On the day of his Australian album launch, Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo caught up with us to talk about his collaboration with Paul McCartney, the evolution of the Beetroots, Blogs, the past and how he has avoided being tagged under the ‘EDM’ bracket.
How do you compare the early days of The Bloody Beetroots to now?
It’s an evolution, a total evolution of character and project and music. The early days I was working out what The Bloody Beetroots project was, now I feel like the definition has never been stronger. But it will change again, it has to!
There was a big association with losing inhibition and smuttiness in the early days, now you appear much more refined in suits. Why the change?
There is still a lot of lost inhibition in the project – have you seen The Bloody Beetroots LIVE? I have zero inhibition on stage! The project has matured and the new branding reflects this, but the ideals of The Bloody Beetroots – revolution, art, music, culture. These crucial centres of what the project is about will always remain at the core.
Do you think blogs played a part in the success of The Bloody Beetroots story?
I think everyone who has ever had entered into The Bloody Beetroots world has played a part. The fan who buys every ticket, song and album, the radio station that played the song once, and the blog who covered a single today or three years ago – they all became a part of my world. For how long and what for doesn’t really matter, once they step into my world they contribute and that makes them part of the story.
What role do blogs have in the modern dance music world?
Blogs are the new media, they’ve replaced magazines especially for the younger generations.
Which track are you most proud of on the new album and why?
I’m so proud of all of them. Working with Sir Paul McCartney was a particularly stand out achievement.
More specifically how did Sir Paul McCartney get involved in the new album ‘HIDE’?
About a year ago I was producing with Youth from Killing Joke and he said to me “Bob, who would like to collaborate with for your new album?” and I said “working with Paul McCartney would be wonderful” and he replied, “I will send you the parts of a song by The Fireman and see what you can do”. My personal ethos is to “destroy to create” and that’s exactly what I did, I completely rewrote the harmony, changed the melody of Paul’s lyrics. Both Youth and Paul loved it, so I decided to re-record and re-play all the instruments (grand piano, guitars, bass and drums) at Rak Studios in London. I sent the new version back to Paul and it was Paul who then decided to re-sing the song and invited me into his studio. Voila.
Which three tracks in The Bloody Beetroots LIVE get the best responses from the crowds and why?
In the new LIVE show I perform virtually the whole album through the set and it all gets a great response! I open with Spank and that normally goes mental and then Warp and Chronicles of a Fallen Love always get a huge response.
How have The Bloody Beetroots avoided the ‘EDM’ tag?
Easy. I don’t create EDM.
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