Hot on the heels of his wonderful ‘It’s Not Funny’ album, Los Angeles based ‘nu-disco wizard’ LUXXURY closes out this decade with a brand new single named ‘What Are We Gonna Do?’, a great 80s’ boogie influenced-song with a modern twist, that features funky bass-lines, groovy guitar, mixed with majestic keys and captivating vocals. The whole results in a real masterpiece!
Listen 'What Are We Gonna Do?' :
Having previously released music as Baron von Luxxury, LUXXURY has been making waves in the disco community over the past two years, with releases on French imprint Kitsuné, Future Disco or Eskimo among others. He makes ‘dance music for adults’ with raw bass-lines plucked with grown-man finesse, and a mastery of keyboard and synth native only to those who lived through the late ’70s/early ’80s. Dust in the glitter that vibrates in the space between string stabs, bongo slaps, and guitar jabs—even while the steady pulse and astral effects feel beamed in from a more cybernetic future Los Angeles.
That’s where the nu-disco wizard born Blake Robin dwells, of course. That is, when he isn’t on the road opening for Giorgio Moroder or the Juan MacLean; leading his dapper band on late-night TV; remixing live at DJ sets in Mexico City, New York and Berlin; or seeding his Dublab radio show/Spotify playlist Good Morning, Disco! with gems that span four decades of groove-first music. In fact, you might’ve first felt his deft touch via the controversial Luxxury Edits —where he uses the multi-tracks (stems) of classic hits to create dubby slow-disco versions —but his original music is no less arresting.
LUXXURY has come into his own with a sound that reflects not only a newfound earnestness of expression but a lifelong love for the craft of disco. We had the chance to meet him for a few questions, to know a bit more about this huge release, discuss music, and find out about what is to come from LUXXURY in the next couple of months. All is below!
Hey Blake, thanks for your time! Let’s begin with yourself, can you tell us a bit more about LUXXURY?
I’ve been making music as LUXXURY for a little while now. It started as a sort of an electroclash thing, morphed into synthpop with a touch of yacht rock; and recently I’ve swung hard into the disco lane, with some boogie and funk thrown in for good measure.
You’ve made a great impression with the just-out ‘What Are We Gonna Do?’. What’s your recipe to cook these treats? Any inspirations?
Thank you. I’ve been DJing on Dublab radio for the past few years and digging for lesser known gems for my show has definitely been a big influence – for example Nigerian funk, french Synthpop, and Turkish pop.
Following your inspirations, any artist you would love to work with?
Lots of people on my dream collab list but after a few years of some really fun songs with some cool folks I’m taking a break from collaborating for a little while. “What Are We Gonna Do?” is the first song that’s 100% me – writing, producing, mixing – in a few years, so I’m quite proud of it. But I’ll certainly go back to cowriting soon, I love both ways of working.
After an impressive year 2019, what can we expect for 2020? Do you have some secret plans to share with us?
I’ve got dozens of nearly done songs, some more weird bedroom pop disco like the new single, and then I have a bunch more that are purely dancefloor focused. I can’t wait to get them out!
Quick bonus-question, what makes a good party for LUXXURY?
Negronis are tasty!
