By Geoffrey Rowlands


“Electronic chamber music” is how Clean Bandit have described their work. The mix of classical instrumentation with electronic dance beats has certainly caught the imagination of UK pop fans. After reaching number 17 last year with Mozart’s House, the group have shot straight to number one with their latest single, Rather Be.
Traditionally a fairly quiet time of year for music buying, Rather Be has proved so popular that it achieved the highest number of first week sales for a single released in January since Babylon Zoo’s Spaceman in 1996.
“We’re absolutely thrilled,” admitted cellist Grace Chatto. “I can’t believe we’re number one. I wish we could personally thank everyone who bought Rather Be.”
Three quarters of the group met as students at Jesus College, Cambridge. Grace and violinist Neil Amin-Smith played together in a string quartet. Multi-instrumentalist Jack Patterson, Grace’s boyfriend, would record their performances. He remixed these recordings with drum beats and his own electronic music to create a musical fusion which Grace loved.
“Classical instruments are often used on pop songs,” she remarked. “But Jack created pieces which combined dance music with specific classical works. The track which eventually became Mozart’s House was a hybrid of house beats with part of Mozart’s String Quartet No 21.”
Lyrics for Mozart’s House were written by one of their friends, Ssegawa Ssekintu-Kiwanuka, who also performed the vocals. For a time, he was part of the band. But as someone who has exhibited his photography in Boston, spent time in Haiti researching the possible use of sugar-cane charcoal as an alternative fuel and been the youngest-ever nominee at the Global Institute of Chemical Engineers Awards, he has rather more important things to do than make pop music.
The group was completed by drummer Luke Patterson, Jack’s younger brother. But despite the ability of each member to contribute vocals, it was decided that most of their songs would feature a guest singer.
“Jack is pretty good but we didn’t think any of our voices were really strong enough to become the definitive sound of Clean Bandit,” Grace explained. “We feel using guest vocalists is actually a positive factor. It gives us the opportunity to create various types of songs around the distinctively different sounds provided by each singer.”
Grace’s point becomes clear when listening to tracks from the band’s debut album which is provisionally scheduled for release in April. The vocals of Jess Glynne on Rather Be could hardly be more different from those on Mozart’s House.
“Jess is a fantastic singer who we first heard on a dance track called My Love by Route 94,” Grace smiled. “We knew we had to have her on one of our songs and Rather Be was the perfect match.”
Not that Jess Glynne’s identity can be gleaned from the Rather Be video. Filmed in Tokyo, it features London-based Japanese actress Haruka Abe as a fan of Clean Bandit who becomes delirious and has hallucinations of band members appearing unexpectedly in her daily life. As with all of their videos, it was conceived and filmed by Jack and Grace for their Cleanfilm production company.
“Cleanfilm is like our baby,” Grace revealed. “It’s a company that Jack and I have created together. We do much more than make pop videos. Our corporate clients have included fashion houses, art galleries and even Chelsea Football Club. We’re currently in pre-production on our first feature film.
“Making music is what we love most so we hope Clean Bandit will be around for a very long time. But we realise it’s highly unlikely that the band will last forever. Cleanfilm should keep us employed until we’re old and grey.”


in
brief

Lolawolf

New York-based quartet Lolawolf have been attracting attention over the last few months. Backed by Reputante members James Levy, Jimmy Giannopoulis and Raviv Ullman, the band is fronted by Zoe Kravitz. If her name seems familiar, she is the daughter of rock star Lenny Kravitz and actress Lisa Bonet.
“I take after both of my parents,” Zoe stated. “I earn my living as an actress and acting is my passion but music comes a very close second. I formed the band Elevator Fight in 2009 and I’m still good friends with those guys. But I wanted to try something different so that’s how I’ve come to be involved with Lolawolf.”
Drive was their first release last September. With no accompanying video and no press pack, speculation about the band was rife. Although there was an official video for Wanna Have Fun, which can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uz3UQBM_p8w, it featured none of the Lolawolf personnel. Their identity was only revealed by astute journalistic digging.
“I’d have preferred us to remain anonymous,” Zoe remarked. “People nowadays are quick to judge. If they hate a person then everything they do is bad. I want people to like or dislike our music, nothing else.”
Both of their songs, plus two remixes of Wanna Have Fun, are posted at (no www.) soundcloud.com/lolawolf. They are taken from the band’s self-titled seven-track EP which is released today.
The video for their official lead single, What Love Is, actually features Zoe. It is available to view at www.youtube.com/watch?v=bqzGKRKmfyU

Lance Bass

Former ‘N Sync member Lance Bass has issued his first single since the band broke up. But his track, Walking On Air, is not a new song. It was recorded by Australian producer/singer Anise K and proved extremely popular last year topping charts around the world.
Initially a collaboration between Anise K, Bella Blue, Ian Thomas and Snoop Dogg, the new version retains the original music but sees Snoop’s rap removed and Ian’s vocals replaced by Lance. The official video is available to view at www.youtube.com/watch?v=Yu887-rk4Jk
Numerous remixes have been made with a variety of vocal combinations. A version which features all concerned can be heard at www.youtube.com/watch?v=1ujMpc1JNwc

Nightbus

Three songs in one. This is what you hear if you use earbuds or headphones to listen to When The Night Comes, the new single from Anglo-American quartet NightBus.
Describing it as “stereo three way,” the left headphone features Hannah Melbourn’s vocals backed by an electronic dance pop track. On the right, Jack Kennedy performs a pop rock version. The beats are not even the same. Yet, when both headphones are worn, the two tracks mesh together to create a third version of the song.
The full effect is recreated in the official video which is posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7v90on4MRc
The video for a more conventional NightBus track, I Wanna Be You, can be found at www.youtube.com/watch?v=5PSZarpKobs

Boy George

Former Culture Club frontman Boy George has returned to the music scene with his recently released ninth studio album, This Is What I Do.
Critically acclaimed as perhaps his best solo work to date, numerous guest artists appear on the album but none feature on lead single, King Of Everything. The official video is posted at www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCNF3wPgqFc
The video for newly released second single, My God, can be seen at www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEuuGObqchs