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dan le sac was in fine form chatting ahead of his highly anticipated Liverpool Music Week show on the 3rd of Nov, and the mercurial beat maker man has some strong predictions for the future. Shell suits are coming back! Gazza will be very pleased.
Purple Revolver: Hi Dan, how are you today?
dan le sac: Not too bad thanks.
Purple Revolver: Good stuff. So what was the inspiration behind your latest track Cauliflower?
dan le sac: It was a weird one to be honest, I had been searching for this Lee Hazelwood and Nancy Sinatra track called Some Velvet Morning for ages. It is like an upbeat soul rack and slow downed waltz. Cauliflower was directly influenced by that track really, it’s our take on it. I knew Kid A’s voice would suit that style perfectly and I am really happy with the track. I remember Primal Scream done a really crappy version of it and I thought, surely, we can do better than that.
Purple Revolver: The video is a bit ambiguous, what is it all about?
dan le sac: Well me and Pip were at festivals at the time and we couldn’t make it to the shooting. We had James Sharpe who done a great job conveying his idea, we didn’t have much to do with it. I think the rope is supposed to be a metaphor for the little attachments we make in life, how easy it is to separate and grow distant and how society so often forces your hand in relationships. I like the little imperfections. It’s not the perfect video by any stretch of the imagination but I think the little mistakes add to the mystery.
Purple Revolver: You have been touring recently. How is that coming along? Any standout shows?
dan le sac: The tour in general has been great, I am still surprised people are coming out considering we have not long finished our last tour which was massive. I mean the Bristol crowd was weird the other night, in a good way as always. Leeds last night was mental, so many people turned up. I don’t think we have had a stinker yet, which always happens at least once on our tours. Or maybe we have had it and we just don’t know it yet.
Purple Revolver: So do you share Scroobius Pip’s love of literature and wordsmithery or is it all about the beats for you?
dan le sac: Yeah of course, I love reading. On tour you get so much time to yourself you can read what you want. Recently, I tried to read a book every fortnight on the road but that pace has slowly waned. Weirdly though, I don’t think Pips passion is for books. I would be surprised if he had read 30 books in his life. He is into his films big time, and not those pretentious ones with subtitles. If you put Transformers 2 on in front of him, he will watch it. It combines two mediums I suppose, the visual and spoken word, the way people talk, strange dialects, which I think feeds his work more.
Purple Revolver: Now Purple Revolver is all about shooting the future, predicting new trends in music, fashion and culture years before they happen. What are your predictions for the future?
dan le sac: I think it is about time we had a 60’s revival, I am sure there is one is in the pipeline. My only prediction for the future is I think the future will be the past. I think it is amazing how people never get tired of reinventing the past, like that “Let’s bring back the 80’s and make it slightly better” attitude.
Purple Revolver: Talking about the past, can you remember the crazes which swept through your playground when you were younger?
dan le sac: Yeah of course, Yoyo’s always make an appearance every generation I think, but I remember Coca Cola had just brought out their diet Coke formula and everyone had diet coke Yoyo’s, they were big. Bart Simpson jeans were all the rave as well. I remember I bought a pair of Bart Simpson converse which were rock hard to get, like a year after they were in fashion and I thought I was the coolest kid in the world. Shell suits were very big at the time as well, I might be showing my age there. I remember once I was turned away from a bonfire because I was wearing a shell suit. A guy was like: “You can’t stand there because you are a fire hazard, move back or you will die.” As a matter of fact that is my prediction for the future, shell suits are to make a comeback.
Purple Revolver: In “The Logic of Chance” you deal with quite sensitive topical issues, how did you avoid coming across as the musical equivalent of Jeremy Kyle, all preachy?
dan le sac: I am not sure if we did to be honest (laughs). We have had a few really bad reviews, people saying things like: “These guys are telling me to change, and I don’t want to chage.” The people who really get our music, understand the sense of humour about it all. I think that is so important. These people don’t hear the preachiness because it is wrapped up with laughs.
Purple Revolver: Do the bad reviews get under your skin?
dan le sac: No not at all. We don’t really take much notice of it to be honest, if people have got a problem with our music we just blame the beards.
Purple Revolver: Who were the first musicians that you really identified with and thought they are the kind of sounds I want to produce?
dan le sac: I would have to say bands like New Order and Joy Division and the rest of Factory records to be honest, The Durutti Column. When I was young I was really into The Prodigy, they were idiots but they made some great music along the way.
Purple Revolver: Well that should wrap it up dan, thanks for your time. Have a great show at Liverpool Music Week.
dan le sac: Will do. Cheers.
For full listings at this year’s Liverpool Music Week, check out the official site:
http://www.liverpoolmusicweek.com/