Frightened Rabbit's Grant Hutchison on life-changing loss of brother Scott and new cider future

The devastating loss of his brother Scott saw Grant wrestle with his own identity.

The Frightened Rabbit drummer opened up to the Evening Times and revealed he didn’t know what to do.

“When Scott died, I stopped completely.

“I wasn’t just his brother, or the drummer in Frightened Rabbit, and anyone who did see me like that saw me in a different light.

“I was trying to get through general life.

“I’ve wrestled with a total loss of identity in the last year.

“All of a sudden I wasn’t who I had been for 10 years, pretty much overnight. I thought, what do I do?”

Grant decided to take a different path away from music.

although it hasn't been plain sailing.  

“I’ve never completed my own tax return" laughs Grant, who announced this week opening of his new cider company, re:stalk.

It hasn't been plain sailing, though. "“I’ve never completed my own tax return" laughs Grant.  

This isn't because he is dodging a fine or hiding from the government, but because in Grant past life they had people to do those things for them.  

"When you're starting a band you don't think you're starting a business, and all those things like registering for VAT is taken care of. It's strange now doing that on my own. I'm still figuring that side of the business out yet, but I'm committed." 

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It aims to educate a nation of drinkers on the nuances of natural cider, selling and distributing unique and well curated brands to wholesale businesses all over the country.

The firm may have once began as a pipe dream of a side hustle, but after the unexpected death of Grant’s brother Scott last year, it became a reality.

And so re:stalk was born – but it was always there, Grant stresses. Making music wouldn’t last forever.

“Earlier this year I wanted to start bringing money back in.

“This plan didn’t just come about in six months since Scott died,” Grant admits.

“It was always in my head.

“I feel less drawn to music now. When people start getting married and having families, being in a band becomes very difficult.

“We knew we weren’t the Rolling Stones, and wouldn’t go into our 70s making a living from it. Who wants to do that?”

This news becomes all the more potent upon learning that Grant and his wife Jaye are expecting their first child next year.

“I am doing this for myself because I want to do it for Jaye and our child. I’ve discovered who I am again which for a year and a half I felt I had lost  

“I feel so lucky that I have Jaye who has been so supportive and encouraging. This feels like me, and it’s an exciting thing to share with people,” Grant says.

Grant will source, sell and distribute – it is a labour of love born from a passion for cider that was carefully curated over years of world tours with the band.

“I just wanted to get a place to drink good ciders in the city that I live in,” explains Grant. “So often people think cider is just an alternative to beer, or associate it with teenage memories of drinking three litre bottles of white cider or your Dad on holiday tanning cans of Scrumpy Jacks and never touching it again.

“I want to educate people on what cider can be, and the many different ways and situations you can enjoy it. In reality, cider is made the exact same way as wine, and can be extremely natural. There is no reason why you cannot drink a fine cider like you do a fine wine.”

READ MORE: Frightened Rabbit singer's Scott Hutchison death inspired minister to set up support group

Grant’s life-long love affair with the apple-based alcohol started when he worked in Peckham’s on Byres Road, before Frightened Rabbit became successful enough to quit the day job.

“We toured the US more than we toured anywhere else and the cider world there is way ahead of what’s happening here.

“There are so many different styles and ways of presentation, like in a 750ml wine bottle. I’ve never been a beer drinker so I always sought out cider wherever I went, and everywhere we went we’d try a new bar or type. I think to have a cider-specific bar in Glasgow at one point would be a great thing to have.”

In a city as trendy as Glasgow, which is filled with new bars and restaurants, it makes sense that cider, or a more natural way of drinking alcohol would be the next big thing. 

One of which is Vin Cru, an ‘all-natural’ wine bar that the Evening Times reported last week is set to open in Glasgow this month.

Grant tells me that he hopes, eventually, to start running supper nights with specially paired cider for the food. And, as a vegan himself, the nights promise to be innovative and interesting and suitable for all and any kinds of eaters and drinkers. 

“It’s nice to work in a nicer, friendlier industry,” says Grant. “Most people in music want to get to the point where it is your living, but it comes with a lot of stuff alongside it which can make it difficult to cope with.”

“People in Glasgow don’t rest on their laurels.

“The scene is always changing and evolving and this is exciting and different, perfect for it.

“I didn’t really expect it to happen so fast, but once the business plan was done it happened quickly. There is a trend already.

“People are now more interested in where their products come from and what the story is behind it, and they don’t want additives and colouring. Cider is vegan and mostly gluten free. You get less of a hangover,” Grant laughs.

The cider community is a friendlier industry than the ones Grant belonged to previously, and that warmth is a big part of re:stalk’s ethos.

“I only want to work with people that have the same love and care and passion that I have for it and there are plenty of them out there,” says Grant. “It’s going to be good.”

For more information about re:stalk, click here.