A brief chat with Basement Jaxx

British electronic pioneers Basement Jaxx play a DJ set at Beta in Denver on June 27 in support of last year’s Junto album, so we chatted with Jaxx man Felix Buxton.B

Yellow Scene: Junto is an awesome album. Is there a follow-up on the way?

Felix Buxton: No, at the moment we’ve been touring that album and finishing other bits and pieces, other projects for our label Atlantic Jaxx and Andrea Terrano – he’s a romantic guitarist, flamenco-ish stuff, and I’ve been helping him get his album finished. I promised it to him years ago. Also, we’ve been doing live shows. In Denver, we’re DJ-ing.

YS: Are you looking forward to the US tour?

FB: Oh yeah, it should be cool. Hopefully, it’s all going to be alright. The American embassy have had some kind of problems, so they’re not sending any passports out with visas at the moment. So everybody in our band has now got to buy a second passport which cost $300 each. When there’s 18 people in the traveling party, it mounts up. Simon and myself are going aheads before to do some DJ gigs, to try to pay for the passports. In a way, Denver’s getting the underground side of Basement Jaxx. Us DJ-ing is us playing the music we love in the underground, and lots of stuff that hasn’t been released.

YS: What can we expect from the set?

FB: We’ll play some old Basement Jaxx hits, new remixes by happening people in the club world that we’re going to put out as a remix album in a month or so, and we’ll create a vibe – take our ethos and spirit, and make people dance. Hopefully inspire and move them, and delight them.

YS: Have you been to Colorado before?

FB: I think once, years ago. It’s a distant memory. All I remember is that it’s very cold in winter. That’s all I remember, and we were only there for one night. I’ll have my eyes open more this time.

YS: When this tour’s done, what’s next?

FB: We’re doing liv shows all summer, DJ-ing bits and bobs. I just DJ’d at this new thing that’s happening in London now, and I don’t know if it’s happening in Denver yet, but it’s called Morning Glory and it’s like a morning rave. Before people go to work, they all drink green juices and do yoga. I really enjoyed that. It’s the new generation reacting against the old hedonists who did loads of drugs and got messed up. They’re all really pure and clear, but it’s a really good vibe, really cool. It’s the youth of today – we know more about health, and people’s moms and dads got wrecked on drugs so it’s not very new or appealing, or interesting.