Flight Facilities: "We never really planned to do an album"

They first burst out onto of Australia in 2010, when their debut single "Crave You", a melodic joy-filled catchy house track received significant global interest, but the duo's voyage to notoriety has been a steady journey. At the close of the 2013, they released "Standstill", the first taste of their forthcoming debut full length set to be released in November through the ‘family orientated’ record label Future Classic, an album that began from a collection of demos, that, as Gruzman puts it, were a bit of “an elephant in the room”.

In the music industry of today, Flight Facilities are a bit of an anomaly. They’re a name that has been on everybody’s lips for a while, and after artist’s break out with an extremely successful single, a record normally ensues within the next couple of years. So it was quite unusual in Flight Facilities case that it took them four years to release their debut. “We never really planned to do an album but we just realized that we had enough tracks and we were like oh shit we’re going do an album,” said Lyell. “Whereas most bands are like yeah, we were just like oh fuck.”

The problem though wasn’t about making the music; it was the effort involved that worried the pair. Lyell says: “We put a lot of stress over doing one single, so add 12 after and it’s just so much work.” Gruzman added to this, saying that: “Nobody wanted to say anything about an album. It was sort of mentioned and I was like shit, okay, let’s do this thing that we always said we wouldn’t. It was a pretty gruelling process, but know I wouldn’t change it. I think you learn more each time you do it.”

When the duo actually got down to business, the process took around 8 months, with vast amounts of the record been made up of samples and bits and pieces that were recorded and just left on a hard drive, but it wasn’t exactly luxury conditions. “We had like a real shit box situation going on, but it just made us work, and go at it. Then when we’d just get out into the sunlight and we’d be like oh, sweet,” said Lyell. “It was not a glamorous studio by any stretch of the imagination, it was just a room with a computer in it, but it was our room with a computer in it.”

The pair also worked on various collaborations for the album, with Reggie Watts, Bishop Nehru and Emma Louise all providing vocals for tracks on the record, which added an extra element to the creative process. “We did some in the studio, but some were just done solely through email,” said Gruzman. “The thing with Reggie was quite interesting because we recorded it all with him, but Hugo was on Skype in Sydney and I was in the studio in Brooklyn with Reggie. It was half and half but nice to work through it all together.”

With the album finally making its way out in the world, however, they're remaining tentative around their expectations of it. “We’ve never done this before so we don’t really know, it’s going to be pretty interesting,” said Lyell. “We’re stoked that we finished it, and the rollout’s happening, and we’re stoked that the shows are selling well already. We’ve probably got no hope of getting in the number one range anyway but we found out that that Taylor Swift is releasing our album the same week, so we were just like - oh wow.”

Their album also comes at a time where Australian electronic music is dominating, both nationally and globally, and the pair are extremely positive about the ever-developing scene. “It’s a strong community and it’s a pretty strong group of us, and it’s competitive but it’s nicely competitive, and it really does push you in essence.” Arguably Australia’s biggest worldwide export from that scene is producer Flume, who is also signed to Future Classics, and a man that they hold in high regard. “He’s done it so well as he’s still underground over here but he’s also this huge pop star, which is such a cool dynamic because it shows that you don’t have to be on the charts to be big,” said Lyell. “That’s really cool I think, that he’s not in the charts and he’s a household name, but not like a normal household name, he’s a household name to parents' kids.”

As with almost all DJs, it’s rare to see a week when the Flight Facilities aren’t playing shows across the globe. Once the album drops, they will head off on a run of tour dates that is ever expanding, but like with their reluctances to put any predictions on what may happen with the record, the pair are apprehensive about whether fans will take to the new material straight away.

“This first tour is just to give the people who are on board with our stuff already the chance to see us, before perhaps it becomes another spectacle itself maybe,” said Gruzman. “We’re kind of putting ourselves a bit more on the line when we’re doing these kind of shows but it’s no different to what a band would do every week.” For the live performances, the twosome take a refreshing position on doing what they love, DJing. In a time where many electronic acts are trying to get away from the negative connotations caused by ‘superstar DJs’, Jimmy and Hugo stick to doing what they know, and what they enjoy. “However much hardware software you’ve got there’s still a big backing track to every artist's shit at the moment,” said Lyell. “Even Disclosure who I love, play the backing track and hit some keys and hit the samples and stuff, but DJing to us is essentially the same thing. Whilst DJing now we’ve got a bit lighting rig in front of us and a lighting designer who comes on tour and does our lighting for us, but we wanted to take away the question of what we’re doing behind there,” Lyell continued. “We don’t close the stage behind us - we have everything there so everyone can see what we’re doing because we’re completely proud of it. For us it’s all about the spectacle, and the best way that we can put that on for the fans.”

As we approach the cross over into the New Year, Flights Facilities will be setting off on a voyage around the globe, but there are no solid plans for the next move. It’s quite clear to see why the pair has grown such a loyal fanbase in their native Australia; their witty charm puts you at ease, along with their naivety not to recognize their own success, and Gruzman sums it up perfectly. “Four years ago we wouldn’t have thought that it would be this and it just shapes in all different ways, where something can accidentally go totally commercial or it can remain a pleasantly underground type thing - so I’m kind of excited while at the same time worried to see what happens.”

The duo's debut album, Down To Earth, is out now. They play Brixton Electric on November 27.