You're performing your soundtrack to Zidane: A 21st Century Portrait live for the first time at MIF. How did you get involved with the film originally?
The director Douglas Gordon showed us a rough cut that used some of our music. We were instantly impressed by the film and agreed to do it straight away, but I don't think any of us quite realised the impact it would have. I went to the premiere at the Basel art fair, and it was in a football stadium! What I really like about the film is the way that it brought a lot of interests together. I'm sure for a lot of football fans it's probably the only leftfield art thing they've ever seen, and for a lot of people in the art world it was probably the first time they heard our music.
How much direction were you given on what and when to play?
None. They let us do what we wanted. When it came to the recording, we just brought a lot of tellies down to the studio and played along to the film. It was definitely quite strange watching Zidane chatting to David Beckham as we played this slow, aimless music!
Having soundtracked his every move, did you feel like you gained a special insight into Zidane's psyche?
I think it would be pretty impossible to get inside Zidane's head, we're from very different worlds. But the concept of the film is really about a man at work; it's not about who that man is. There's a solemn duty to it that I think comes through in the music.
Would you have preferred the film to be about Celtic legends Scott Brown or Kris Commons?
I don't know if the world's ready for Scott Brown: The Movie! I think maybe he could have his own sketch show.
Have you played any of the Zidane tracks live before?
Yeah, we've played Black Spider, which is the main theme, and 7:25. But we're going to have to relearn the rest. Which I'm really looking forward to actually, because some of them are very sprawled out and vague and not the kind of thing we'd normally play at a concert.
Are you tempted to embellish them with classic Mogwai crescendos?
Well, it's quite loud already. The film ends with 15 minutes of noise when Zidane gets sent off. It's actually pretty brutal.
What did you learn when making Zidane that you were able to bring to your soundtrack for zombie serial The Returned (airing on Channel 4 in June)?
We found out that our music worked well with film and was quite good at evoking an atmosphere. It's very different to writing for Mogwai, though. With a band record, you want that to be people's sole focus of attention, whereas with a film or TV thing you're really just complementing something.
So how's the new Mogwai album coming along?
It's pretty early. We've been bashing out some ideas. It's basically just various shades of Zeppelin!
• Mogwai performing live to Zidane: A 21st century portrait, Albert Hall, 19 & 20 July, £30, concs £25
