About this user
Everything James Lavelle has created and initiated has been driven by the same irrepressible sense of curiosity and an incorruptible willingness to take risks. The music released today under the banner of UNKLE is very different from early UNKLE records. The spirit is the same.
Released in 2007, War Stories, with contributions from Homme, Ian Astbury, 3D, The Duke Spirit, Autolux and others, fused the hypnotic qualities of Techno with the textures of Rock, producing a fascinating loud/quiet dynamic. The album was much darker and heavier then previous UNKLE recordings, and yet it sparkled with a palpable sense of batteries renewed and excitement levels drastically raised. The resulting guitar- and drums-driven UNKLE live experience, complete with astonishing visuals, toured the world to ever increasing acclaim. Its a lot better being on the road with lots of people, Lavelle says. DJing can be a bit lonely. Richard File preferred to remain studio-bound. In January 2008 he left to concentrate on his own projects. Lavelle, keen to maintain the momentum, invited his old pal Pablo Clements of The Psychonauts to join him in UNKLE.
Most projects Lavelle has ever undertaken have contained a strong visual component. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that in composing as he puts it - music inspired by the moving image, he has discovered a hugely enjoyable new challenge. Apart from his contributions to advertising campaigns for BMW, Mercedes, European Football League and Eristoff Vodka, his music can be heard in films like Jonathan Glazers Sexy Beast, Danny Cannons football film Goal!, Alex Graziolis documentary Odyssey in Rome about Abel Ferrara, and the Spike Jonze skate video Fully Flared. Such one-off projects are no less carefully or adventurously assembled than any other UNKLE undertaking.
Saddened by the fact that due to the transient nature of their dissemination these pieces were destined to be forgotten, Lavelle decided to gather together the best, flesh them out where needed, and release them as an album. End TitlesStories for Film is a collection of similarly conceived music inspired by the moving image, recorded with amongst others - White Denims James Petralli, The Big Pinks Robbie Furze and Canadians Black Mountain.
Working with his brother Aidan and Pablo Clements in the Surrender All-Studio one floor down from the Surrender All-offices just round the corner from the old Bluebird Records, James Lavelle has truly rediscovered his sense of musical adventure. With all the madness Ive encountered through the years it would have been easy to lose the plot, he says. I nearly did. But Ive managed to keep it together by surrounding myself with creative people who understand what I am trying to achieve. And thats what I intend to keep on doing striving to keep writing songs that reflect where I am at in my life.
