Over the last decade, all five members of Bikini Body have made Edinburgh their home at various points, arriving from East Sussex via Bristol (frontwoman Vicky Kavanagh), Peterborough (guitarist Josh Booker), Seattle (bassist Kyle Peterson) and York (uni pals Harry Volker and Dan O’Gorman on keys and drums respectively). Peterson took advantage of dual citizenship (his mum is from Glasgow), O’Gorman came to study for a PhD, Kavanagh moved on a whim, Volker specifically to join the band, and in the nick of time too. ‘I was a lapsed nu-metal kid about to sell my soul to IT,’ they say.

All had played in a cornucopia of emo, hardcore, synth punk, even folk bands, with the exception of Kavanagh. But it was her poetry which provided the spark for Bikini Body when Peterson suggested it should be performed to music. Thus their strident sprechgesang punk sound was spawned, though Kavanagh is now as likely to point to the influence of LCD Soundsystem as The Slits as the band head into ever more danceable territory.

‘All of us come from quite different places,’ she says, ‘but we all love a grooving tune of any genre and we all like to get a bit heavy with it, whether it’s me screaming or Harry doing some synth devilry, so we’re starting to explore a bit more now, getting further into that confluence of dance and punk.’

As such, Optimo, named after a track by punk-funk pioneers Liquid Liquid, are the perfect label partners. Last year, Bikini Body became the first act released on their offshoot label for bands, Optimo Music Rocks! Their Weird Party EP has recently been remixed as Weirder Party and earlier this year they independently released a split single with Glasgow’s Conscious Pilot to mark their joint tour around the UK.

‘I thought I’d be absolutely zonked after a tour like that,’ says Volker, ‘but I was invigorated, I wanted to keep going, a common feeling among the band. I’d do it forever.’

‘There’s all these amazing promoters up and down the country who are totally DIY,’ enthuses Kavanagh. ‘Everywhere we went we found really great audiences even if it was a few people. You just need people to exercise that muscle and say “I’m just going to see what’s on at my local venue tonight”.’

Refreshingly, all have found their adopted city to be an open and welcoming place to make music, right from their earliest days playing Henry’s Cellar Bar.

‘It’s not without its challenges for sure,’ reckons Kavanagh. ‘Like a lot of cities, Edinburgh is losing cultural venues but there’s definitely a lot more going on here than people think. It’s a friendly and collaborative scene and there’s loads of insanely talented people here, many of whom you have to coax out of making music in their bedroom. There’s so many people making amazing stuff here but maybe they don’t put themselves out there as much as other places.’

‘There’s a lot more bands in the city than when we started so that’s good to see,’ agrees Peterson. ‘I feel the world doesn’t really know it yet but I think there’s a bit of a groundswell going on,’ says Kavanagh. ‘I think we’re getting to a point where people are starting to take notice of Edinburgh a bit more. There’s new venues popping up, so let’s pray for them.’

Hidden Door is one of the city’s prevailing success stories, and Bikini Body have already enjoyed a slice of the action, playing the al fresco edition at Granton Gas Works in 2021, as the city was coming out of lockdown. ‘It was the first stage we played on that was high off the ground,’ notes Peterson, a man who, to his eternal credit, clearly spends a good deal of time in small, sweaty venues. As they gear up for the party at The Paper Factory, it’s time to celebrate Bikini Body’s elevation to new (stage) heights.

Bikini Body play Hidden Door, The Paper Factory, Edinburgh, Wednesday 11 June.