This Is What Happens When Basement Jaxx Meets An Orchestra

The UK house music duo Basement Jaxx have always been mavericks. Instead of predictably reinventing themselves in the 2010s, they've "re-imagined" their discography. Now Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe are bound for Australia to perform boldly extravagant versions of favourites like Red Alert, Where's Your Head At and Do Your Thing with Sydney's The Metropolitan Orchestra.

Buxton and Ratcliffe formed a DJ combo in the mid-'90s, promoting their eponymous Basement Jaxx night in Brixton, South London. After airing the underground classics Samba Magic and Fly Life (with Corrina Joseph) through their Atlantic Jaxx Recordings, the producers signed to XL. Basement Jaxx were praised as a cred pop outfit with 1999's seminal debut, Remedy, adding an eccentric British urban feel to US house and garage. In fact, they developed an ever-hybridised global sound, while courting as feature artists the likes of Siouxsie Sioux, Yoko Ono and Yo! Majesty. In 2005 the Jaxx won a Grammy in the new Best Dance/Electronic Album category with Kish Kash.

Basement Jaxx became one of the earliest dance acts to collaborate live with an orchestra. Buxton, a classical boffin, was chuffed when they were approached by Jules Buckley, principal conductor of the Netherlands' historic Metropole Orkest. In 2011, the Jaxx performed in Eindhoven and London and issued a live recording. 

"It can be a bit lame if you just have a drummer playing a disco-house beat with an orchestra." 

Basement Jaxx are expanding their concert – and their repertoire – for Australia. "Luckily, from working with the Metropole Orkest before, we have got scores for a whole show," Buxton says. The pair will include Rendez-Vu for the first time. They'll be accompanied by their long-time touring vocalists Vula Malinga, who led 2005's single Oh My Gosh, and Sharlene Hector. "I think a lot of people think they are Basement Jaxx – which is fine," Buxton laughs. They'll also have a special guest in The Bellrays' Lisa Kekaula, who notably sang Kish Kash's Good Luck. Plus, Basement Jaxx are bringing percussionist Oli Savill. "When working with an orchestra before, I was very concerned about the rhythm and getting that right," Buxton emphasises. "It can be a bit lame if you just have a drummer playing a disco-house beat with an orchestra." They even have a contemporary ballet dancer. And, though Buxton admits that initially he was the one driving Basement Jaxx's orchestral manoeuvres, Ratcliffe is involved. "He's gonna play guitar in the orchestra."

In recent years, many iconic dance figures have liaised with orchestras, from Detroit techno pioneer Jeff Mills to UK super-DJ Pete Tong to Flight Facilities. Buxton is wary of formula. "I was very keen, when working with Jules originally, that I didn't want to do what they did in the '70s with 'Rock Go The Classics', where they just did watered down versions of the original songs. I was concerned that it is the end of dance music if you just do a kind of light version of it. So I wanted to take the ethos of Basement Jaxx and put it in an orchestral hall, rather than having a beat and having strings playing over."

Basement Jaxx have long exuded a PLUR positivity. However, lately, Buxton has expressed disdain for a remote, "dumbed down" pop culture. (Today he rues the Kardashians.) As such, Basement Jaxx have been low-key, focusing on DJing. They haven't released original music since 2014's independent comeback Junto, which flipped EDM trap influences. Yet, Buxton reveals, Basement Jaxx Vs The Metropolitan Orchestra will premiere a composition. "There will be a new Basement Jaxx song that isn't completed at the moment. We're doing an EP which will probably come out – I dunno, hopefully we get it done by the summer. But I've written a didgeridoo waltz as well. I'm trying to find a didgeridoo with the right tuning at the moment, so that's kind of in the process... Because I wanted to do something that connected to Aboriginal culture – but not do it in a worthy, laborious way, but do it in a fun way."

Basement Jaxx have also just announced that they'll be joined by didgeridoo virtuoso William Barton, the Kalkadunga man a trailblazer who's performed widely as a soloist with orchestras and in 2012 won an ARIA for Best Classical Album with his acclaimed Kalkadungu.

Buxton is noncommittal as to whether Basement Jaxx will drop an eighth album, partly because of "ageist" radio programming. "I don't know nowadays. There's so much stuff out there – we're kind of bombarded, over-bombarded, with content, and people are obsessed with content... [But] we're not a new act. I mean, Radio 1 said that, we heard. From our Never Say Never song [off Junto], they said, 'It's perfect, it's exactly what we're playing, but Basement Jaxx are too old, so we can't do it', which is funny 'cause they'll play something like [the veteran] Jay-Z, but that's exotic 'cause it's from America! But that's the world we live in, isn't it? We're very aware of the way you get penalised. But it's fine, because it also gives room for the new ones. So it's all good."