We're happy to answer any questions at any point before the booking, just drop us an email and we'll get back to you within 48 hours. Around 2 months before the booking date, we'll reach out if we've not received a first dance request yet just to check-in and to get your choice of first dance so the band have time to prepare it thoroughly.

We usually have a courtesy call with the couple in the days leading up to the wedding, so we wouldn't make contact with the couple on the day itself - you probably have far too much going on that day! We always make sure we're contactable on the day and will arrive in plenty of time to confirm timings with the venue staff and/or wedding planner.

If you’ve never booked a live band before, don’t worry; we’ll guide you through everything. You don’t need to know what questions to ask or how it all works; we’re very used to working with couples who are booking a band for the first time. Our aim is to make the whole experience feel easy and stress-free, from the initial booking right through to the wedding day. We’ll talk through timings, set-up, song choices and any special requests beforehand, so you know exactly what to expect.

Then, on the night, your only job is to enjoy yourselves! We’ll take care of the performance and bring the energy, while reading the room and making sure the band's set works for your guests. We want you to feel excited about having a live band, rather than worrying about it.

Each member of the band listens to the song individually and learns their part. We then get together at a rehearsal where we put it together as a band and try to recreate the original version as much as possible. For us, a tricky first dance would be something outside what our lineup of instruments can recreate, so a classical piece for example or heavily electronic music. We'll always do our best to put our own spin on whatever you choose though.

If there’s a song you’d love to hear that isn’t already in our repertoire, our first response is usually: let’s see if we can learn it! We’re very happy to take on special requests, particularly if there’s a song that has a personal meaning to you or you’d really love to hear it played live.

We’ll look at the song and work out whether it’s something we can realistically arrange and perform well as a band. We’re not precious about sticking to our existing setlist, so we’ll generally only say no if the song is genuinely outside what we can recreate with our live setup — for example, something heavily electronic, classical or operatic, or a style such as extreme death metal!

Even if a song isn’t something we can perform live, that doesn’t necessarily mean you can’t have it at your wedding. We’re always happy to play the original recording through our PA, so if there’s a particular song you absolutely love, we’ll do our best to find a way to include it.

We’ll always be honest with you about what we can do, because we’d rather give you a realistic answer than promise something we can’t deliver properly.

There’s much more you can personalise than just the first dance. We’re happy to work with you on the overall flow of the evening, from the music you’d like playing as your guests arrive, to particular songs you’d love to hear during the sets. And if you’ve got a guest who’s an aspiring musician, a karaoke legend, or just desperate for their moment in the spotlight, we’re often happy to get them up and involved too! Whether that’s singing a song with us or joining in on an instrument, we can chat beforehand and see what works.

We can also work around speeches, food, cake cutting, evening entertainment and other timings, so the band feels like part of the celebration rather than something that simply turns up and plays a set. Ultimately, there’s no need for your wedding to feel like a standard ‘band set’. Our aim is to make the evening feel personal while still keeping the dance floor moving.

We’ll always make sure you know what’s happening before we start, so there are no awkward surprises! If you’re having a first dance, we’ll usually introduce the couple into the room and invite you onto the dance floor, then give you some space to enjoy that moment together. We don’t have a strict rule for how long the couple should dance alone. Some couples love having the whole song to themselves, while others are happy for their guests to join them after the first verse or chorus. We’ll take our cue from you and from the atmosphere in the room. If you’ve told us beforehand that you’d like your guests to join you at a particular point, we’ll follow that plan. Otherwise, we’ll use our experience to judge the moment and make a natural call on when to invite everyone else onto the dance floor. The aim is for it to feel relaxed and spontaneous, rather than like we’re following a script.

Is there a noise limiter in your venue, will your guests be in the room while we setup or will they be moved to another space while the room is turned around for the evening reception, is there a space for us to change in the venue, are there any parking restrictions, is there easy access to the performance area from the load-in doors

When we arrive, we'll introduce ourselves to the venue staff and ask to speak to either the venue's wedding coordinator, or the wedding planner if applicable. Between us, we'll work out a plan of action in terms of how far along with your meal you are, whether there are any delays, when we'll be able to set up etc, so the evening goes as smoothly as possible.

We have a 'little black book' of multiple experienced and trusted musicians for each position in the band that we will call upon in the event of illness. In extreme circumstances, we would call upon Coast's even larger database of musicians to ensure the gig goes ahead with no hiccups.

When we arrive at the venue, we’ll check in with the venue team and make sure everyone is happy for us to start our load-in. We’ll bring all of our instruments, PA and lighting equipment into the performance space. It’s very common for us to work alongside the venue team while they’re turning the room around; moving tables and chairs, laying the dance floor and getting everything ready for the evening, so we’re very used to working around other suppliers without getting in the way.

Once everything is in the room, we’ll work out the best layout for the band based on the space available, then unpack and set everything up. We’ll run our cables neatly and safely, connect everything to our PA system and get the lighting in place. Once we’re fully set up, our sound engineer will soundcheck the system and we’ll run through a song to make sure everything is sounding great. The whole process is designed to be as unobtrusive as possible, and the venue team will know what we need from them beforehand.

Once soundcheck is finished, we’ll tidy everything away, head off to get changed and get ourselves ready for the evening. Then, when it’s time to start, we’re ready to go and your only job is to enjoy the party!

For an 8pm performance, we would normally aim to arrive between 6:30pm and 6:45pm. This gives us plenty of time to get everything unloaded, set up, soundcheck and get changed, so we’re completely ready to start on time without any last-minute rushing. The exact arrival time can vary depending on the venue and the plans for the day. Things like when the venue can give us access, how far we’re travelling, where we can load in, the size and complexity of the setup, and whether the room is being turned around can all affect the timings. We’ll always take those factors into account when planning the day and communicate with the venue in advance if we need anything from them. Our aim is to have everything set up and ready well before the performance, so that by the time your evening gets going, the band is one less thing for you to think about.

We’re very used to working with venues that have noise limiters or specific sound restrictions, so it’s not something you need to worry about. We have a dedicated sound engineer who travels with us to every booking, and they’ll keep a close eye on the sound levels throughout the performance to make sure we stay within the venue’s requirements. We also use in-ear monitoring, which means the band can hear everything we need without having to turn up loud stage monitors. This helps us keep our overall sound output under control while still allowing us to perform at our best.

For venues with particularly restrictive sound limiters, we can also bring an electronic drum kit rather than our acoustic kit. This gives our sound engineer much more control over the overall volume while still giving you the energy and impact of a live band. Our approach is always to work with the venue rather than against it. We’ll find out about any restrictions in advance and plan accordingly, so there shouldn’t be any noticeable difference for you or your guests.

The band usually goes for a smart/casual look in black. We don't have band 'uniforms', but we still have a cohesive look so you can identify us as a band.

We don’t just work our way through a rigid setlist. We’ll have a planned repertoire and a good idea of the songs we want to play, but we’re constantly reading the room and making decisions based on what’s happening on the dance floor. We’re looking at things like how full the dance floor is, which songs are getting the biggest reaction, whether people are singing along, the age and mix of the crowd. Sometimes the best decision is to keep the momentum going with another big dance floor favourite; sometimes it’s about changing the pace or style to bring more people in.

We like to think of the evening as a series of waves rather than trying to keep the energy at maximum from the moment we start. If you keep things at 100% all night, you quickly lose the impact of those big moments, so we build and release the energy naturally throughout the evening. We tend to work in mini-sets of around 5-6 songs with a similar feel or energy level. We’ll see how the dance floor is responding and then decide where to take things next; perhaps changing the style, or bringing the energy down slightly before building it back up again.

For a typical 8pm - midnight reception, we usually take one break, which tends to work nicely alongside the evening buffet at around 9:30pm. That gives everyone a natural opportunity to grab some food, have a drink and take a breather, while giving us a chance to recharge too. After the break, we’re ready to build things up again and usually aim to make the final part of the night feel like a real crescendo. The exact journey will always depend on the crowd, though; we’re constantly reading the room and adapting rather than following a completely fixed plan.

We’re very happy for guests to come and talk to us during the evening, and we love hearing what people would like to hear. We always have a spare vocal microphone ready to go, so if you’ve got a guest who fancies getting up and singing with us, we’re very happy to give them their moment in the spotlight!

For obvious insurance reasons, we wouldn’t normally let guests play our instruments unless this has been agreed with us in advance. If there’s a musician among your guests who you’d like to join the band for a song, just let us know beforehand and we can see what we can arrange.

When it comes to song requests, we’ll always try to accommodate them if it’s something we know or can realistically play. If it’s a song none of us know, though, we’ll politely explain that we can’t play it live. We’ve found that attempting to busk our way through an unfamiliar song rarely produces the best result and we’d rather give you and your guests a great performance than risk turning a request into a musical car crash! If there’s a song that’s particularly important to you or your guests, the best thing is to let us know before the wedding. That gives us time to learn it properly and means we can make it part of the evening rather than trying to figure it out on the spot.

We’re not a band that spends lots of time chatting between every song. We prefer to keep the transitions quick and the music flowing, so there’s very little time for the energy on the dance floor to drop. We find that this creates a much more exciting and continuous party atmosphere. That doesn’t mean we’re disconnected from the crowd, though. We’re constantly interacting through the performance, reading the room, responding to the audience and enjoying the moments with them. There’s a real connection between the band and the dance floor, even when we’re not talking.

If you’d like us to make announcements during the evening; introducing the first dance, calling everyone in for the ceilidh, announcing the buffet or helping with any other part of the evening, we’re very happy to do that. We’ll coordinate with you and the venue so everyone knows what’s happening and when.

Ultimately, we think the music should do most of the talking. Our job is to create the atmosphere and keep the party moving, while making sure you and your guests feel like you’re part of the performance rather than watching a band from the sidelines.

We like to make sure the evening finishes with a real sense of occasion. Rather than simply playing the last song on the setlist and stopping, we have a tried-and-tested final 10–15 minutes designed to build the energy and leave the dance floor wanting more.

We’ll usually finish with a run of high-energy floor-fillers that we know work brilliantly at weddings. We’re still reading the room at this point, though, so if the crowd is going absolutely wild, we’ll make sure we keep that momentum going rather than cutting things short unnecessarily.

Then comes the traditional Scottish finale: Loch Lomond by Runrig. There’s something pretty special about seeing the whole room come together for it.

We’ll always work to the agreed finish time with the venue, but within that, we know how to judge whether the crowd needs one more big moment or whether we’ve reached the perfect point to finish.

Our ceilidh sets are designed so that absolutely anyone can join in. You don’t need to know the dances beforehand. Our lead singer, Yvonne, gets off the stage and onto the dance floor to talk everyone through each dance before we start. She’ll demonstrate and explain the steps and formations in a really straightforward way, so everyone knows what they’re doing before the music begins. She’ll also keep an eye on things as the dance goes on and give people a helping hand if they get lost! And if you have guests who are a little reluctant to get involved, there’s absolutely no pressure. We usually find that once they’ve watched one dance and seen how much fun everyone is having, they’re much more willing to give it a go.

The other important part is that the music is genuinely live. We play all of the ceilidh tunes ourselves, just as we do with the rest of our set — there are no backing tracks or pre-recorded ceilidh music. That means we can respond to the dancers and adjust the feel and pace as we go.

If you’ve booked our DJ set as well, we make the transition from live music to DJ as seamless as possible. There’s no awkward gap while someone changes over equipment or works out what to play next. We’ve planned the handover so the music keeps flowing.

We’ll usually finish the live set with a big finale, often Loch Lomond, then take a moment to congratulate the happy couple and thank everyone for being such a great audience. Almost immediately afterwards, the DJ music starts, so the energy on the dance floor can carry straight on.

We also like to give you and your guests a say in what comes next. We’ll put a QR code on each table linking to a WhatsApp group, where guests can send in requests for the DJ set. That means everyone has an easy way to get involved and request the songs they want to hear, while we can still use our experience to keep the music flowing and the dance floor busy.

The aim is for it to feel like one continuous party rather than two separate bookings. The band gets the night going, and the DJ picks up the baton and carries it through to the end.

For us, the best measure of a great night is the people themselves. You can usually tell from the stage when a crowd is really connecting with the music; the dance floor is full, people are singing along and there’s a real energy in the room. But the best feedback often comes afterwards.

We’ll usually spend some time chatting to guests as they’re leaving, and it’s always a great feeling when people come over to tell us what a brilliant time they’ve had, which songs they loved or how much they enjoyed the dancing. When guests go out of their way to thank us for giving them such a great night, that’s a pretty good sign that we’ve done our job!

Of course, hearing that the couple have had the night they dreamed of is incredibly important to us too. But ultimately, we’re there to create a party that people genuinely enjoy and remember.

One thing couples often tell us afterwards is that they didn’t realise just how different a live band would make the atmosphere. It’s not just about hearing your favourite songs played live, there’s a real sense of energy and interaction between the band and the guests that you simply don’t get from recorded music. We often hear that couples were surprised by how much the band became part of the evening itself.