Basement Jaxx

Two Brixton club promoters who made house music with funk, Latin and punk in it, from Remedy in 1999 to a Grammy for Kish Kash.

Origin: Brixton, London, England
Years active: 1994-present
Genres: house, big beat, dance
Labels: Wall of Sound, Virgin, XL, Astralwerks, Atlantic Jaxx, PIAS

Brixton

Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe met in 1993 through a mutual friend in a pub in Clapham, London, and bonded over New York house music. Ratcliffe had been releasing white label records since 1992 and had set up a basic studio in a friend's mother's basement. Their first record, EP1, came out on Wall of Sound and sold over 1,000 copies. It was played on American radio by Tony Humphries in New York.

In 1994 they started a club night in Brixton, South London, and it gave the duo its name. It moved between venues including The George IV, The Crypt and The Junction, with guests such as DJ Sneak and Daft Punk, and it grew into a club called Rooty. They opened for Daft Punk's Daftendirektour, made the single Fly Life with the singer Corrina Joseph for Virgin in 1997, and then signed to XL.

Remedy

Their debut album, Remedy, came out on 10 May 1999 and reached number 4 in the UK. Ratcliffe told Rolling Stone that most dance music was shiny and robotic, and the title was chosen as an antidote to what the duo saw as its poisons. Buxton said it was always about togetherness, which he called the appeal of house music. Rolling Stone later described a return to the Paradise Garage and early Chicago house, pushed in dirtier directions that the pair called punk garage.

Four singles followed: Red Alert, Rendez-Vu, Jump n' Shout and Bingo Bango. Red Alert, Rendez-Vu and Bingo Bango each reached number 1 on the US Dance Club Play chart. NME's Ted Kessler wrote that it was probably as good a dance album as anyone in the British Isles had made that decade, and Daft Punk's Thomas Bangalter said it was better than theirs.

Rooty and Kish Kash

Rooty followed on 25 June 2001. It took its name from their Brixton club, and its cover showed Snowflake, the albino gorilla. Romeo, sung by Kele Le Roc, reached number 6 in the UK, and Where's Your Head At, built on Gary Numan samples, reached number 9 in the UK and Canada. AllMusic's John Bush gave the album five stars, while Pitchfork's 2001 review said the duo had taken kitsch too far. Pitchfork later put Romeo on its list of the top 500 tracks of the 2000s. They won Best Dance Act at the 2002 Brit Awards.

Kish Kash (2003) was recorded between March 2002 and August 2003 in their new studio in Loughborough Junction. After touring Rooty they came home exhausted and homesick, and wanted to rely less on grooves and samples and more on songwriting, often starting with just a voice and a guitar. Guests included Lisa Kekaula, Meshell Ndegeocello, Siouxsie Sioux, Dizzee Rascal and JC Chasez. Good Luck used a 16-piece orchestra and reached number 12 in the UK. The album was nominated for the 2004 Mercury Prize and won the first Grammy for Best Dance/Electronic Album. Pitchfork's Scott Plagenhoef called it the most consistently entrancing record of their career.

Since

In 2005 they headlined the Pyramid stage at Glastonbury when Kylie Minogue had to pull out, and the compilation The Singles reached number 1. Crazy Itch Radio (2006) featured Linda Lewis and Robyn, followed by Scars and Zephyr in 2009. In 2011 they reworked their catalogue with conductor Jules Buckley and the Metropole Orkest, and wrote the score for Attack the Block with Steven Price. Junto came in 2014.

Buxton told the Guardian in 2013 that after more than a decade of writing, recording and touring they took their foot off the gas for a while. They have remixed Missy Elliott, Yoko Ono, Justin Timberlake and, in 2021, Kylie Minogue, and they still DJ.

Members

Felix Buxton production, vocals (1994-present)
Simon Ratcliffe production (1994-present)

Records

Remedy 1999 · XL
The debut album, number 4 in the UK, with three US dance chart number ones and an 88 on Metacritic.
Rooty 2001 · XL, Astralwerks
The second album, named for their Brixton club and fronted by a gorilla, with Romeo and Where's Your Head At.
Kish Kash 2003 · XL, Astralwerks
The third album, a song-based record with guest singers that won the first Grammy for Best Dance/Electronic Album.
Crazy Itch Radio 2006 · XL
The fourth album, with Linda Lewis, Robyn and Lily Allen among the singers.

Songs

Red Alert Remedy · 1999
The first single from Remedy: a P-Funk influenced club track that reached number 5 in the UK and topped the US dance chart.
Rendez-Vu Remedy · 1999
The opening track of Remedy and its second single, number 4 in the UK.
Bingo Bango Remedy · 1999
A Latin-flavored dance track that closed their live sets and later got a Viennese waltz arrangement.
Romeo Rooty · 2001
The first single from Rooty, sung by Kele Le Roc, with a Bollywood video.
Where's Your Head At Rooty · 2001
Built on Gary Numan samples, with a video about monkeys and brain transfer.
Good Luck Kish Kash · 2003
The Kish Kash opener, sung by Lisa Kekaula with a 16-piece orchestra, and the sound of the BBC's Euro 2004 coverage.

Daft Punk, Gary Numan, Kylie Minogue, Yoko Ono

Where to go next

Official

Basement Jaxx The duo's own site, with DJ dates, merchandise and the latest release.

Reference

Basement Jaxx Career overview from the Brixton club night to Junto and the remixes.
Remedy Tracklist, credits, samples, charts and reviews for the debut album.
Rooty Singles, samples, credits and reception for the second album.
Kish Kash The making of the third album, guests, singles and awards.
Red Alert The single's reception, two videos and chart run.

Writing and criticism

Pitchfork on Kish Kash Scott Plagenhoef's 2003 review.
Pitchfork on Rooty Malcolm Seymour's 2001 review, a dissenting voice.
The 30 Greatest EDM Albums of All Time: Remedy Rolling Stone's entry for Remedy at number 13.

Interviews

Basement Jaxx: 'I wanted to make all the songs about UFOs' Guardian interview from 2013 about the break before Junto.
Felix Buxton: 'I wanted to concentrate on being human' Guardian interview from 2014 about Junto, film scores and working with Yoko Ono.
Basement Jaxx's favourite tracks The duo pick tracks for a Guardian feature, including a Red Alert remix and the Metropole Orkest project.

Sources

Basement Jaxx, Wikipedia
Basement Jaxx: 'I wanted to make all the songs about UFOs', The Guardian (2013-10-05)
Basement Jaxx's Felix Buxton: 'I wanted to concentrate on being human', The Guardian (2014-08-15)
Basement Jaxx: Kish Kash, Pitchfork (2003-10-21)
Basement Jaxx: Rooty, Pitchfork (2001-09-18)
The 30 Greatest EDM Albums of All Time: Basement Jaxx, Remedy, Rolling Stone (2012-08-02)
Basement Jaxx, Basement Jaxx