Calvin Harris loves Rick Ross and T-Pain

If Scottish singing sensation Calvin Harris is not the hardest working man in electro-land, by the end of this weekend he will be, because the cat’s got three – count ‘em – shows coming up in two days. New Times took a quick phoner from the man before he crossed the pond; here’s some of what he had to say. (And click here to read this issue's article about the man.) – John Hood

Ever been to Miami?

No, never ever. But I’m ready.

You’ve got three dates scheduled (The Raleigh, Ultra, and The White Room) – how long are you gonna be in town?

Just two days.

Oh, so you won’t have a lot of time to see one of the millions of DJs while you’re here?

I’m hoping to catch Tommie Sunshine at some point. We have a lot of history, so it’d be nice to meet him.

Well, I’ve read that you main concern is with getting indie kids to dance - you should know that those folk at Pop Life, who are hosting your White Room gig, are like the pied-pipers of Miami indieland…

Brilliant.

At the risk of sounding cheeky, I wanted to ask if you were thinking of Robert Palmer’s “Addicted to Love” and “Simply Irresistible” when you made the “Girls” video?

No, I didn’t come up with that idea. The video clip I had actually nothing to do with. I think it’s based on some piece of art that’s copyright expired, but I’m not artsy type of guy, so I don’t know. It does depart from the usual dance music video clichés, I think.

I agree.

Thanks.

Did you rip the “Colours” refrain from Visage’s “Fade to Grey”?

No, no. It’s just two chords that are the same. I can name entire songs which copy chord patterns from other songs, so I think two chords is not so bad. In today’s climate, it’s quite a modest steal.

Are you a fan of Visage?

I wouldn’t actually buy them, to be honest.

Are there any ‘80s acts you would buy? I think I read somewhere that you dig Bowie, but not some of the trashier stuff…

Well, I don’t discriminate on genre or decade, so I listen to some ‘80s. But most of the stuff I listen to is fairly modern. I like the best stuff from then – the Prince and the Bowie – but I don’t think there’s any point in listening to the shit stuff. I mean, why would you want to do that? There’s good music from every era.

What are you listening to now?

T-Pain is my number one at the moment. He’s amazing. Rick Ross…

Do you listen to Sons and Daughters, or any of the other Scottish bands now coming up?

No, not so much them. I like Franz Ferdinand. I don’t know. I think it’s stuff that borrows from the past even more heavily than I do. I’m not really a band kinda guy.

What do you think of Editors’ cover of “Acceptable”?

I think it’s pretty funny. I was quite overwhelmed that they even knew it. Of course, they get the lyrics wrong, but that’s not hard to do.

What about that Swizz Beats/Memphis Bleek mash-up of “Colours”?

Haven’t heard that one yet.

Any last words for Miami?

If you see Rick Ross, give him my number.