Ahead of a stretch of 15th anniversary live shows, with a sold-out hometown finale at Cardiff University, Iain Mahanty of Kids In Glass Houses speaks to Sara Murphy and dishes the Dirt on the album that catapulted them to success.
For Kids In Glass Houses, December doesn’t just bring festive cheer, it also brings a week of celebrations for their pivotal second album Dirt. Back in 2010, the Cardiff emo-rockers released a record that took them to new heights – and 15 years on, having regrouped earlier this decade, they are embarking on a run of live shows to play the album in its entirety.
According to KIGH guitarist Iain Mahanty, preparations are going swimmingly. “We get into the real meat and potatoes of it with rehearsals next week,” he tells me. “We’ve been discussing what sort of showcase we’d like to put on for people. It’s going to be interesting…”
The quintet split in 2014 after a decade together, announced their return in 2022, made that return in 2023 and are nor firmly back on the tour and festival circuit. Even so, it’ll have been a while since some of Dirt’s 13 songs have had a live airing – might they require some figurative dusting off?
Mahanty admits some songs have fallen by the wayside but playing them again is like muscle memory. “You sort of relearn stuff in your own time. We all live in different cities these days, but when we get together in the room it’s like we played the songs yesterday.”
As to what fans can expect on KIGH’s five-city tour this month, the guitarist says: “It’s going to be a new take on the old stuff. That’s what’s been nice since we got back together – playing these songs in a more mature way.” Maturity comes in more ways than one, with Mahanty also noting that there’s less jumping into the crowd these days.
Whilst the tour’s closing date, a sold-out homecoming show in Cardiff on Fri 19 Dec, is set to be an epic affair, Mahanty is just hoping for a good time for the band and fans alike. “[Dirt] was a game changer for us,” he says, “and it’s an album that means so much to us all collectively and individually, which resonates with the fans. We don’t have any expectation of people coming to the shows other than to enjoy it the way they want to enjoy it – a coming together to remember the good old days.”
The band as a whole are also looking forward to touring at this time of year – as Mahanty explains, it’s a little nod to Kids In Glass Houses’ earlier years, when they’d book an annual Christmas show in Clwb Ifor Bach. Can fans expect any surprises or perhaps a certain festive number? “Oh, you’ll have to come to the shows to find out!” he says, with reassurance that the group plan on “having a laugh, seeing people and just being merry.”
At the mention of those earlier days, Iain reminisces and confesses: “The music videos… I forgot what they were until the other day!” One thing he certainly doesn’t forget, though, are the memories, eventful as they were, of Dirt’s creation. “We missed the flight going to Texas [to record the album] because we were out partying the night before. And then Al [vocalist Aled Phillips] was shooting a really powerful handgun and the recoil made the gun hit him in the face, so he had to take himself to A&E in America.
“Making that record feels like a real core memory for me. There was a really nice moment that I always think about where our producer drove us to this water tower to watch the sunset in Texas and we were sharing a bottle of tequila; it’s really romantic in my mind. We just knew we’d made something we were so happy with.”
These shows offer a nostalgia hit for the band and fans alike. Have they acquired a new fanbase since their return? “Playing those shows on the last tour, Al was asking the crowd if they’d seen us before – there was a lot of people saying it was the first time, mixed in with the oldheads, the real OGs. It’s interesting actually, because we didn’t know what to expect – we just knew that we wanted to make a new record when we got back together.”
KIGHreleased Pink Flamingo in 2024, their first album since 2013, to a reception which Mahanty appreciated. “It really felt like our new material was given the same space as the old material. You can’t express how meaningful that is to a band. We’ve always been lucky that our fans put up with us exploring different creative avenues, and we trust each other.”
After a long time away, and by way of reflecting on 15 years since Dirt’s release, the guitarist ponders the music industry in general, and how things differ in 2025. “I feel like there’s a lot of noise about music having a difficult time,” he says, “but I actually feel like it’s a really fertile moment for music. It’s like everything is sort of becoming a cloud of people expressing themselves. It’s been nice to be a part of that.”
Back in the throes of album releases and touring cycles, then, but is this lifestyle harder or easier than Mahanty remembers from the first time around? “Different!” is his summary. “Before, we were fortunate enough to be able to focus on being in a band full-time, but we are learning where the band sits in our lives as of now. We still get a lot out of it, we still love doing it, we’re just not putting that pressure on ourselves like the first time round. It’s just a different kind of love, I guess.”
And so with 2025 soon to be finished off in style, what’s on the horizon for Kids In Glass Houses in 2026? “I don’t have any juicy goss to share!” chuckles Mahanty, “But I’m sure there will be some scheming while we’re away together.”
Kids In Glass Houses, Great Hall, Cardiff University Students Union, Fri 19 Dec.
Tickets: £25 (sold out). Info: here
words SARA MURPHY
