Interview: Mark Chadwick, musician, The Levellers

But that doesn't mean to say the singer-guitarist is nasty and unwelcoming. Far from it. He's funny and friendly. If he's curt, it's because he likes to get to the point.

Today, he's in the Dorset town of Bridport, the second date of his band's 18-date 'grass roots' tour across towns and cities often overlooked by touring bands. For ones with several million record sales and numerous Top 20 singles to their credit, you have to ask: why bother?

"Basically, because not many people travel to the main cities," Chadwick muses. "I've learned over the years - from playing odd places around the country - that there's a tremendous fanbase that aren't catered for. People either can't afford, or don't want, to travel to places miles from their hometown. So the idea is to bring the music to the fans rather than the other way around."

The Levellers are also filming a 'blogumentary' which comprises candid footage of the band on tour, as well as giving a mouthpiece to fans who have something to say about the towns they visit.

With only one Scottish date on the tour, you could hardly call Edinburgh off the beaten track. Still, with pit-stops in places such as Tavistock, Kendal and Stroud on the itinerary, you wonder if non-stop touring will eventually take its toll on Chadwick now he's in his 40s.

"Touring isn't exactly stressful, we've all got iPhones to keep us entertained," he laughs. "The reason for the blogumentary, though, is to see and find out about what's really going on around the country. What's their news, their concerns - that's the intention."

Formed in a Brighton pub in 1988, The Levellers got together through a mutual love of beer and a left-wing view of politics Their raucous, booze-fuelled, fiddle-led, hedonistic, turbo-ceilidh attitude towards music saw them quickly gather fans. And it wasn't long before they were headlining Glastonbury stages and festivals around the world.

Eventually, their debut album - 1990's A Weapon Called The Word (recently re-released) - would achieve platinum status and by the mid-90s, the term 'crusty' had switched from something you'd associate with bread, to describing the band's scruffy-looking aesthetic. But as musical trends come and go, The Levellers are still packing in the crowds, even though Chadwick admits his band aren't really news any more.

"The music industry has changed, but we've stayed the same. We've stuck to our guns and always will do.

"Back in the day, we had to rely on word-of-mouth and the major mediums, like radio and broad publications. You don't have to do that any more. It's still word-of-mouth, but via the internet. It takes so much money to launch a band now. You have to have finance behind you and you don't get that these days. Luckily we had that back then."

A band with folk roots as well as political ones, what does Chadwick make of today's 'folk' bands such as Mumford & Sons and Noah & The Whale? And should Chadwick ever give up music, there's always a potential career in politics. Isn't there?

"In the mid-Nineties, I was approached by the Labour Party, The Lib-Dems, the Socialists - the whole lot of them. But I had no interest in their slimy, swindling ways," he says.

"We're more an anti-political band, but (folk) bands shouldn't worry about being political for fear of hampering their career. For us, for the things we said, politically, mud sticks. But who cares?

"If you have something to say, get out there and say it. These so-called folk bands aren't folk bands. It's just another term to pigeon-hole them with. Good luck to them, though."

The Levellers, Liquid Room, Victoria Street, Saturday, 7pm, 19.50, 0131-225 2564