James Lavelle: Bush, Barcelona and Anti-War Credibility
Author: Jonty Adderley
Saturday, October 5, 2002
As one of dance culture's most active antiwar voices James Lavelle is sensitive to accusations that dissenting from Tony Blair's war posturing boosts anyone's status.
"I'm not really that political but it's only thinking about my child that makes me feel this way," he explains. "I have a five year old daughter and it scares me the way the world's going."
Speaking in the London offices of compilation company Global Underground, for whom he's just released a surprisingly upbeat breaks dominated mix CD, he's equally upbeat though studiously serious. "Bush seems to be on his own mission and the world is going to suffer for that," he predicts. "I don't agree with his politics."
Equally outspoken about his music and the business, he does, however, seem mellower having scaled back his label activities to concentrate on DJing.
"I'm having time out from Mo Wax" he explains to Skrufff's Jonty Adderley. "Though it's still happening, I just did an album with Shadow."
Skrufff: You've included old tracks alongside new ones from a variety of styles, what approach did you take with the whole compilation-
James Lavelle: "I just chose records I really like and actually play. I had a list of 50 records that I wanted to include them whittled that list down based around making it flow. I know what records work with each other and then there were also certain records I chose that were really important to me, such as the FC Kahuna track Glitterball. I know that in two years time when I listen back to this compilation, that I'll want to hear that record, because it's a track I've championed. I'm not trying to be clever here, rather this CD is what you get when you come and hear me DJing, I'm not trying to be really alternative."
Skrufff: Global Underground up until how have been focused on progressive house and trance, how did you hook up with them-
James Lavelle: "It was easy, we have a social relationship. I've been hanging out more with people from the dance scene from DJing at Fabric. I'd had a time-out (break) from DJing when I did the UNKLE records four or five years ago and when you take a year out then come back everything feels different. I started hanging out with a lot more people from different genres and met the Global Underground people in that way. You talk about music together and we came up with this idea of doing a project together. They wanted to do something slightly different whereas I wanted to do an album that wasn't seen as cool or trendy."
Skrufff: You've been performing at anti Iraq war gigs, where do you stand on the current situation-
James Lavelle: "I'm very anti going to war and the way that America and England are seem to be very dictatorial at the moment. I'm opposed to war anyway but with everything that's been going on in the last year, the idea of going to war now is particularly dangerous."
Skrufff: What would you like to see happen-
James Lavelle: "I wish they could find another solution and I hope they can resolve it through negotiation, through the UN. Bush seems to be on his own mission and the world is going to suffer for that. I don't agree with his politics. I'm not really that political but it's only thinking about my child that makes me feel this way. I have a five year old daughter and it scares me the way the world's going and the potential for our children. We're in a very delicate period of time right now. There are major issues that need to be addressed, obviously starting with the Palestine issue. It feels to me like there's a stack of dominoes (set up) which is going to fall. I don't want to be part of that."
Skrufff: React's Thomas Foley recently suggested some Tags