English quartet Clean Bandit crept into the charts — and our hearts — this year with their debut album, New Eyes, which housed the synthpop gem of a No.1 single, Rather Be (ft. Jess Glynne).
Bassist-vocalist Jack Patterson, drummer Luke Patterson, cellist-vocalist Grace Chatto and violinist Milan Neil Amin-Smith created one of the biggest pop tunes of the summer by melding genres and bringing classical arrangements to the dance floor.
As the foursome prepared for their October 10 Sandance show at Atlantis in Dubai, Amin-Smith gave us the quick and dirty lowdown on the band — and told us the one place he’d always rather be.
What’s the craziest thing you’ve heard about Dubai?
That you can buy gold plated food.
‘Rather Be’ was your fourth single. Did you ever plan to release it as the lead?
To be honest, there was nothing very strategic about it — we just released it as soon as it was finished and could never have imagine it would do what it has.
What surprised you most about having a No. 1 single?
The way the industry all know it’s going to be number one before it is.
The ‘Rather Be’ music video generated a lot of buzz. Where did the idea come from?
Jack and grace visited Tokyo a few years ago and fell in love with a sushi chef there who became the inspiration for the video.
In April, Louis Tomlinson from One Direction tweeted that ‘Rather Be’ was the “sickest song at the moment”. Thoughts on their music?
I’ve actually never heard any, but judging by their popularity it must be pretty good.
A lot of your tracks feature distinct female vocalists with big voices. Who are your touring vocalists?
We have two vocalists who tour with us, one of whom, Elisabeth Troy, is also on our album singing Heart on Fire.
Would you ever consider taking on a permanent vocalist?
Probably not, but never say never.
Do you feel as if the chart-toppers on your album overshadowed the rest of the record?
Yeah, maybe a little — but only in so far as some of our favourite tracks are some of the less well-known ones.
What are your plans for your sophomore album?
We’ve just finished two new tracks which should see the light of day before the end of the year.
Some call Clean Bandit experimental, because of the mixture of pop and classical. Would you agree?
Well I suppose it is less [so] nowadays, but it definitely began as an experiment with two classical musicians trying to make music with a producer.
Last but not least: where is one place that each of you would always rather be?
I’m a bit of a home bird so probably my answer would be at home. Don’t know about the others though, I’m not sure they know themselves really.
— Tickets are priced Dh295 (early bird), Dh325 (regular) and Dh500 (VIP), and are available on www.platinumlist.net. Entry is limited to those 21 years and over only. For tables, call 055-2004321.
