Basement Jaxx are an English

electronic music Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...

duo consisting of Felix Buxton (born 30 April 1970) and Simon Ratcliffe (born 28 November 1969). The pair got their name from the regular club night they held in

Brixton Brixton is an area of South London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th century ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, UK. They first rose to popularity in the underground

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air c ...

scene of the mid-1990s, but would go on to find international chart success and win Best Dance Act at both the 2002 and 2004 BRIT Awards. Some of their most successful singles are "

Red Alert Red Alert or red alert may refer to: Alert states * Red alert, a high alert state * Red Alert, the "attack imminent" alert signal for the US civil defense siren * Red alert state, the most serious alert state in the UK BIKINI state system * Red ...

", "

Rendez-Vu "Rendez-Vu" is a song by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx. It was released on 2 August 1999 as the second single from their debut album, ''Remedy'' (1999). "Rendez-Vu" reached number four on the UK Singles Chart and number one on the US ...

", "

Romeo Romeo Montague () is the male protagonist of William Shakespeare's tragedy ''Romeo and Juliet''. The son of Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lord Montague, Lord Montague and his wife, Characters in Romeo and Juliet#Lady Montague, Lady Montague, he ...

", "

Where's Your Head At "Where's Your Head At" is a song by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx. It was released as the third single from their second album, '' Rooty'', on 19 November 2001. The song is based on samples from Gary Numan's songs " M.E." and " This ...

", " Do Your Thing", and "

Good Luck Luck is the phenomenon and belief that defines the experience of improbable events, especially improbably positive or negative ones. The naturalistic interpretation is that positive and negative events may happen at any time, both due to ran ...

History

Background

Felix Buxton's father The Rev Derek Major Buxton (4 February 1931 – 17 March 2022) was a Leicestershire vicar, who was ordained on Sunday 18 December 1960 in

Leicester Cathedral The Cathedral Church of Saint Martin, Leicester, commonly known as Leicester Cathedral, is a Church of England cathedral in Leicester, England, and the seat of the Bishop of Leicester. One of the city centre's five surviving medieval ch ...

. His father was originally from

Leigh, Staffordshire Leigh is a civil parish in the borough of East Staffordshire in Staffordshire, England. The parish includes the village of Church Leigh, together with the settlements of Withington, Upper Leigh, Lower Leigh, Morrilow Heath, Middleton Green, Dods ...

, the second son of James Buxton, who died in 1969. In the early 1960s, his father was the assistant Anglican chaplain of the

University of Leicester The University of Leicester ( ) is a public university, public research university based in Leicester, England. The main campus is south of the city centre, adjacent to Victoria Park, Leicester, Victoria Park. The university's predecessor, Univ ...

, moving to

Ibstock Ibstock is a former coal mining village and civil parish in North West Leicestershire, England. The population of the civil parish was 5,760 at the 2001 census increasing to 6,201 at the 2011 census and 7,615 at the 2021 census. The village i ...

in May 1969. The Rev Buxton and wife Eileen moved from Ibstock (St Denys) with Heather, to St Paul's Woodhouse Eaves and St Mary's church in Woodhouse on 27 April 1987, with a ceremony conducted by the

Bishop of Leicester The Bishop of Leicester is the Ordinary of the Diocese of Leicester in the Province of Canterbury of the Church of England. Through reorganisation within the Church of England, the Diocese of Leicester was refounded in 1927, and St Martin's ...

, on Tuesday 5 May 1987. His father retired in April 1998. Felix Buxton studied Engineering Design at the

University of Exeter The University of Exeter is a research university in the West Country of England, with its main campus in Exeter, Devon. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of ...

1992–1998: Formation

In 1992, Simon Ratcliffe began releasing

white label record A white label record is a vinyl record with white labels attached. There are several variations each with a different purpose. Variations include test pressings, white label promos, and plain white labels. Test pressings Test pressings, usua ...

s, gaining him the attention of several music producers including

LTJ Bukem Daniel Andrew Williamson (born 20 September 1967), better known as LTJ Bukem (), is a British drum and bass musician, producer and DJ. He and his record label Good Looking are most associated with the jazzy, atmospheric side of drum and bass m ...

and

Goldie Clifford Joseph Price MBE (born 19 September 1965), better known as Goldie, is an English music producer, DJ, and actor. Initially gaining exposure for his work as a graffiti artist, Goldie became well known for his pioneering role as a musi ...

. The success of these releases enabled him to buy a few electronic musical instruments and set up a basic

studio A studio is a space set aside for creative work of any kind, including art, dance, music and theater. The word ''studio'' is derived from the , from , from ''studere'', meaning to study or zeal. Types Art The studio of any artist, esp ...

in a friend's mother's basement. Ratcliffe and Buxton first met in 1993 through a mutual friend in a pub in

Clapham Clapham () is a district in south London, south west London, England, lying mostly within the London Borough of Lambeth, but with some areas (including Clapham Common) extending into the neighbouring London Borough of Wandsworth. History Ea ...

. The two bonded over an appreciation of New York house music. They released their first

extended play An extended play (EP) is a Sound recording and reproduction, musical recording that contains more tracks than a Single (music), single but fewer than an album. Contemporary EPs generally contain up to eight tracks and have a playing time of 1 ...

called ''EP1'' via the British independent record label

Wall of Sound The Wall of Sound (also called the Spector Sound) is a music production formula developed by American record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios, in the 1960s, with assistance from engineer Larry Levine and the conglomerate of session m ...

, with the help of its founder Mark Jones. The album went on to sell over 1,000 copies and was played on American radio by Tony Humphries in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

. Basement Jaxx began in

South London South London is the southern part of Greater London, England, south of the River Thames. The region consists of the Districts of England, boroughs, in whole or in part, of London Borough of Bexley, Bexley, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley, Lon ...

, in 1994, where Ratcliffe and Buxton held a regular club night called Basement Jaxx. The night was also held in a variety of venues including The George IV, The Crypt and The Junction. They were joined by DJs including DJ Sneak,

Daft Punk Daft Punk were a French electronic music duo formed in 1993 in Paris by Thomas Bangalter and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo. They achieved popularity in the late 1990s as part of the French house movement, combining house music, funk, disco, tech ...

, and singer

Corrina Joseph Corrina Joseph is a British singer who gained recognition through her collaborations with Basement Jaxx. She later signed to and released solo material through their label, Atlantic Jaxx. She later affiliated with One Little Indian. She has ...

. They mutated the night into an equally popular club called Rooty, the namesake of their second album. Initially, the duo considered "Underground Oasis" as a name for the group, but the idea was scrapped reportedly after a friend informed them of a similarly named rock band that might "get big". An important milestone for Basement Jaxx's career was their role as the opening act for successful French dance group

Daftendirektour Daftendirektour was the first concert tour by the French electronic music duo Daft Punk. The tour spanned from February to December 1997. Background For this tour, Daft Punk used their home studio equipment for the live stage. As Thomas Bangalte ...

. It was around this time that Basement Jaxx began collaborating with vocalist

, a collaboration that resulted in the single "

Fly Life "Fly Life" (often stylised as "Flylife") is a song by English electronic dance music duo Basement Jaxx from their fourth extended play, ''EP3'', released in 1996. The track was largely based on the 1996 single "Live Your Life with Me", which the ...

", which was released by Virgin Records in 1997. Following the success of "Fly Life", the duo signed a record deal with XL, with whom they released their subsequent six albums.

1999–2001: ''Remedy''

In 1999, the group released their first full-length album, ''

Remedy Remedy, Remedies, The Remedy or Remediation may refer to: Computing and gaming * Remedy Corp, an American software company * Remedy Entertainment, a Finnish video game developer Law, politics, and society * Environmental remediation, the remov ...

''. It included the singles "

", " Jump n' Shout", " Bingo Bango", and "

", which is Basement Jaxx's highest UK Singles Chart entry to date, at number 4. Basement Jaxx also released ''Jaxx Unreleased'', a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one Performing arts#Performers, performer or by several performers. If the recordings are from ...

B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

es, and other assorted material, in 1999. 2000 saw them release ''

Camberwell Camberwell ( ) is an List of areas of London, area of South London, England, in the London Borough of Southwark, southeast of Charing Cross. Camberwell was first a village associated with the church of St Giles' Church, Camberwell, St Giles ...

'', another release of new material.

2001–2004: ''Rooty''

Their next album, 2001's ''

Rooty ''Rooty'' is the second studio album by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx, released on 25 June 2001. The music labels behind this release were XL and Astralwerks in the UK and US. Like its predecessor ''Remedy'', ''Rooty'' was well-r ...

'' included singles "Romeo", "Jus 1 Kiss", "

Where's Your Head At? "Where's Your Head At" is a song by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx. It was released as the third single from their second album, '' Rooty'', on 19 November 2001. The song is based on samples from Gary Numan's songs " M.E." and " This ...

", and " Do Your Thing", which was featured in the film ''

Bend It Like Beckham ''Bend It Like Beckham'' is a 2002 Sports film, sports comedy-drama film directed by Gurinder Chadha from a screenplay by Chadha, Paul Mayeda Berges, and Guljit Bindra. The film stars Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Anu ...

'' as well as

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

and

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...

commercials. The music video for album opener "Romeo" is an homage to the

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, is primarily produced in Mumbai. The popular term Bollywood is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (former name of Mumbai) and "Cinema of the United States, Hollywood". The in ...

film style. "Where's Your Head At?" became an international hit in 2002, also known for its inclusion on the '' Lara Croft: Tomb Raider'' soundtrack. "Do Your Thing" was included in the video game ''

SSX 3 ''SSX 3'' (standing for "Snowboard Supercross 3") is a 2003 Sports video game, snowboarding video game developed by EA Canada and published by Electronic Arts under the EA Sports BIG label. It is the third installment in the ''SSX'' series. The g ...

''. ''Xxtra Cutz'' was released shortly after ''Rooty'', containing B-sides from the album's singles. ''Span Thang'' and ''

Junction Junction may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Junction'' (2012 film), an American film * ''Junction'' (2024 film), an American film * ''Jjunction'', a 2002 Indian film * ''Junction'' (album), a 1976 album by Andrew Cyrille * Junction (E ...

'', two EPs, were released in 2001–2002. Basement Jaxx decided to close the Rooty club in May 2001 after it became "too popular."

2003–2005: ''Kish Kash'' and ''The Singles''

In 2003, Basement Jaxx released their third full-length album, '' Kish Kash'', which included contributions from

Siouxsie Sioux Susan Janet Ballion (born 27 May 1957), better known by her stage name Siouxsie Sioux (, ), is an English singer and songwriter. She came to prominence as the leader and main lyricist of the rock band Siouxsie and the Banshees, who w ...

Lisa Kekaula Lisa Kekaula (born July 31, 1967) is the lead singer of American " rock 'n' soul" band The Bellrays. Early years Kekaula was born to an African-American mother, Linda and Native Hawaiian father, Alan Kekaula in Los Angeles, California, altho ...

(of

the Bellrays The Bellrays (also capitalized as The BellRays) is an American rock group that combines garage rock and punk with soul music, founded in Riverside, California in 1990 by vocalist Lisa Kekaula and guitarist Bob Vennum. They have been with sever ...

Me'shell Ndegeocello Meshell Ndegeocello ( ; born Michelle Lynn Johnson on August 29, 1968) is an American singer-songwriter, poet, and bassist. She has gone by the name Meshell Suhaila Bashir-Shakur which is used as a writing credit on some of her mid-career work. ...

Dizzee Rascal Dylan Kwabena Mills (born 18 September 1984), known professionally as Dizzee Rascal, is a British rapper and MC. He is often credited as a pioneer of British hip hop and grime music and was ranked by ''Complex'' as one of the greatest British ...

, Totlyn Jackson,

JC Chasez Joshua Scott "JC" Chasez (; born August 8, 1976) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He started his career as a singer, actor, and dancer on '' The All-New Mickey Mouse Club'' before rising to prominence as a ...

and Phoebe. From this album, the tracks "Lucky Star", "Good Luck", and "Plug It In" were released as singles. The track "Good Luck" was re-released in 2004, after exposure from being the theme to

BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...

Euro 2004 The 2004 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as Euro 2004, was the 12th edition of the UEFA European Championship, a quadrennial football competition contested by the men's national teams of UEFA member associations. Th ...

coverage, and was also featured in the soundtrack of ''

Just Married ''Just Married'' is a 2003 romantic comedy film directed by Shawn Levy, written by Sam Harper, and stars Ashton Kutcher and Brittany Murphy as a young newlywed couple from different social classes who take their honeymoon to Europe, where obs ...

'' and '' Appleseed'', an

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

film released in 2004. ''Kish Kash'' was recognised the following year at the

47th Grammy Awards The 47th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 13, 2005, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording of the year beginning from October 1, 2003, through September 30, 2004. They were hosted by Queen Lat ...

, winning Buxton and Ratcliffe the inaugural Best Electronic/Dance Album award. Basement Jaxx's manager, Andrew Mansi, says Astralwerks chose not to renew its U.S. licensing contract with the duo. The duo produced "Shake It", a song from JC Chasez's ''

Schizophrenic Schizophrenia () is a mental disorder characterized variously by hallucinations (typically, Auditory hallucination#Schizophrenia, hearing voices), delusions, thought disorder, disorganized thinking and behavior, and Reduced affect display, f ...

''. In 2005, the duo released the number 1 compilation ''

The Singles The Singles may refer to: * ''The Singles'' (Basement Jaxx album) by Basement Jaxx * ''The Singles'' (Bikini Kill album) * ''The Singles'' (Blank & Jones album), 2006 * ''The Singles'' (The Bluetones album), 2002 * ''The Singles'' (Chisato Mor ...

'' along with a video collection on DVD, comprising all the singles from their previous three albums, some earlier releases (featured on ''Atlantic Jaxx Recordings: A Compilation''), and two new tracks, " Oh My Gosh" and "U Don't Know Me", which were both released as singles. ''The Singles (Special Edition)'' was also released, which contained the original compilation along with a bonus disc entitled ''Bonus Traxx'', containing many previously unreleased tracks, as well as remixes of existing Basement Jaxx songs. The duo appeared as a headline act on the Pyramid stage at

Glastonbury Festival The Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts (commonly referred to as simply Glastonbury Festival, known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts held near Pilton, Somerset, England, in most su ...

in 2005 when

Kylie Minogue Kylie Ann Minogue (; born 28 May 1968) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Frequently referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Princess of Pop", she has achieved recognition in both the music industry and fas ...

was forced to pull out after being diagnosed with cancer. Basement Jaxx played with a live band made up of artists who recorded the album. Drumtech-trained Nathan 'Tugg' Curran was on drums for Glastonbury and has remained a constant performer.

2006–2010: ''Crazy Itch Radio'' and ''Scars''

Their fourth studio album, '' Crazy Itch Radio'', was released on 4 September 2006 in the UK, simultaneously with its first single, " Hush Boy". The album featured guest vocals by

Martina Sorbara Martina Sorbara (born November 13, 1978) is a Canadian singer-songwriter. Initially the frontwoman of the band Dragonette, it is now Sorbara's solo project."Naughty sounds from the minister's daughter; DRAGONETTE Singer-songwriter moves to London ...

(credited as "Martina Bang"),

Lily Allen Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen, Her accolades include a Brit Award, alongside nominations for a Grammy Award and a Laurence Olivi ...

, and

Robyn Robin Miriam Carlsson (; born 12 June 1979), known professionally as Robyn (), is a Swedish singer, songwriter, record producer, and DJ. Her 1995 debut album ''Robyn Is Here'' produced two Billboard Hot 100, ''Billboard'' Hot 100 top 10 single ...

. In 2006, Basement Jaxx were also one of the support acts for

Robbie Williams Robert Peter Williams (born 13 February 1974) is an English singer and songwriter. He found fame as a member of the pop group Take That from 1990 to 1995, launching a solo career in 1996. His debut studio album, ''Life thru a Lens'', was re ...

on his 'Close Encounters' tour. For

Cyndi Lauper Cynthia Ann Stephanie Lauper ( ; born June 22, 1953) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Known for her distinctive image, featuring a variety of hair colors and eccentric clothing, and for her powerful four-octave vocal range;Jerome, ...

's ''

Bring Ya to the Brink ''Bring Ya to the Brink'' is American singer Cyndi Lauper's tenth studio album, released on May 14, 2008 in Japan, and 13 days later worldwide. The album is a collection of dance-oriented songs and features collaborations with Basement Jaxx, Rich ...

'' in 2008, they produced and wrote the track "Rocking Chair". They also released a trilogy of EPs of new material, entitled ''

Planet A planet is a large, Hydrostatic equilibrium, rounded Astronomical object, astronomical body that is generally required to be in orbit around a star, stellar remnant, or brown dwarf, and is not one itself. The Solar System has eight planets b ...

''. In 2009, Buxton revealed in a

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

broadcast that Basement Jaxx's forthcoming album '' Scars'' was completed and being mastered. Buxton stated that the tracks include guest appearances by

Yoko Ono Yoko Ono (, usually spelled in katakana as ; born February 18, 1933) is a Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, and peace activist. Her work also encompasses performance art and filmmaking. Ono grew up in Tokyo and moved to New York ...

Santigold Santi White (born September 25, 1976), known professionally as Santigold (formerly Santogold), is an American singer and songwriter. Her debut studio album, '' Santogold'' (2008), was released by Atlantic Records and met with widespread critica ...

Lightspeed Champion Devonté Hynes (born David Joseph Michael Hynes, 23 December 1985), also known as Blood Orange and formerly Lightspeed Champion, is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, composer and director based in New York City. From 2004 to 2006, ...

, and Yo! Majesty. The band was also interested in getting

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, model and actress. She began her Model (person), modelling career in New York State, then in Paris, working for fashion houses such as Yves Saint Laurent (brand), Yves St ...

to add vocals to the new album. The album was released in September 2009. The first single " Raindrops" preceded it in June 2009. The band recorded at the Bizspace centre in Coldharbour Lane, in

Loughborough Junction Loughborough Junction is an area in Herne Hill, South London, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is located equidistant between Herne Hill, Brixton and Camberwell providing excellent transport connections to Central London. While it is not a ...

. Also in 2009, their album ''

Zephyr In European tradition, a zephyr is a light wind or a west wind, named after Zephyrus, the Greek god or personification of the west wind. Zephyr may also refer to: Arts and media Fictional characters * Zephyr (comics), in the Marvel Comics univers ...

'' was released. In 2010, the duo released the non-album single "Dracula".

2011–present: ''Attack the Block'' and ''Junto''

2011 saw the duo collaborating twice: with

Metropole Orkest The Metropole Orkest () is a jazz and pop orchestra based in the Netherlands, and is the largest full-time ensemble of its kind in the world. A hybrid orchestra, it combines jazz, big band and classical symphony orchestra styles. Comprising bet ...

for the live album '' Basement Jaxx vs. Metropole Orkest'', and also with Steven Price for the soundtrack to the 2011 film ''

Attack the Block ''Attack the Block'' is a 2011 British Science fiction film, science fiction comedy horror film written and directed by Joe Cornish and starring John Boyega, Jodie Whittaker, and Nick Frost. Its storyline centres on a teenage street gang who ha ...

''. In November 2011, Simon revealed the pair were working on a new album – hinting that some tracks were already appearing in their DJ sets. At their first live show for several years at Chiswick House Festival in July 2012, the band performed some new material from their forthcoming album including the song "Diamonds". Possible tracks that were predicted to appear on the album according to

Pitchfork A pitchfork or hay fork is an agricultural tool used to pitch loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. It has a long handle and usually two to five thin tines designed to efficiently move such materials. The term is also applie ...

include "Make.Believe", "Let's Rock this Road Together", "Back 2 the Wild", "We R Not Alone", "Galactical", "Power 2 The People", "Mermaid of Salinas", "People of Planet Earth", and "What a Difference Your Love Makes". The band ran a contest through graphic design firm JDO, where the band will use the graphic identity (including the album and single artwork designs) that the winner created for their upcoming album and consequent promotional items. " Back 2 the Wild" was released as a single on 12 April 2013, with an accompanying video co-directed by Matt Maitland and Natalia Stuyk being uploaded to their YouTube account on 16 April, though the single ultimately did not appear on the upcoming album. "What a Difference Your Love Makes" was released as a single on 30 September 2013. The single's accompanying video was released on

Vevo Vevo LLC ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized in all caps until 2013) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available ...

on 7 August 2013. It was directed by Damian Weilers and shot in

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. On 1 May 2014, Basement Jaxx released a new song for the album called "Unicorn" on

SoundCloud SoundCloud is a German audio streaming service owned and operated by SoundCloud Global Limited & Co. KG. The service enables its users to upload, promote, and share audio. Founded in 2007 by Alexander Ljung and Eric Wahlforss, SoundCloud is ...

. On 19 May 2014, Basement Jaxx officially announced their seventh album, '' Junto'', which was released on 25 August 2014 through

Atlantic Jaxx Atlantic Jaxx Recordings is a record company founded by dance music duo Basement Jaxx. Originally based in Camberwell and then Brixton, it was an outlet for releasing Basement Jaxx music. Its first release was "EP1" which was played by DJ Tony ...

and PIAS. In July, the duo released the first lead single off the album, "

Never Say Never Never Say Never may refer to: Music * Never Say Never Festival, an annual music festival in Texas, U.S. Albums * ''Never Say Never'' (Alias album), 2009 * ''Never Say Never'' (Brandy album), 1998 * ''Never Say Never'' (Ian McLagan album) ...

". The music video, directed by Saman Kesh, is about the development of a "

twerking Twerking (; possibly from 'to work') is a type of African-American dance, dance to popular music in a sexually provocative manner involving Pelvic thrusting, throwing or thrusting the hips back or shaking the buttocks, often in a Partial squat, ...

" robot that is intended to save humanity from a world without dancing and features the robotic prototype simulation of human buttocks, "Shiri" (likely an allusion to

Siri Siri ( , backronym: Speech Interpretation and Recognition Interface) is a digital assistant purchased, developed, and popularized by Apple Inc., which is included in the iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, Apple TV, audioOS, and visionOS operating sys ...

), developed by the Japanese scientist Nobuhiro Takahashi.

Other projects

In addition to their own work, Basement Jaxx have become in-demand remixers. Their more prominent work includes remixes of "

4 My People "4 My People" is a song by American rapper Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott. It was written by Elliott, Timbaland, Eve Jeffers, Nisan Stewart, Craig Brockman and Dante "D-Man" Nolan for her third studio album '' Miss E... So Addictive'' (2001). Pr ...

" by Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliott, " Everyman… Everywoman…" by

, "

Like I Love You "Like I Love You" is the debut solo single of American singer Justin Timberlake from his debut studio album, '' Justified'' (2002), which features American hip hop duo Clipse. It was co-written by Timberlake and the Neptunes (Chad Hugo and Phar ...

" by

Justin Timberlake Justin Randall Timberlake (born January 31, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actor, record producer, and dancer. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Prince of Pop", ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' honored him as the b ...

, and " She Wants to Move" by

N.E.R.D N.E.R.D. (a backronym of No-one Ever Really Dies) was an American rock and hip-hop band, formed in Virginia Beach, Virginia, in 1994. Pharrell Williams and Chad Hugo were signed by Teddy Riley to Virgin. After producing songs for several artists ...

, which was included as a

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

on the follow-up single " Maybe." They also collaborated with

Janet Jackson Janet Damita Jo Jackson (born May 16, 1966) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and dancer. She is noted for her innovative, socially conscious and sexually provocative records, as well as elaborate stage shows. Her sound and choreogr ...

on unreleased songs for her '' Damita Jo'' album.

Sophie Ellis-Bextor Sophie Michelle Ellis-Bextor (born 10 April 1979) is an English singer and songwriter. She first came to prominence in the late 1990s as the lead vocalist of the indie rock band Theaudience. After the group disbanded, Ellis-Bextor went solo and ...

, as well as The Botz and Garold Marks, have stated they are fans and would like to collaborate with Basement Jaxx in the future. In 2021, the duo remixed Australian singer

's 2020 single " Say Something", which can currently be found on YouTube; additionally, it will be available on the deluxe version of Minogue's latest album—entitled '' Disco: Guest List Edition''—from 12 November 2021''.'' The duo were invited to write an exclusive piece of music to accompany a work of art they admired in London's

Tate Modern Tate Modern is an art gallery in London, housing the United Kingdom's national collection of international Modern art, modern and contemporary art (created from or after 1900). It forms part of the Tate group together with Tate Britain, Tate Live ...

museum,

Karel Appel Christiaan Karel Appel (; 25 April 1921 – 3 May 2006) was a Dutch painter, sculptor, and poet. He started painting at the age of fourteen and studied at the Rijksakademie in Amsterdam in the 1940s. He was one of the founders of the avant-gard ...

's "Hip, Hip, Hoorah!". The work was initially not available for sale, but later appeared on the album ''Zephyr''. In 2007, their track "Close Your Eyes", sung by

Linda Lewis Linda Ann Fredericks (27 September 1950 – 3 May 2023), better known as Linda Lewis, was an English singer, songwriter and musician. She is best known for the singles "Rock-a-Doodle-Doo" (1973) and her version of Betty Everett's "The Shoop Sh ...

, was featured in the Japanese CGI

movie ''

Vexille is a 2007 Japanese CGI anime science fiction film written, directed, and edited by Fumihiko Sori, and features the voices of Meisa Kuroki, Yasuko Matsuyuki, and Shosuke Tanihara. At the 60th Locarno International Film Festival, where ''Vexille ...

''. Felix Buxton appeared on ''

Never Mind the Buzzcocks ''Never Mind the Buzzcocks'' is a British comedy panel game show with a pop music theme. It has aired on Sky Max since September 2021, having originally aired between November 1996 and January 2015 on BBC Two. The original series was first host ...

'' on 23 September 2013 – the opening episode of Series 27, on

Noel Fielding Noel Fielding (; born 21 May 1973) is an English comedian, artist, and actor. He was part of The Mighty Boosh comedy troupe alongside Julian Barratt in the 2000s, and has been a co-presenter of ''The Great British Bake Off'' since 2017. He is kn ...

's team. In 2019, the duo composed the music for the

CITV CITV is a British children's morning programming block on ITV2 and formerly a free-to-air channel owned by ITV plc. CITV, then Children's ITV, launched on 3 January 1983 as a late afternoon programming block on the ITV network for children aged ...

animated series ''

The Rubbish World of Dave Spud ''The Rubbish World of Dave Spud'' (shortened to ''Dave Spud'') is a British children's animated series featuring the surreal adventures of the eponymous Dave Spud of Grimsby, his friends and High-rise building, tower block-dwelling family. I ...

''. The duo also collaborated with The Sydney Metropolitan Orchestra for a live re-imagining of some of their classic songs. In 2021, they composed the title music for the

CBeebies CBeebies is a British free-to-air Public service broadcasting in the United Kingdom, public broadcast children's television channel owned and operated by the BBC. It is also the brand used for all BBC content targeted for children aged six year ...

series ''What's On Your Head?''.

Musical style

In the past, Buxton's father did not let him watch ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'' and played his children Austrian music and

Japanese music In Japan, music includes a wide array of distinct genres, both traditional and modern.ref> The word for "music" in Japanese language, Japanese is 音楽 (''ongaku''), combining the kanji 音 ''on'' (sound) with the kanji 楽 ''gaku'' (music, comf ...

instead. "He was always very proud of that we didn't watch ''Top of the Pops''. ..He thought that made me hungry and want it more," he said. He was a big fan of American house music, which was difficult to get hold of in his hometown at the time. "I used to listen to

Choice FM Capital XTRA (formerly Choice FM) is a British digital radio station owned and operated by Global. It broadcasts on 96.9 and 107.1 FM in Greater London, and nationally on DAB, Global Player and television platforms. It specialises in hip ho ...

where the legends of the scene could be heard and went to Blackmarket Records in London’s

Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

to try and find the sounds I was looking for." Basement Jaxx's music has been described variously as

and

big beat Big beat is an electronic music genre that usually uses heavy breakbeats and synthesizer-generated loops and patterns – common to acid house/techno. The term has been used by the British music industry to describe music by artists such as the ...

over the course of their career.

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

's influence has also been found on their music. "I remember when we first came to America, they had to work out which

radio station Radio broadcasting is the broadcasting of audio (sound), sometimes with related metadata, by radio waves to radio receivers belonging to a public audience. In terrestrial radio broadcasting the radio waves are broadcast by a land-based rad ...

s we could go to," Buxton says. "They said that in a way we were a bit for urban stations, we were a bit for pop stations. They didn’t know where to place us and things were very segregated back then."

Awards and nominations

Antville Music Video Awards , - , 2005 , " U Don't Know Me" , Best Video , Billboard Music Awards , - , rowspan="2", 2000 , rowspan="2", Themselves , Top Hot Dance Club Play Artist , , - , Top Hot Dance Club Play Artist – Duo/Group , Brit Awards , - , rowspan="3",

2000 2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year. Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...

, Themselves , Best British Dance Act , , - , ''

'' , MasterCard British Album , , - , "

" , Best British Single , , - , rowspan="2",

2002 The effects of the September 11 attacks of the previous year had a significant impact on the affairs of 2002. The war on terror was a major political focus. Without settled international law, several nations engaged in anti-terror operation ...

, "

" , Best British Video , , - , rowspan="2", Themselves , rowspan="2", Best British Dance Act , , - ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, D&AD Awards , - , 2002 , "

" , rowspan="2", Direction , , - , 2006 , " Oh My Gosh" , DanceStar Awards , - , 2000 , Themselves , Best House Act , Denmark GAFFA Awards , - , 1999 , Themselves , Foreign New Act , Grammy Awards , - , 2005 , Kish Kash ,

Best Dance/Electronic Album The Grammy Award for Best Dance/Electronic Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards — a ceremony that was established in 1958 — honor quality dance music, dance and electronica albums in any given year. The award was first presented ...

, GQ Awards ! Ref. , - , 2001 , Themselves , Band of the Year , , Groovevolt Music and Fashion Awards , - , 2007 , '' Crazy Itch Radio'' , Best Dance Recording , International Dance Music Awards , - , rowspan=2, 2000 , rowspan=4, Themselves , Best New Dance Artist (Group) , , - , rowspan=3, Best Dance Artist (Group) , , - , 2003 , , - , 2005 , Ivor Novello Awards , - , 2000 , "

" , rowspan=2, The Ivors Dance Award , , - , 2002 , "

" , Kiss Awards , - , rowspan="3", 2005 , rowspan="2", Themselves , Hottest Producer , , - , Best Group , , - , Live at Glastonbury , Live Vibe of the Year , MTV Europe Music Awards , - , rowspan="2" ,

1999 1999 was designated as the International Year of Older Persons. Events January * January 1 – The euro currency is established and the European Central Bank assumes its full powers. * January 3 – The Mars Polar Lander is launc ...

, rowspan="3" , Themselves , Best UK & Ireland Act , , - , rowspan="2" , Best Dance , , - ,

2001 The year's most prominent event was the September 11 attacks against the United States by al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror. The United States led a Participan ...

, , - ,

, "

" , Best Video , MTV Video Music Awards Japan , - , 2002 , Themselves , Best Dance , , - , rowspan="2" , 2015 , " Back 2 the Wild" , Best Collaboration , , - , Themselves &

Team Syachihoko Team Shachi (stylized as TEAM SHACHI), formerly , is a Japanese female idol group consisting of four girls from the city of Nagoya. Overview Team Syachihoko is a sister group of two other girl groups managed by the Stardust Promotion talent a ...

, Best Live Performance , MVPA Awards , - , 2002 , "

" , Best Directional Debut , NME Awards , - , rowspan=2, 2000 , rowspan=2, Themselves , Best New Act , , - , Best Dance Act , PLUG Awards , - , 2007 , '' Crazy Itch Radio'' , Electronic/Dance Album Of The Year , Popjustice 20 Quid Music Prize , - , 2005 , " Oh My Gosh" , Best British Pop Single , Q Awards , - , 1999 , Themselves , Best New Act , , - , 2001 , "

" , Best Video , UK Music Video Awards , - , 2014 , "Mermaids of Salinas" , Best Pop Video – Budget , Viva Comet Awards , - , 2002 , "

" , Best International Video ,

Discography

* ''

'' (1999) * ''

'' (2001) * '' Kish Kash'' (2003) * '' Crazy Itch Radio'' (2006) * '' Scars'' (2009) * ''

'' (2009) * '' Junto'' (2014)

References

External links

*
Artist Site at Ultra Records

Artist Site at Interscope Records
{{Authority control Astralwerks artists English house music duos English dance music groups Electronic music groups from London English electronic dance music duos British male musical duos English club DJs English DJ duos DJs from London English remixers Brit Award winners Grammy Award winners for dance and electronic music XL Recordings artists Interscope Records artists Ultra Records artists PIAS Recordings artists Musical groups established in 1994 1994 establishments in England Big beat groups English electronic rock musical groups

History

Background

1992–1998: Formation

1999–2001: ''Remedy''

2001–2004: ''Rooty''

2003–2005: ''Kish Kash'' and ''The Singles''

2006–2010: ''Crazy Itch Radio'' and ''Scars''

2011–present: ''Attack the Block'' and ''Junto''

Other projects

Musical style

Awards and nominations

Discography

See also

References

External links