The Game Reviews interview (2009)

We recently had the chance to speak with Reuben from Ladytron.

I've been a fan of your music for a while now. Are any of your older songs going to appear on future games?

Hello, nothing planned as yet – but we'd rather our newer songs to be used actually, because that's where we are right now, musically.

Are there any artists that you absolutely idolize and look up to? Did they inspire you to create music yourself?

There are loads – too many to name all – getting asked to support Nine Inch Nails on a European tour was pretty impressive and we've just been asked to play at the Sydney Opera House at a festival curated by Brian Eno this summer. Apparently his daughter got him into us.

Are you excited to be featured on video game soundtracks?

Yes – because it's such a massive opportunity for our music to get to new fans. When you play a game – the music hardwires itself into your head – think Super Mario Bros and all the classic Nintendo soundtracks – then you have all the nostalgia for 8-bit Atari sounds...

Do any of you guys enjoy playing video games? If so, what kinds are you into?

Yeah Danny and I play games – Danny's into the role-play stuff mainly to stop being bored when there's no internet. I tend to play low-commitment games like Need for Speed Carbon and Wipeout. Mira played Second Life once and got accidentally shagged on the beach at a nudist colony.

What kind of music do you enjoy? Any recommendations? Are you perhaps friends with the other bands signed onto Artwerk?

Yeah we are mates with Datarock, who played with us on our North American tour – they are a lot of fun. I'm listening to some old stuff I enjoyed in the 90s right now – an electronic act called Future Sound of London. And a new band from Australia called HTRK.

If you could be featured on the soundtrack of any game coming out in the future, what would it be?

Always loved Grand Theft Auto! Maybe the next one...

Are you going to be writing any new specific songs for games, or do you submit songs you've previously recorded?

Both. We did 3 exclusive tracks for the Sims mid 2008. They were all written especially for the game and we even recorded the vocals in Simlish.

It seems to me that "Destroy Everything You Touch" would work great in an RPG-styled game. Are there any songs in your catalogue that you associate to any video games or films, or events in your life that are special to you?

I suppose they all do. "Fighting in Built Up Areas" always had a gaming vibe to it. We are all big film fans so visual elements are all big influences in the way we put our records together.

What sorts of subjects inspire you to write music?

Life in general.

I know We just got Velocifero not too long ago, but when can we expect another studio album?

Hopefully soon – We have an album in basic form already – we just need to spend some time working on it. Give us a few months.

Thanks for the interview! Is there anything extra you'd like to say to our readers?

Eat your greens.

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