FINDING himself thrown into the mix with one of the most creative indie acts of the 1990s, Slowdive, proved one heck of a rollercoaster for Simon Scott.

Though he’s now well occupied with his latest outfit Televise, his time with the Reading shoegazers left him with plenty of treasured memories.

"One thing that’s quite astonishing to me is that the people who are writing to me about how much they like what I am doing now say how they were big fans of what I was doing in 1991 with Slowdive. I’m really quite shocked," explains the laid-back drummer who has now turned guitarist.

Perhaps his former band’s success was most transparent in somehow transcending their average suburban origins to forge a gorgeously sublime soundscape. Though they owed some debt to the Cocteau Twins, their mesmeric music cast a bewitching spell.

Just weeks after joining the group, Simon and co were packed off touring the East coast of America with fellow rock hopefuls, Blur. While neither act were destined to make it big in the states, it was fun trying.

"Blur were great fun to drink with, that’s for sure. They would drink that little bit too much to the point were they’d get angry with each other, which gave the tour real energy. We would be playing clubs where people ended up getting broken arms and wanted to sue Damon!

"After that we went on to tour with Ride, who were great guys. I think Andy Bell is a seriously underrated musician and Mark was a really good frontman. Those were exciting times."

As entrances go, theirs was heralded with plenty of fanfare from national media. Indeed, the initial wave of hype saw their first three releases lauded as singles of the week by Melody Maker.

However, they didn’t have it all their own way, and as quickly as they were praised the knives were out for them as their introspective sound was overtaken by the arrival of Nirvana’s visceral grunge.

According to some sources, Slowdive frontman Neil Halstead bluffed Creation records boss Alan McGee (who later discovered Oasis) into prematurely believing they had their debut album in the bag. This could well have spelt the end for them, but fate was to decree otherwise and they completed the ethereal sounding Just For A Day at breakneck speed in just six weeks.

"I have really good memories of recording it. Neil was under pressure with it so there were a few fillers on it, but we went in and just did it and it still sounds fresh, full of bright hope.. But my favourite was the second LP, Souvlaki which I was more involved with."

While Simon was to part with the group due to creative tensions shortly after the completion of Souvlaki, he has since rekindled his old friendships. It seems strong ties are hard to shake off.

"I haven’t seen Neil for a long time but I occasionally go for a curry with the rest of the band and we’ll sit around the table drinking at 3am and having a laugh about what we got up to."

Like many alternative acts of the day they may not have achieved the chart-success they deserved, yet their influence on groups such as Bloc Party and Mogwai has been plain to see. Was there a favourite moment from those times?

"I think playing the Town and Country Club Creation all-dayer was a real highlight. Since I was 16 I had wanted to play that place."

After his exit from the group he’s been far from slack. A brief stint songwriting for fellow shoegazers Chapterhouse followed before forming a new act, Lowgold which saw him tour with Coldplay.

But his frustration at being denied the chance to write for the band resulted in another musical rethink. Some late night jam sessions in a dishevelled student pub in North Kilburn sparked the inspiration for the melodic rock of Televise.

"The new music does not really sound like Slowdive but you can tell there is a connection there. It’s no big deal that I am playing guitar and singing rather than drumming. I’ve always been playing since I was at school," adds the Cambridge-born musician.

Life seems pretty sweet for him right now having relocated in London with his family, which includes young daughter Martha. He says she is already exhibiting signs of being a budding singer.

As for himself, he is pretty fired up about the prospect of his group’s debut album Songs To Sing in A and E ( released on April 17) that is being put out through ultra-hip indie label AC30.

"Robin and Nick from A30 have their ear to the ground in the same way that Alan McGee did and I get that same sense of excitement about music from them.

"It has taken some time to get our songs together but we are really proud of them and are looking forward to playing the gig with Mark."

- Televise are appearing with Mark Gardener at ClubAC30 on Thursday, March 30. Tickets are £7 see www.clubac30.com. To hear Televise’s latest material see www.myspace.com/televise.