2011 Biography
“Don't take much to bring me round / Keep playing that same song on the radio / I close my ears and hear that sound / Our laughter sings across the table” Little Fix, 'Be Home' -
Little Fix was born out of a desire to offer just that to the world - an escape from the daily grind to an alternative reality where freedom and liberty are key. Whatever those words mean to you, whatever you need; your own little fix.
The musical journeys of Rhianna Kenny and Bill Laurence started off in decidedly different places - young pop diva from Leeds, in the top 20 as a teenager and London-bred jazz virtuoso, master of a wealth of instruments – but a chance meeting set off the musical spark that burns bright at the heart of Little Fix. With a shared CV that includes spells performing with Corinne Bailey-Rae, Ian Brown, Faithless, Jamiroquai, Finlay Quaye, Róisín Murphy and Snoop Dogg, they're accustomed to life on the bigger stages – and, from the outset, it's clear that's where the duo's music seems destined.
A meeting of two eminently musical minds, Little Fix is the sound of soaring, soulful pop melody colliding with a wealth of percussive ideas, out-of-this world piano lines and cutting-edge production nous (“We're fascinated by the idea of nature vs machine”, says Rhianna) – not to mention an array of strange instruments picked up by Bill on his travels. The Guzheng (a Chinese zither), Ektara (Indian “one string” instrument), Djembe drum and Sitar all have a place in the Little Fix mix, and in a pop culture where most 'popular' songs sound identical, as if they're all drawn from one sonic pallette, it's a welcome relief to hear music that's as ambitious as it is catchy; once heard, often whistled, but also daring to be different.
“Listening to the radio is frustrating,” says Rhianna, “Because at the moment the music industry is too frightened to take any risks and just seems to look for imitations of what's gone before. There's no soul or truth.” There's certainly plenty of that here, with Rhianna exploring topics like the dissolution of family (the ethereal ballad 'Be Home'), nervous breakdowns (the synth-driven 'Your Alarm') and the difficulty in expressing your sexuality as a young person ('Human Love'). Her love for Kate Bush as a wordsmith, meanwhile, is exemplified on 'Nobody Is'. Powerful and shot through with emotion, it's that voice which draws you in first.
“I'm really interested in good lyrics, I find writing a very cathartic process because I'm dealing with feelings and situations that I've experienced, that have had a genuine impact on me. It all comes out in the wash.” Shared loves between the two include Paul Simon's masterpiece 'Graceland', the album they first bonded over, pop auteurs David Byrne and Brian Eno are high on the list, cutting edge contemporary pop like The Knife a firm favourite, Salif Keita, the inimitable Prince, Fleetwood Mac... the true classics, then. It's that level of widespread recognition and connection with similarly sized audiences to which Little Fix aspire.
Says Rhianna: “I'd be lying if I said I didn't want to connect with a lot of people. Watching a band that can really bring people together, that's a special feeling and what we're aiming for. It's music written with festival crowds in mind.”
Don't be surprised to see them in front of such crowds sooner rather than later. Make no mistake: big things lie ahead for Little Fix.