After forming in 2009 and instantly causing a stir, Django Django took a two year sabbatical any many thought they’d blinked and missed a potentially sensational band. Yet this year they came back, to massive critical acclaim, their eponymous album garnering universally positive reviews, with many simply remarking that they had not heard anything so original in a long time. Indeed, categorizing their sound is not easy; a mix of classic guitar, tribal drums and contemporary synths and effects, all wrapped up in a ball of boundless energy and slick production, which makes them so easy to listen to. Dixon, the band’s token Englishman and the rest of the band (two Scots and an Irishman) are currently based in London, yet at the time of writing they are making their US debut and will also be touring Europe and the UK in the coming months, with a date at Fibbers on the 11th June.
FN: Your eponymous album has been out for a while now to massive critical acclaim, some labeling you the sound of 2012. Has it been everything you hoped, and are you happy with the reception?
JD: Yeah, the response has been really overwhelming so far. We were just excited about finally releasing it and I don’t think any of us were expecting the response that we got.
FN: You have been making music for a good few years now and you played Radio 1’s big weekend in 2010, but your album has only just come out. Why the wait?!
JD: When we were playing those early gigs we didn’t really have a full albums worth of material, so we were still writing and recording songs back then. We also recorded the album ourselves and so there was a bit of a learning curve we went through which took time. Then we signed to Because and they needed time again to promote the album and get things in place for the release so all these things just meant that it seemed like a long wait for the album release.
FN: What music were you into growing up and has that influenced the album in any way?
JD: Yeh hugely, I think the album is really a mix of all the different records and music that we all listened to growing up. I grew up listening to my mum and dad’s record collection and a lot of that music is still with me. I was obsessed with The Stone Roses when I was younger too who were a massive influence on me pesonally but we are all into so much different stuff that it’s all filtered into the album in some way.
FN: Do you think that the experimental nature of the album has helped create the uplifting feel to the record, which seems to be without restraints throughout?
JD: We didn’t really have any idea of what the album was going to sound like before we started it. If someone had an idea for a song we would just work on it until we had something we liked. We all went to art school so we were all really used to being experimental and not worrying too much about the outcome and I think that way of working really influenced the record. Dave producing it meant that we had more control over the sound of the record.
FN: Your songs do not just feature your standard drum kit – we hear wood block, maracas, tambourines and more, which all together creates distinctive rhythms. Was it a conscious decision to make your music so percussion heavy?
JD: I think because Dave (Maclean) produced the album and him being a drummer it was always going to lean towards a rythm and percussion driven sound. But it also just gives the album more texture. Rather than it just being guitars and drums there are loads of odd sounds in there and I think we just wanted to experiment with lots of different sound.
JD: How do you write your lyrics? Do you have a central theme or any particular pattern to them, or is it just a collection of random ideas and words?!
FN: It’s mainly been Dave and Vinny (Neff) who sit down and work out what fits to the song. Then a narrative usually appears, there might be one line that reminds us of a scenario and we will just go with it. We are also all really into cinema so that’s probably why most of the lyrics end up telling a story.
FN: The front cover of the album is very visually striking and you like the use of visual effects in your live shows. What’s the story behind the album cover and how much did your art school roots influence the art?
JD: Well Dave did the art work for the album before we’d even written any songs so it became a kind of starting point for the record. We’d have it there and I suppose it guided us through the writing process. It’s a collage of two chemicals under a microscope and dunes but it kind of takes on a kind of form, like a spirit or something. But yes, going to art school means that we want to be involved in the visual side of the band too. It’s really important for us to be as creative as we can and be involved as we can.
FN: Europe, especially France, has taken especially well to your music. Why do you think this is and have you noticed a difference in the audiences outside the UK at any of your gigs (if at all)?
JD: Well our label has strong ties in France which is why we’ve been going over there a lot and they’ve done a great job of getting the record to different countries around Europe. Audiences can change from gig to gig more than from country to country I think. We supported Metronomy in France and the great thing about doing the shows (other than playing with an amazing band) was that people would come in early to see the support bands too. We also get given amazing food and wine in France, not that bags of crisps and bottles of coke doesn’t go down well on our UK shows.
FN: How is life on tour? Do you find you get home sick, and what do you to keep yourself amused?
JD: I can’t speak for the others but I’ve been enjoying it so far. We’ve not really spent much time away from London on the tours so the home sickness hasn’t kicked in yet, we also had a van with a PS2 fitted in the back so we got seriously addicted to Pro evolution soccer which kept us occupied for long stretches.