We always had a vision of mixing acid house with indie rock, and we managed to rent a space and build our own studio in London’s Shoreditch area, long before it got trendy. I had a little vocal booth called Hattie Jacques, in honour of the Carry On films but also because it’s Cockney rhyming slang [for shakes]. We spent all our money rewiring it, and that’s where we wrote, recorded and produced Ready to Go – 100 mixes later!
We were perfectionists and wanted to do it all ourselves. Every sonic element had to be special up to the point where we ended up arguing. Like at a rave when you stand and dance by the speakers, everything was done with the listener in mind.
It was a collaborative effort, but Johnny Male and I wrote most of the song’s lyrics and the melody. We had a really good camaraderie, finishing each other’s sentences, him on an acoustic guitar and me scribbling things down. Tim Dorney and Andy Todd worked more on the technology and synth sounds.
We pooled our skills, resources and dreams. The song is all about daily life and things that happened to us. We didn’t write anything too existential – I don’t really like singing about myself – but I’ve always believed in language and the power of the pen.
I think it was Johnny who came up with the line, “Ready to go.” It had an anthemic feel and we wanted it to be a bit of a battlecry: “It’s a crack, I’m back!” That line was inspired by the Irish slang, craic. Writing lyrics and big choruses over electronic beats was one of the most difficult things because of the BPM, but I’ve always had a sort of punky voice that suits it. It was as much about the delivery as it was the words.
My personality was becoming feistier and I think the song came from that, but also it’s about being positive, making good out of bad, and coming together as one. That’s what the vibe is like in the acid-house scene. Zeke Manyika, who was the drummer in Orange Juice, lived across the way and I used to shimmy across the roof and go down a ladder where he and his wife would make me sandwiches.
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