Let's Get Killed
Encyclopedia
Lets Get Killed is the second studio album by Belfast
electronica
DJ and producer
David Holmes
. It was released in the UK on 8 September 1997 through Go! Beat Records and contained two UK Top 40 singles: "Don't Die Just Yet" and "My Mate Paul". The album also includes a re-working of the James Bond
theme, retitled as "Radio 7", and a remake of a Serge Gainsbourg
song, "Don't Die Just Yet".
Lets Get Killed was Holmes' first album release in the United States, following the domestic acclaim of his debut long-player This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats
.
, Northern Ireland
as the youngest of ten children. By the age of 15 he had begun to DJ in his local pubs and bars, playing soul
, jazz
, rock
and disco
. This eclecticism would remain into adulthood, and is a feature of his DJ sets. When he was 17, Holmes visited New York
, spending time in the South Bronx
, Washington Square and Central Park
areas. He took a DAT recorder
with him as he explored the city, and taped conversations with many people he spoke to. Holmes kept the recordings for over ten years, using them as the basis for Lets Get Killed.
Lets Get Killed is so called because on one occasion Holmes and his associates were "...chased by eight guys through the South Bronx who were after our expensive audio equipment".
of conversations and other street-level noise as samples
on the album. These snippets of conversation were often spoken by people from New York's cultural underbelly
, including prostitutes, pimps and drug-dealers. The samples were used in between the tracks on the album,and in some cases in the tracks themselves.
The record contains a wide variety of styles within the electronica
spectrum, including techno
, breaks, trip-hop and drum 'n' bass. David Holmes has produced many film scores, and it has often been said that his studio albums have a cinematic feel to them.
, and "Don't Die Just Yet", written by Serge Gainsbourg
.
Other appearances and credits were:
and Mixmag
awarded it Album of the Month, whilst DJ Magazine gave it a rating of 10/10.
The NME said, "Holmes both evokes the endless possibilities, claustrophobia and madness of The Big Apple and offers a critique....Not bad at all for a trendy DJ", and placed it number 40 in the 1997 Critics Poll. Melody Maker
also included it in their end of year poll, this time at number 24.
Rolling Stone magazine
and Allmusic both gave the album 3 stars out of 5, with Allmusic saying the "effect created is like that of a soundtrack, and even though Lets Get Killed isn't attached to a film, it flows with energy and grace".
Entertainment Weekly
rated the album A-minus, saying "Holmes loves airy cinematic beauty, but he tempers it with frisky Latin percussion".
On the strength of the album, Holmes won Best Rock Artist at Ireland's
National Entertainment Awards, the first time it was awarded to a dance artist.
Lets Get Killed was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
.
, entering at number 34 in its first week. It dropped to number 75 in its second and final week in the chart.
Belfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
DJ and producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
David Holmes
David Holmes (musician)
David Holmes is a Northern Irish DJ, musician and composer.-Career:Holmes began djing in Belfast from the age of 15. His first hit was the song "DeNiro", with Ashley Beedle, in 1992. In the early to mid 1990s he ran two club nights in the Belfast Art College known as Sugar Sweet and Shake Yer Brain...
. It was released in the UK on 8 September 1997 through Go! Beat Records and contained two UK Top 40 singles: "Don't Die Just Yet" and "My Mate Paul". The album also includes a re-working of the James Bond
James Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
theme, retitled as "Radio 7", and a remake of a Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
song, "Don't Die Just Yet".
Lets Get Killed was Holmes' first album release in the United States, following the domestic acclaim of his debut long-player This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats
This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats
This Film's Crap Let's Slash the Seats is the debut album by David Holmes, originally released in 1995. It was reissued in the US with a bonus CD of remixes and B-sides in 1998.- Track listing :#"No Man's Land"#"Slash the Seats"#"Shake Ya Brain"...
.
Background
Holmes grew up in BelfastBelfast
Belfast is the capital of and largest city in Northern Ireland. By population, it is the 14th biggest city in the United Kingdom and second biggest on the island of Ireland . It is the seat of the devolved government and legislative Northern Ireland Assembly...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
as the youngest of ten children. By the age of 15 he had begun to DJ in his local pubs and bars, playing soul
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
, jazz
Jazz
Jazz is a musical style that originated at the beginning of the 20th century in African American communities in the Southern United States. It was born out of a mix of African and European music traditions. From its early development until the present, jazz has incorporated music from 19th and 20th...
, rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
and disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
. This eclecticism would remain into adulthood, and is a feature of his DJ sets. When he was 17, Holmes visited New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, spending time in the South Bronx
South Bronx
The South Bronx is an area of the New York City borough of The Bronx. The neighborhoods of Tremont, University Heights, Highbridge, Morrisania, Soundview, Hunts Point, and Castle Hill are sometimes considered part of the South Bronx....
, Washington Square and Central Park
Central Park
Central Park is a public park in the center of Manhattan in New York City, United States. The park initially opened in 1857, on of city-owned land. In 1858, Frederick Law Olmsted and Calvert Vaux won a design competition to improve and expand the park with a plan they entitled the Greensward Plan...
areas. He took a DAT recorder
Digital Audio Tape
Digital Audio Tape is a signal recording and playback medium developed by Sony and introduced in 1987. In appearance it is similar to a compact audio cassette, using 4 mm magnetic tape enclosed in a protective shell, but is roughly half the size at 73 mm × 54 mm × 10.5 mm. As...
with him as he explored the city, and taped conversations with many people he spoke to. Holmes kept the recordings for over ten years, using them as the basis for Lets Get Killed.
Lets Get Killed is so called because on one occasion Holmes and his associates were "...chased by eight guys through the South Bronx who were after our expensive audio equipment".
Music
Holmes used the recordings he made in New YorkNew York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
of conversations and other street-level noise as samples
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
on the album. These snippets of conversation were often spoken by people from New York's cultural underbelly
Subculture
In sociology, anthropology and cultural studies, a subculture is a group of people with a culture which differentiates them from the larger culture to which they belong.- Definition :...
, including prostitutes, pimps and drug-dealers. The samples were used in between the tracks on the album,and in some cases in the tracks themselves.
The record contains a wide variety of styles within the electronica
Electronica
Electronica includes a wide range of contemporary electronic music designed for a wide range of uses, including foreground listening, some forms of dancing, and background music for other activities; however, unlike electronic dance music, it is not specifically made for dancing...
spectrum, including techno
Techno
Techno is a form of electronic dance music that emerged in Detroit, Michigan in the United States during the mid to late 1980s. The first recorded use of the word techno, in reference to a genre of music, was in 1988...
, breaks, trip-hop and drum 'n' bass. David Holmes has produced many film scores, and it has often been said that his studio albums have a cinematic feel to them.
Track listing
- "Listen" (David Holmes) — 0:49
- "My Mate Paul" (Holmes) — 5:29
- "Lets Get Killed"(Holmes) — 7:28
- "Gritty Shaker" (Holmes) — 6:40
- "Head Rush on Lafayette" (Holmes) — 1:20
- "Rodney Yates" (Holmes) — 6:24
- "Radio 7" (Monty NormanMonty NormanMonty Norman is a singer and film composer best known for being credited with composing the "James Bond Theme".-Biography:...
) — 5:49 - "The Parcus & Madder Show" (Holmes) — 0:51
- "Slashers Revenge" (Holmes) — 4:46
- "Freaknik" (Holmes) — 6:45
- "Caddell Returns" (Holmes) — 5:42
- "Don't Die Just Yet" (Serge GainsbourgSerge GainsbourgSerge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
) — 6:43 - "For You" (Holmes) — 0:59
Personnel
David Holmes wrote and produced the majority of the album, apart from "Radio 7" which was written by Monty NormanMonty Norman
Monty Norman is a singer and film composer best known for being credited with composing the "James Bond Theme".-Biography:...
, and "Don't Die Just Yet", written by Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg
Serge Gainsbourg, born Lucien Ginsburg was a French singer-songwriter, actor and director. Gainsbourg's extremely varied musical style and individuality make him difficult to categorize...
.
Other appearances and credits were:
- Gem ArcherGem ArcherColin Murray "Gem" Archer is a member of the English rock band Beady Eye. He is, however, best known for his work with Heavy Stereo and Oasis. He joined Oasis as rhythm guitarist in November 1999, and handled lead guitarist for acoustics as well. He also contributed towards the writing of some of...
— guitar on "Radio 7" and "Freaknik". Archer would later join OasisOasis (band)Oasis were an English rock band formed in Manchester in 1991. Originally known as The Rain, the group was formed by Liam Gallagher , Paul "Bonehead" Arthurs , Paul "Guigsy" McGuigan and Tony McCarroll , who were soon joined by Liam's older brother Noel Gallagher...
. - The London Session Orchestra — "Radio 7" and "Don't Die Just Yet".
- Jagz KoonerJagz KoonerJagz Kooner is a UK born producer who has worked with Radio 4, Manic Street Preachers, Primal Scream for whom he co-produced their well-known cover version of the song 'Some Velvet Morning' sung this time by the model Kate Moss, Garbage and Infadels...
— production on "My Mate Paul". - Keith TenniswoodKeith TenniswoodKeith Tenniswood is a British DJ, producer, and remixer.Tenniswood is better known as one half of the electronic act Two Lone Swordsmen alongside Andrew Weatherall....
— additional production and guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
/vibraphoneVibraphoneThe vibraphone, sometimes called the vibraharp or simply the vibes, is a musical instrument in the struck idiophone subfamily of the percussion family....
on "Rodney Yates", and additional production on "Gritty Shaker" and "Slasher's Revenge". - Tim GoldsworthyTim GoldsworthyTim Goldsworthy is a British record producer, DJ and recording artist, living and working in New York City since 1999.Originally a musician/producer for UNKLE, Goldsworthy co-founded James Lavelle's Mo' Wax label...
— remixing on "Radio 7".
Critical reception
Lets Get Killed was well-received by critics in general, and the dance music press in particular. Both Jockey SlutJockey Slut
Jockey Slut was a British music magazine which ran between 1993 and 2004, focusing mainly on dance music and club culture. It started as a self-published bi-monthly fanzine in 1993 before graduating to a monthly by 1999, following a buy-out from Swinstead Publishing...
and Mixmag
Mixmag
Mixmag is a British dance music and clubbing magazine. It styles itself as "the world's biggest selling dance music magazine", with an Audit Bureau of Circulations audited circulation of approximately 21,250...
awarded it Album of the Month, whilst DJ Magazine gave it a rating of 10/10.
The NME said, "Holmes both evokes the endless possibilities, claustrophobia and madness of The Big Apple and offers a critique....Not bad at all for a trendy DJ", and placed it number 40 in the 1997 Critics Poll. Melody Maker
Melody Maker
Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper. It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival" New Musical Express.-1950s–1960s:Originally the Melody...
also included it in their end of year poll, this time at number 24.
Rolling Stone magazine
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
and Allmusic both gave the album 3 stars out of 5, with Allmusic saying the "effect created is like that of a soundtrack, and even though Lets Get Killed isn't attached to a film, it flows with energy and grace".
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
rated the album A-minus, saying "Holmes loves airy cinematic beauty, but he tempers it with frisky Latin percussion".
On the strength of the album, Holmes won Best Rock Artist at Ireland's
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
National Entertainment Awards, the first time it was awarded to a dance artist.
Lets Get Killed was included in the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die
1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die is a musical reference book edited by Robert Dimery, first published in 2005. The most recent edition consists of a list of albums released between 1955 and 2010, part of a series from Quintessence Editions Ltd...
.
Chart performance
Lets Get Killed spent two weeks in the UK Albums ChartUK Albums Chart
The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
, entering at number 34 in its first week. It dropped to number 75 in its second and final week in the chart.
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | "Don't Die Just Yet" | UK Top 40 | 33 |
| 1998 | "My Mate Paul" | UK Top 40 | 39 |