James Brighton
photo by Hugo Campan

Klaxons' James Righton announces debut solo album, shares "The Performer" video

Klaxons broke up in 2014, and then vocalist/keyboardist James Righton started making music as Shock Machine, and now he’s getting ready to release his debut solo album, The Performer, on March 20 via the Soulwax-run label DEEWEE.

“Am I this showman up on stage? Or am I the dad changing nappies?,” James asks about the title track, which is out now. “Am I living in the moment and doing something enjoyable? Or am I fucking miserable? I find that really interesting: this idea of putting on a suit and becoming this other thing.”

The vibe of that suit very much comes across in this loungey song and in its video, which was filmed by Hugo Capman, who says, “I was really interested in the idea of using a live performance as the basis for a music video. We even recorded James’ performance of the song to use to make it as close as possible to his live show. I wanted the video to delve into what music is at its most existential point: a human performance and a live experience. James is a great showman. He has so much energy, attitude and style. We filmed 43 consecutive takes to create something unique, and by the end of the process it drifted into a kind of abstract, surreal MTV performance.”

Watch/listen below. The new album was written, performed and produced by James, with help from James Ford on drums and bass, string arrangements by High Llamas’ Sean O’Hagan, sax by Bryan Ferry collaborator Jorja Chalmers, and additional string arrangements by Josephine Stephenson (Thom Yorke, Arctic Monkeys, Ex:Re).

James Brighton Performer

Tracklist
1. The Performer
2. Edie
3. See The Monster
4. Devil Is Loose
5. Lessons In Dreamland, Pt. 1
6. Start
7. Are You With Me?
8. Heavy Heart
9. Lessons In Dreamland, Pt. 2