gave a fuck about our band.” It meant Bastille ignored all the voices encouraging them to work with established producers on their second album and just did their own thing. It’s a trick they’ve repeated on every release since. ‘Wild World’ was a collection of uncertain, politically charged guitar anthems; the band took listeners to an apocalyptic rave on ‘Doom Days’, while ‘Give Me The Future’ is a sprawling mash-up of genres, threaded together by the desire for togetherness in an increasingly isolated world.

Through it all, the band have offered hope. “It helps that our biggest song is this upbeat party tune,” says Woody. “I know some artists resent having to play hit songs after so many years but you’ve got to be dead inside not to enjoy the reaction ‘Pompeii’ gets.”

“It’s been fascinating to have moments that seem to have chimed with the mainstream and then a lot of moments that haven’t,” says Dan. “I can’t really comprehend sometimes what our music means to people. When I’m confronted by it, it’s surreal and a bit overwhelming, so I don’t think about it much. But it’s impossible to avoid when you’re playing gigs or listening back to 15 years of music. “We’ve just tried to just stick to being interested and curious,” says Dan. The past 15 years have been “complex, enlightening and a lot of fun,” he explains. “I guess I’m a little less self-conscious and more comfortable now. Maybe I’m a better songwriter as well? I’m definitely glad that we’re as weird as we are.”

When Bastille were preparing for the ten-year anniversary tour of ‘Bad Blood’, Woody thought it would be nice for the pre-show playlist to feature bands Bastille toured with, supported, or shared festival stages with on the original album cycle. “It was meant to be this celebratory collection of music, but it ended up as a kill list of bands that are no longer together,” says Woody. “I’m really proud of the fact we’re still going. Longevity isn’t an easy thing to come by. We’re also still mates, which isn’t a given with any band. There’s always been such a sense of camaraderie between us, though.”

“We came up alongside The 1975, Imagine Dragons and that early 2010’s indie scene, but we were never part of a scene. We were always these outliers. We got dragged for it at the time, but it has meant we haven’t had to stick to one thing,” reflects Woody of the band’s ongoing success. “We’ve also never been afraid of being a pop band.” Throughout the band’s back catalogue, Bastille have wrapped challenging production and confronting lyrics around a hooky melody.

“We’re a good live act, we absolutely smoke it out of the park at festivals and I think our music will stand up down the line. Do you know how you know when you’ve made it? It’s not Number 1 albums or sold-out world tours. It’s when you find your songs in a karaoke book,” he grins. “If someone’s gone to the effort of making a shit MIDI version of your song, you’ve probably done alright.”

“To have something like ‘Pompeii’ performed at weddings is an enormous privilege,” Woody continues, even if his mates in wedding bands give him the occasional bit of stick for it. “That’s got some real weight to it. That’s when you know your music has crossed over into the broader cultural spectrum rather than just being a niche flash in the pan.”

The secret weapon to a 15-year career that still feels exciting? Dan’s voice. “The second he opens his gob, you know it’s us,” Woody explains. “That’s given us free rein to toy around with rock, hip-hop, electronica and orchestral music. We can stray further from the path that other bands can because his voice acts as an anchor.”

Speaking of Dan’s voice, there’s a lot of speculation that he’s behind buzzy rock band Sleep Token, who recently topped the UK album charts by disguising pop as heavy metal. “I’m well aware of the rumours,” says Dan before reminding us that he’s been “trying to do as much with the break from Bastille as possible.”

“But… no comment,” he adds.

“I know the party line. No comment,” echoes Woody. “If he is in Sleep Token, he’s got a much angrier side than I realised. Normally, if I play anything heavy backstage on the speakers, I get a filthy look.”

Getting ready for their Songs From The First 15 Years tour and their gig at the 100 Club has forced Bastille to look back. It’s been a rare moment of reflection from a band who’ve never been fussed with nostalgia. “We’ve always just been more excited by what comes next,” says Dan. So what is next?

“There have been discussions about the next album,” confirms Woody. “We’ve not set any dates for the studio, but we’ve spoken about the sort of vibe we want.” However, every one of Bastille’s albums has ended up miles away from where it started, so he doesn’t want to give anything else away just yet. “I’ve definitely got ambitions for the future,” he continues, with a show at Plymouth Argyles’ Home Stadium top of his bucket list.

“We’ve built this thing up and people still care about it, which we’re so grateful for. Now, we just have to nurture it. Anything we make has to be genuine, though. If you start phoning it in or just doing it as an excuse to head out on tour, you should probably stop.” There’s no danger of that from Bastille. “Because we haven’t done it for so long, there’s a real hunger there.”

“In the beginning, we didn’t have any grand ambition. Woody knew he wanted to make music forever and has always wanted us to be as big as possible. I’ve always just been a nerd that likes making songs,” explains Dan. “There was no master plan with that first album. We just made a thing that felt good to us. The idea of doing something like that is still really fun and interesting…”

“Where we go next is a good question,” Dan continues. “I’m excited for all the things we’re going to do, but honestly, fuck knows. I’ve got no idea where this is going.” ■

Taken from the July 2025 issue of Dork. Bastille play The 100 Club, London on 17th July for Dork’s 100th issue celebrations.