How are you feeling?

Pretty exhausted, actually. I was at home on my own last night for the first time in ages, which was a bit odd.

I haven’t been on my own for so long, with playing shows and being away to record. It was nice in the end, really peaceful. We don’t get much peace and quiet when we’re on tour, and it was nice not having to feel like you have to show off, or make a joke or be funny with everyone.

Quiet night in with the TV was it?

I don’t really watch much television. It makes me feel depressed.

Apart from Made In Chelsea. That’s great and I recommend it to everyone. There’s one character called Mark, and I can’t believe he’s a real person. He’s so outlandishly posh, I didn’t think people like that existed.

I don’t see why anyone wouldn’t like Made In Chelsea. It’s not high quality, but it’s entertaining.

It’s like a great song by a terrible band. It’s like a McFly song – all the parts in the right place but you wouldn’t seek it out.

It’s a big tour coming up, starting with Bestival, isn’t it?

Yes, particularly the venues we’re playing. It’s a good way of seeing how things are moving.

When you’re involved with a band, you can’t see the hype or the fact that people are talking about you, but gigging is one way. We’ve seen loads of bands we thought were successful in the venues we’re now playing, so it’s a strange feeling to be playing them too.

It feels like we’ve cheated somehow, I can’t believe it’s happening. But if we’d cheated, all the people around us wouldn’t be telling us we were doing well. I hope not anyway.

How pleased were you with the album?

I’m so happy. It was confusing when we were making it because I couldn’t tell what it was going to be, but I know I like it.

It’s a collection of our best songs, our first songs, and I wouldn’t change that. It’s got to be a marker of where you were, like a first chapter.

Where did you record it?

In Brussels, in a place called ICP Studios. We didn’t see much of Brussels, but I did like what I saw. We stayed at the studio, which was like heaven for a musician. The guys there are amazing, there’s a bar, it’s full of vintage guitars and amps, and the chef is fantastic.

Amazing food just keeps arriving. It was perfect.

How did you guys meet?

Higgy worked in a supermarket, and then I got a job there. We worked together for a bit, then I was sacked – I’m not sensitive about it, it was a long time coming – then I moved to Birmingham and met the other guys.

Working there was a good life lesson; there were so many people in their 40s moaning about the fact they worked there and telling me to do something else. So I did.

  • Swim Deep, a four-piece from Birmingham consisting of Austin Williams, Tom ‘Higgy’ Higgins, Zachary Robinson and Cavan McCarthy, will wow the Bestival crowds tomorrow.