IDLES reveal Notorious B.I.G.’s influence on ‘Crawler’
IDLES have revealed Notorious B.I.G. had an influence on one of the songs on their latest album, ‘Crawler’, in a new behind-the-scenes video.
The band shared the new ‘making of’ video yesterday (December 21), sharing a glimpse into the sessions for the record with producer Kenny Beats.
At one point in the video, frontman Joe Talbot discusses the song ‘Crawl!’, which is nominated for Best Rock Performance at the 2023 Grammys. “My vocals in that is me having a conversation with different people and it’s that thing where I just pretended to myself and everyone else I was alright,” he explains. “So it’s all about being fucked and crawling through life but telling everyone you’re fine all the time.”
Talbot continued to explain how Notorious B.I.G. had specifically influenced that track. “I wanted to do it like [‘Ready To Die’ track] ‘Gimme The Loot’ – you know where it [sounds like] two people and it’s the same octave, but he’s [using a] low and high timbre,” he said, referring to the rapper’s manipulation of his voice to make it sound like two different people on the track. “So he just uses his throat and his diaphragm between two people and it’s fucking sick.”
Meanwhile, earlier this month, the band celebrated half a decade of their debut album ‘Brutalism’ by releasing a new edition of the record. It featured alternate artwork designed by Talbot and was pressed on cherry red vinyl.
Digital versions also included a live album, taken from the band’s secret set on the BBC Introducing Stage during Glastonbury this year, in which they performed ‘Brutalism’ in full.
“What started as a headstone slab of indulgence and unrest became a long journey of beauty, forgiveness, and gratitude,” Talbot wrote in a statement announcing the reissue. “Little did we know that it was not just a headstone but the foundations we were building, for a house full to the brim with loving human beings. Thank you so so much.”
Last month, Florence + The Machine shared a remix of ‘Dance Fever’ track ‘Heaven Is Here’ by IDLES, with a club-ready reimagining helmed by guitarist Mark Bowen that more than doubled the song’s original runtime. Florence Welch called IDLES “one of [her] favourite bands” in a statement, saying she had been wanting to work with the group for some time.
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Rhian Daly
NME
