James Righton | |
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Background information | |
Birth name | James Nicholas Righton |
Born | Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England | 25 August 1983
Genres | |
Occupations |
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Instruments |
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Years active | 2005–present |
Labels |
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Formerly of | Klaxons |
Spouse(s) | |
Relatives | Will Knightley (father-in-law) Sharman Macdonald (mother-in-law) |
James Nicholas Righton (born 25 August 1983) is an English musician. As well as singing, he was the keyboard-player of the London-based new rave band Klaxons, which disbanded in 2015. [3] In March 2016, Righton announced his new project Shock Machine with a video directed by Saam Farahmand. [4] Righton released his first solo album The Performer on Soulwax's Deewee label in March 2020.
Righton was born in Leamington Spa, England. Righton's father, also a musician, encouraged him to be a part of several bands that performed regularly while he was still at Stratford-upon-Avon High School. [5]
While attending the High School at Stratford-upon-Avon, Righton met Simon Taylor-Davis and taught him to play the guitar. [6] While working towards a career as a performer, Righton worked as a music teacher. [7] He attended the Benicàssim festival, where he again met Simon Taylor-Davis, and soon after that the two met Jamie Reynolds in New Cross, London. [8] When Reynolds lost his job, he bought a studio kit with his redundancy money. The three men began to record and perform live under the name of "Klaxons (Not Centaurs)", a name inspired by Filippo Tommaso Marinetti's The Futurist Manifesto . [9] In 2005 this band played with Finnigan Kidd as drummer, [10] until Kidd left and Steffan Halperin joined in 2006, [11] Around this time, the band began using the shorter name of "Klaxons". [12]
Klaxons signed to Polydor Records in 2006. [13] After many successful tours, they announced in 2014 that their current tour would be their last.
James Righton signed to Marathon Artists /House Anxiety in 2016 under the moniker, Shock Machine. Righton's new project was announced in March with the release of the video for the first single, Shock Machine, directed by Saam Farahmand. [14] The eponymous introduction to this project was recorded in a cabin in the south of France with producer James Ford. The first single Shock Machine, released on 8 March 2016 with accompanying video directed by Saam Farahmand, was featured on his four-track debut EP Open Up The Sky. After the release of the EP, Righton released the single Lost in the Mystery. Remixes of Open Up the Sky and Shock Machine by Soulwax, and Beyond the Wizards Sleeve were also released. [15] Shock Machine's debut album was released on 25 August 2017. [16]
Righton scored the short film William by Simon Amstell in 2015. He went on to score Amstell's film Benjamin in 2018, and compose music for Amstell's 2019 Netflix stand up special "Set Free".
He worked alongside Tom Rowlands for The Life of Galileo, directed by Joe Wright at the Young Vic in 2017.
In 2021 it was announced that James would be working with ABBA on their ABBA Voyage concert shows in London.
In February 2011, Righton began dating actress Keira Knightley [17] and on 4 May 2013 they were married in Mazan, Vaucluse, in the south of France. [18] Since early 2014 they have lived in Canonbury, Islington. [19] They have two daughters. [20]
Canonbury is an area in London, forming part of the London Borough of Islington. It is located within the area between Essex Road, Upper Street and Cross Street and either side of St Paul's Road in North London.
Keira Christina Knightley OBE is an English actress. Known for her work in independent films and blockbusters, particularly period dramas, she has received numerous accolades, including nominations for two Academy Awards, two BAFTAs, three Golden Globes, and a Laurence Olivier Award. In 2018, she was appointed an OBE at Buckingham Palace for services to drama and charity.
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Soulwax are a Belgian electronic band and DJ/production collective from Ghent, who formed in 1995. Centred around brothers David and Stephen Dewaele, other current members include Igor and Laima Cavalera, and Stefaan Van Leuven. The group first rose to prominence following the release of their album Much Against Everyone's Advice, and have released five studio albums to date. Outside of Soulwax, the Dewaeles also perform DJ sets under the moniker 2manydjs.
New rave is a genre of music described by The Guardian as "an in-yer-face, DIY disco riposte to the sensitive indie rock touted by bands like Bloc Party." It is most commonly applied to a British-based music scene between 2005 and late 2008 of fast-paced electronica-influenced indie music that celebrated the late 1980s Madchester and rave scenes through the use of neon colours and using the term 'raving' to refer to going nightclubbing.
Pull Tiger Tail were an indie rock band based in London and originating from Stratford-upon-Avon and Edinburgh; they formed in 2006 while attending Goldsmiths College.
Myths of the Near Future is the debut album by English rock band Klaxons. It was released on 29 January 2007 through Polydor Records. Following their debut single, the band coined the term "new rave" to refer to their sound; not long after their second single, they signed to Polydor Records. They recorded their debut album with James Ford of Simian Mobile Disco at The Premises and Parkgate Studios. Myths of the Near Future, which takes its title from a poem, is a science-fiction concept album about the future; some of the song's titles and lyrics are literary references to the works of J. G. Ballard, William S. Burroughs and Thomas Pynchon. To critics, its sound recalled the indie dance-punk revival led by bands such as Bloc Party and Franz Ferdinand.
"Golden Skans" is a song released by London band Klaxons on 22 January 2007, taken from their first album Myths of the Near Future, which was released on 29 January 2007. The song reached number 16 in the UK Singles Chart on download sales on 14 January and climbed to number 14 the next week, eventually reaching number seven after the CD release. It was a minor hit in Belgium, charting on the Ultratip charts of both Flanders and Wallonia. The track was also released on French label Ed Banger Records as a French-exclusive remix EP.
"Gravity's Rainbow" is a song by British band Klaxons, from their debut album Myths of the Near Future. It is named after Thomas Pynchon's novel. The song was first released on Angular Records as a double A-side with "The Bouncer" in March 2006 and was limited to 500 copies on 7" vinyl only. In September 2006, it was released on 12" vinyl with three remixes of the track. It reached a peak position of number 35 on the UK Singles Chart. A re-recorded version of the track was re-released in 2007, with a remix from Soulwax, a new Erol Alkan-produced track "Electrickery" and a live version of the track. For the re-release of "Gravity's Rainbow", the band reshot the music video.
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Stratford upon Avon School is an academy that educates girls and boys, 11- to 18-year-olds, in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England. Stratford School is a successful non-selective school that offers its students a broad spectrum of GCSE and A level options. Key Stage 3, Key Stage 4 and Key Stage 5.
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The discography of British indie rock band Klaxons consists of three studio albums, one compilation album, one extended play (EP), and nine singles. Klaxons were formed in October 2005 in New Cross, London by Jamie Reynolds, James Righton and Simon Taylor-Davis. Steffan Halperin joined as an official member in February 2007.
"Twin Flames" is the second single to be taken from British indie rock band Klaxons' second studio album, Surfing the Void. The song was released on 25 October 2010, ahead of their upcoming UK tour. The song appeared on Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit in 2010, along with the song "Echoes".
Radio Soulwax is the former project of David and Stephen Dewaele of 2manydjs. It has taken several forms, most recently appearing as an app and web app hosting 24 individual hour-long mixes, with custom visuals similar to those used in the 2manydjs live sets.
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Klaxons were an English rock band, based in London. Following the release of several 7-inch singles on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles "Magick" and "Golden Skans", the band released their debut album, Myths of the Near Future on 29 January 2007. The album won the 2007 Nationwide Mercury Prize. After playing festivals and headlining tours worldwide during late 2006–07, the band started working on their follow-up album in July 2007. Klaxons' second album, Surfing the Void, was released on 23 August 2010. Their third album, Love Frequency, was released on 16 June 2014.