Cats In Space – the rock band, not actual cats in space...

What were your goals for Cats In Space?

It wasn’t meant to be a band. At first it was just myself and Mick Wilson writing some songs, but almost overnight it found its own set of legs. It’s been very organic. Nothing was contrived or premeditated.

None of the Cats are spring chickens.

[Laughs] We know we’re not young, but we don’t care. We’re doing this for the over-fifties rock fan. Nobody but us is making new music in the style of the bombastic Queen/ELO stuff that we all love.

Cats are on a mission to revive the 1970s?

One hundred per cent. We love everything that’s good about the seventies, though we do touch upon the very early eighties via some of those rock-based AOR bands. To me, music went wrong in 1982.

What’s wrong with it today?

There’s no real quality control any more. Now, ninety per cent of people don’t even listen to an entire song – just a thirty-second snippet, then on to the next one. Everything’s too disposable.

It still really is all about a strong voice and a good, hummable tune?

Yeah. Look back to the really classic stuff – Karen Carpenter and Freddie Mercury’s incredible voices, or Phil Lynott telling gypsy vagabond stories.

The name is a bit of a Marmite thing?

We knew it would alienate some people but that was almost the point. So many bands have similar names, we had to stand out. So we are Cats In Space – love it or hate it.

There’s an eight-date UK tour with fellow rising British rockers Space Elevator. Why are the two bands compatible?

It’s scary; they’re doing a seventies thing too. They’re Space Elevator and we’re Cats In Space. You really couldn’t script it.

The last date of the tour is October 2

Cats In Space: Too Many Gods

Live: Cats In Space

Dave Ling was a co-founder of Classic Rock magazine. His words have appeared in a variety of music publications, including RAW, Kerrang!, Metal Hammer, Prog, Rock Candy, Fireworks and Sounds. Dave’s life was shaped in 1974 through the purchase of a copy of Sweet’s album ‘Sweet Fanny Adams’, along with early gig experiences from Status Quo, Rush, Iron Maiden, AC/DC, Yes and Queen. As a lifelong season ticket holder of Crystal Palace FC, he is completely incapable of uttering the word ‘Br***ton’.