Hervé: Interview

From the moment Joshua Harvey aka ‘Hervé’s’ early music was released by Dave ‘Switch’ Taylor on his Dubsided label a couple of years ago, it was the beginning of a new wave in bass-heavy dance music. 

Under his various aliases most famously the Hervé moniker, he has been instrumental in pushing the progressive formula widely known as ‘fidget house’ forward. Meanwhile his production has been acclaimed throughout the UK and Europe for its originality.  No-one produces a mash up of genre-transcending sounds, characteristically dripping in bass like the godfather himself. 

In 2008 Hervé launched his own label, Cheap Thrills, which notoriously released the debut from Fake Blood and more recently signed deals with Jack Beats and Zomby.  Furthermore whilst exploring the realms of up and coming producers, has taken his skills and collaborated with artists such as Sinden and Toddla T, whilst undertaking infamed remixing projects for Lily Allen, Bloc Party and Kidda.

2009 has already seen Hervé release the massive ‘Ghetto Bass’ double album and after his side project The Count and Sinden announced they are working with Domino Records on their next album, things are not showing any indication of slowing down anytime soon.

Call him Hervé, The Count, Machines Don’t Care or a Dead Soul Brother.  Even just plain Joshua Harvey will do.  Just remember whatever alias he goes by at any given time, his reputation precedes him as one of dance music’s most forward thinking producers and that’s one alias he isn’t shy about.

We chatted with him in the wake of the Ghetto Bass release……

4or The Record: How are you doing today Hervé?
Hervé: Well I went out and got absolutely hammered last night and now I am paying the price.
4TR: Snap, well I promise this won’t be too taxing for 11am.
Hervé: Fire away!

4TR: Over the next couple of months we can expect loads of releases that you are involved in, can you tell us about them?
Hervé: Yeah there’s quite a lot to look out for.  Firstly there is ‘Ghetto Bass’, a double cd as Hervé, which came out in February.  Then there’s this side project I do called The Young Lovers, which has an album ‘My Headphones and Holidays’ out on Loungin and is a very different kind of sound. Then there’s the Count and Sinden album in May with a couple of records dropping from that before its release and maybe one Hervé record before all that, like a 12 inch underground kind of thing. 

4TR: The Count and Sinden debut is being released on Domino Records which is traditionally an indie label, so how did you end up working with them?
Hervé: Basically we did some tracks and then the ‘Beeper’ thing went massive, so we had loads of offers from all the usual one-off single labels.  But I didn’t want to do a one-off single, and told the people managing me and Graeme to get an album deal or nothing really.  So we went out and spoke to a few labels to see what they thought and bizarrely Domino showed interest.  After that we were like yeah, you know we‘re into indie music as well, even though we don’t necessarily make it, so were well aware of Domino and what they do, and so signed to them.

4TR: You work with a lot of artists, especially with the remixing side of your work.  What attracts you to work with someone specific and get involved with what they are doing?
Hervé: Well remixes are kind of random in a way.  They come about in different ways, whether someone requests me personally or whether I meet someone in the flesh who asks me to do something for one of their tracks and I’m usually like yeah cool, why not!  Outside of remixing I just do a lot off my own back.  Like if I meet someone and get on with them, then I get them in the studio and we make some tunes.  I’m still working certain things out as a producer for other people though, so I’m not jumping in doing full albums for anyone yet.

4TR: Anyone in your opinion we should look out for this year?
Hervé: Well not necessarily as a producer but as an A&R and label man yeah, I mean I signed Jack Beats, and I think for me they are going to be the sort of Fake Blood of 2009.  The stuff they are doing is so good and I signed them as an album project sort of thing, and we want to encourage them to keep doing what they do.  And Zomby is brilliant.  I have signed a record by him and am trying to secure an album as well.  They both interest me and stand out as artists and I think people should notice them more this year.   

4TR: You mentioned how highly you rate Jack Beats, but what do you think about other producers on the “fidget/jacking” scene, like Andy George for example?
Hervé: You know what can I say, it’s cool, I mean they copy my sound and stuff, but don’t expect me to like it or want anything to do with it.  I can make those records and better and I started that kind of sound you know, so I’m more interested in what is new and fresh instead of looking backwards.  If people find it interesting then fine by me.

4TR: But what other producers like him are doing isn’t fresh in your opinion?
Hervé: No, well it’s not fresh in anyone’s opinion.  I could say well this record is a copy of that and that record is a copy of that, so it’s not fresh at all.  I don’t know, the records are already out there I don’t know why people can’t see that.

4TR: When people talk about what you have done in your various guises, your own classic style and ‘keeping it fresh’ is apparent, so in your own words how would you describe your sound in more detail? And what do you strive for when making music?
Hervé: I just get uncomfortable repeating myself through music, I can’t help it and I wish I could.  But maybe there are some people who think I do repeat myself. Personally I don’t think I do.  I just like to keep moving, I don’t like being pinpointed to one particular thing.  What I do is bass heavy music, and that’s what I like because its dance floor worthy.  But at the same time I don’t just do dance music, if people get hold of The Young Lovers album they will realise that.  I even used to be in a band and did stuff like that at first.  You know, music is just what I do.

4TR: Would you ever get involved in the live scene again, by taking your music and make a live show out of it?
Hervé: Maybe next year when the Count and Sinden album is done and dusted and we’ve toured it, yeah then maybe!  There is another side project I do called Dead Soul Brothers, which has a lot of potential to be kind of live.  But I don’t really believe it has to be live, I just believe in representing the music in the best way possible.  Whether it’s through djing, or like with the Count and Sinden where we have a sound system going where we DJ, have sound effects and also have MC’s and singers all over the stage performing the songs, or whether it be a full live band; whatever represents the music best.

4TR: Joshua Harvey has many musical aliases, but if you had to pick just one to be which would it be?
Hervé: That would definitely be Hervé and the album.
4TR: Because that’s where it all started?
Hervé: Yeah exactly!

4TR: By having all those aliases, is that a way of giving yourself an avenue to try different things and express yourself in different forms?
Hervé: Yeah that’s exactly what it is! I like all different kinds of music and am inspired all the time by different things that trigger something in me, so I thought it would be easier to do things under lots of names.  I make records to show what I can really do and I can really do all kinds of different things.

4TR: What are you most proud of to date?
Hervé: Loads of stuff you know, like I am really pleased with the Kidda remix; it’s weird because you come back to it and go ‘shit can I actually do better than the other ones I have done well’? And then stuff like the chemical brothers and the Bloc Party track, which were also really big for me, so I was really proud, personally.  Most recently I did a Lily Allen remix, which I really enjoyed doing and so to have a massive reaction is brilliant.

4TR: Do you think remixing someone like Lily Allen or Bloc Party surprises people?
Hervé: Maybe, but I don’t really abide by that whole rule where some people think they’re really artistic because they wouldn’t work with somebody.  It’s just a remix, you’re not changing the world, you’re not even working with the artist really. I just like playing around with stuff and making music and if I can hear something or someone that I can work with, whoever it is, I’ll do it.  I’m definitely not going to restrict myself by worrying about what other people think.

The whole thing with advertising is ridiculous, like when people say ‘oh my god I’m selling out’; I think that’s bollocks!  I choose what to do and if I choose to put something on an advert that’s my choice.  If I don’t chose to put it on ‘cos it’s to do with animal testing or something I believe I shouldn’t be a part of then I wont!  All these artists that talk about selling out are just idiots and it’s like well what about the 10,000 cds you sold, you’re selling your shit whatever way you are looking at it.  Everyone is selling out in one way or another.

So working on remixing of artists’ tracks is something fun, and it’s a challenge.  To be honest I don’t even think about what people think when they get my remixes!  I just hope they trust me and are intrigued as to what I did, and be like oh that’s crap or that’s great.

4TR: you have spoken a lot about not compromising your creative freedom and arguably you’ve been at the forefront of the “fidget-house” scene for the last couple of years.  Do you think what you do is more interesting than other counterparts?
Hervé: I hope so, well that’s what I try and be, so I assume a responsibility to people that like what I do. I want to sort of move them with records.  I play all the time with loads of djs that are big and smaller names and they hammer out massive tunes and stand there with their hands in the air. That’s cool for them to do that but I can’t do that with a record I didn’t make.  I want to rock the crowd with records they’ve never heard before, but still get a massive reaction as if it was a big tune.  You know I want people to have a good time, it’s like fuck off, clubs are for dancing and meeting girls or guys and just having a good time.  I try to make music to suit that and keep it interesting at the same time.

4TR: As well as all the releases you are involved with over the coming months, what else can you look forward to this year?
Hervé: Now is the time when people start making the offers for festivals and stuff.  I get amazing worldwide offers all the time, but I don’t like flying so can’t take them up.  And they get even more amazing as the months go by, it’s ridiculous. Its quite painful as there are loads of places I would love to go like LA, Japan or Australia, where I get paid to go there and fly in some style, get treated really nicely and meet loads of wicked people, but I cant do them.  But in Europe I will do all the festivals I hope plus Bestival, I just hope it doesn’t rain like it did last year...

Words:  Francesca Strange