Cheap Thrills boss unveiling a massive new album
Welcome to DMCWORLD Mr Harvey. Storming new tune ‘Better Than A BMX’ creating mayhem at the moment with a a very cool video featuring pro-BMX riders and directed by the BMX Adidas and Converse Office advert teams. You don’t get much cooler than that. So how are your Cherry Pickers and Elephant Glide after that day of filming?
“Well I’m pretty agile but BMX stunts are something I like to watch rather than do! Vince (the singer) is a BMX nut and he had no idea we were making this video so he was blown away when I sent it to him.”
The tune is taken from your debut album ‘Pick Me Up, Sort Me Out, Calm Me Down’ which is out in May – tell us about the album…
“It’s basically me putting out my sound as it is right now. I wanted it to sound like me so it stood up as a unique piece of music/art which I think it does. It’s like a painting for me, a unique picture that only I could create. I feel like that about all the albums I have made, you keep coming back to them adding tracks going back and changing bits until it feels done. Pretentious enough for you?”
How hard a process was choosing the final cuts, I remember reading an interview with you last year where you said you had something like 40 tracks already made after you’d been making a tune a day?
“Yeah I hit about 35 tracks, in various states of completion. I just discarded the tracks that didn’t feel right and it naturally came down to the last 13 tracks of the album. But there was some rubbish in there that just wasn’t “Hervé” material.”
What is your current top 10 you are playing?
1.Hervé – How Can I Live Without You (Make It Right) Club Mix – Cheap Thrills
2.Knife Party – Fire Hive
3.Death Rose Cult – Badman- unsigned
4.Afghan Headspin – Drop The Bass – Cheap Thrills
5.Pixel Fist – Let Yourself Go – unsigned
6.Death Rose Cult – Voodoo – unsigned
7.Zinc – Sprung – Rinse
8.Moonbootica – My Hot Dope (Hervé edit) -Cheap Thrills
9.Rack n Ruin – Slow Down – Cheap Thrills
10.D1 – Ace of Spades – Cheap Thrills
You are head honcho at Cheap Thrills, one of our favourite labels out there. What are the plans for 2012 release wise, who should we be looking out for?
“Thank you very much, it’s good to hear feedback from people who appreciate the variety of the music I put out on it. The label’s moving into some album acts this year (still plenty of singles too!), we are just about to release Detboi’s ‘Darkside’’ album on Deep Thrills. Also just signed Mighty Mouse back to Cheap Thrills, his album has the potential to be a kind of ‘Moon Safari’ (Airs first album) of disco house. On the bassier side of things we’ve got release forthcoming from D1, Afghan Headspin, Rack n Ruin, Pixel Fist and probably a Baxta album at some point. I would also really like to find some interesting bands this year.”
How did you get into dance music in the first place, what were the early clubs and DJs you were checking out as a kid?
“A friends big brother used to listen to pirate radio, house/acid house and rave stuff. I found it fascinating, it sounded so strange, futuristic and exciting. I began to research how to make it and realised my Atari st could be the beginning of a career in making music! I mainly liked Andrew Weatherall, Aphex Twin, Joey Beltram, Jeff Mills, Fabio and Grooverider, Masters At Work and Armand van Helden to name a few. I definitely would like to get the first two to remix something from my album.”
So we head back to your gaff after the club, what are the big Herve Back To Mine Old Skool 10 you spin us…
1.Aphex Twin – Heliosphan
2.Boards of Canada – Beautiful Place in the Country
3. Brian Eno – 1/1
4.Coctuea Twins – Ivo
5.Burial – Archangel
6. Four Tet – anything from his Pause album
7.Orb – Blue Room
8.Washed Out -Amor Fati
9. Maria Minerva – California Scheming
10.Goldroom – Nights in Night
What was the best gig/festival for you in 2011?
“Secret Garden Party and Lovebox were both incredible gigs, really awesome…”
DJ heroes?
“I don’t think I have any, I’m more on the music maker side of things these days. I think Andrew Weatherall would be the closest thing.”
What is your worst claim to fame?
“I’m also a DJ”
Who is the coolest person on your mobile phone?
“Probably my girlfriend.”
What is the finest record you have ever played to a dancefloor?
“God knows! When I was a little kid prob something like Tears For Fears or Michael Jackson!”
Best album in your collection?
“That changes every day! At the moment I’m listening to loads of Brian Eno (Apollo) Harold Budd (The Pearl) and Clams Casino.”
What is your biggest vice?
“Wine.”
If you could collaborate with anyone dead or alive in the studio on a track, who would it be?
“Aphex Twin or Bill Withers.”
‘Better Than A BMX’ is out on 4th March with Hervé’s debut artist album ‘Pick Me Up, Sort Me Out, Calm Me Down’ out on 21st May on Cheap Thrills’
