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Last time Gigwise met Calvin Harris, his future as the new creator of disco was uncertain. On the eve of the release of his debut single, the nation was still trying to make their minds up whether ‘Acceptable In The 80s’ was a good solid slice of novelty pop or the start of something interesting. And as for Harris, was he an reinventor of electro-pop or merely a flash in the pan? We’re still not sure, but let us fast-forward six months where Harris is marking his third single ‘Merrymaking At My Place’ with a record-breaking feat.
Inspired by his ode to the lowly house party, there is set to be a plethora of Calvin Harris influenced gatherings happening in a bid to mark as many house parties as possible going on simultaneously around the country. Being the nice guy he is, Harris will be playing an acoustic set at one of them and compensating the lucky host with a fat wad of cash for their trouble. Not bad, hey.
Today Harris has a new motto: Lets all be friends! We agree it’s the best rule of the house party. After all, breakages aren’t fun. With the bad press house parties have generated of late, Harris’s new project aims to salvage their reputation by injecting some positive vibes into the events taking place on August 18. To generate more excitement into the proceedings, Harris’s band of ‘merrymakers’ will be allowed to register, discuss and swap ideas for events happening from Brighton to Dumfries. So what are the essentials of a good house party? “Crisps. Prawn cocktail,” Harris laughs. “Doritos as well… err… good people. Not too rowdy, relaxed with maybe a meal involved. More of a chill out with a buffet maybe.” Three people that he’d certainly want to be there would be Vanessa Feltz, Jeremy Kyle and Andre 3000, who he lists as ideal guests for the ‘good conversation’. Random, but that’s Harris - a silly mixture of retro naff and neon cool.
”Surprisingly, not much has changed,” admits Harris when prompted about his fast rise to fame. “More people know who I am, but there’s not much more work… which is bizarre. But, I still do the same things, still eat sandwiches, still go to the toilet.” Even if you do need a VIP pass to get to it. From the beginning of 2007, the 23-year-old producer has found himself on line-ups everywhere. He supported Faithless on their vast UK tour a few months back and when Paul Oakenfold was forced to cancel his headline slot at Liverpool’s Cream, it was Harris who had stepped in to save the day. Having once told us that he'd accept any festival slots offered to him, he’s not done too badly. He's played to a packed John Peel Tent at Glastonbury, appealed to the crossover kids at T in the Park and topped the bill on Freevolution’s Innovation stage in Newcastle, as well as practically headlining rave-fest Global Gathering.
“Experiences have been varied,” he says thoughtfully. “Some were good, some not so good. Some I thought were good ended up not being so good. Glastonbury wasn’t the most enjoyable gig but T In The Park was great, they had to shut the tent there was so many people. It’s all been an enjoyable experience.” So, it was about time that Harris announced his own tour - due to take place around the UK later in the year. “For those who haven’t seen me before should expect my songs played by a band, but with more energy,” Harris says. “Those that have seen me can expect a longer show, more flashing lights, everything stepped up a bit more with us playing better and looking better… yep, an all round prettier show.”
Having his synth-tastic tunes soundtracking everything from children’s TV to T4, it’s a surprise to hear Harris begin to recently transform ‘The Girls’ and ‘Merrymaking At My Place’ into acoustic gems. “There are only some tracks on the album that work in that way, its good to do something different for radio or TV,” Harris says. “They’ve been well received, but they’ll always be some that say ‘by the way, you’re shit and can’t sing’. I know I can’t sing. I’m not a singer, I’m a producer.”
It’s his talents on the mixing desk that have even dragged him into tabloid territory. Last time we spoke, Harris was modestly battling rumours that he and Kylie Minogue are good mates after he contributed to the pop princess’s eagerly awaited new album. Once the tabloids got hold of it, Harris suddenly became Minogue’s new love to the surprise of his long-term girlfriend. Has it gotten to the point where the press piss him off? “Not in the slightest,” Harris laughs. “I've had a girlfriend long before all this madness started, but I cherish those reports. It’s bizarre and very funny, the extent that I wrote a few tracks for her is some big deal for me anyway.”
What a tale to tell the grandkids.
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