As indie pop four-piece Secret Rivals gear up to release their new double A-side single ‘Once More With Heart’ / ‘I Know Something’, we spoke to guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Jamie Corcoran about who's the gay icon of the band, their coming out anthem, playing live and how they love what they do.

Individually, what do each of you bring to Secret Rivals?
I write the music and words, Reece (drums) is the funniest person on the planet - he has us all in stitches on a regular basis - Andrew brings a sense of indie purist cool I think (hes deffo the 'cool' member) and Clouds brings the sex appeal.

So, which one of you gets the most same-sex attention then?!
Erm, possibly myself or Reece. If I'm being honest, Reece is a bit of a gay icon and I think I confuse people. Our track 'Tonight Matthew' has been called a coming out anthem by a few people, too. Clouds also gets a lot of attention, come to think of it!

"If I'm being honest, Reece is a bit of a gay icon and I think I confuse people. Our track 'Tonight Matthew' has been called a coming out anthem by a few people, too."

What do you think were some of the key things that brought you together and made you think, ‘We’re going to make a go of this’?
Because I love the people in my band, I don't think any of us see ourselves as pop/rock stars in the making. We just love what we do, love hanging out with each other and we genuinely believe in the music we produce. It's never a chore to meet up and play with my bandmates, it's fun and it's what we love to do, so we haven't made a decision to 'make a go of it', instead we just carry on because we love it/each other.

Tell us a little bit about your new double A-side single ‘Once More With Heart’ / ‘I Know Something’ – what can we expect?
'Once More With Heart' picks up where Make Do and Mend left off (our 2011 mini album). It's a typical Rivals song, I'd say - dancey, punky, yet feminine. We love playing it live and we get a great response from our fans, so it seemed the obvious follow up.

'I Know Something' is a very different beast. I think it is us at our most ambitious. We’ve been dying to get some more electrics into our sound so we had a lot of fun with this one, building the track upwards from a simple electro dance beat. Lyrically, the songs are the usual mix of angst and confusion - typical Secret Rivals fare.

"I don't think any of us see ourselves as pop/rock stars in the making. We just love what we do, love hanging out with each other and we genuinely believe in the music we produce."

What are you most proud of about the release?
Everything! I'm proud of how the band play, I'm proud of the strength of the songs and the fact we did it without the aid of a label funding it. I'm proud of everything we make together.

What were the tracks like to record?
We love recording, actually. It's a long boring process, but we really love our producer Sam Whinfred and get on really well, which turns what could be a horribly boring process into jokes.

What’s in store for the crowd at a live gig?
White boy dancing and yelping. Basically us on record, but with more shape pulling and shouting.

What would be your fantasy gig?
We would be opening for The Cure on just after Bloc Party!

Who were your childhood musical heroes?
Jarvis Cocker (he still is to an extent). Oh, and Prince.

So, do you ever hit the gay clubs on a night out?
Not any more as I live in Oxofrd and the gay scene is pretty non-existent. When I was back in Liverpool though, for sure. Society was our bar of choice. I love the bar Garlands as well - I've had some amazingly silly nights in there.

Finish the sentence: A good night out starts with...
A drink!

It ends with...
Him making tea before he leaves you in peace.

It’s our round – what are you having?
Dark rum and coke, please. Actually, I've missed my lunch doing this as well, so if you could stretch to some crisps, too!

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever been given?
They're just jealous.

Anything to add
www.facebook.com/secretrivalsband.

'Once More With Heart' / 'I Know Something' is released on 16 January 2012 on It's All Happening! Find out more at www.secretrivals.com.