Reunited Dirty Vegas Say Breakup Wasn't a 'Divorce'

Posted on Jul 28th 2009 4:00PM by Linda Laban
Comments

In 2005, English dance trio Dirty Vegas decided to call it quits after label turmoil but are now back together, working on a new album. "It wasn't a divorce, it was a separation," singer Steve Smith tells Spinner about the reunion. Smith, who now lives in Massachusetts, just returned from London, where the Grammy-winning group was busy mixing down its third album.

"We wrote 30-plus tracks. We're still looking at what fits. We're from the generation that thinks it should be an album. I know it's a singles market now, but we think that the whole body of work is important." The as-yet-untitled record will see release in Europe on dance indie Toolroom Records this fall. A firm date and a U.S. label have yet to be secured, though. "We're talking to a few," Smith says. "We want this one set up right."

For a first taste for the new disc, the song 'Tonight' is available as a digital download. It became the official anthem for 2009's International Music Summit, the annual dance music conference held in Ibiza in May, after being written by Dirty Vegas there then remixed live by renowned producers Above and Beyond.

The Internet success of the remix prompted Toolroom to issue the original Vegas cut, bundled with a Mark Knight and Funkagenda radio edit and a deep house mix from Freerange Records alum Matt Masters. A percentage of the 'Tonight' proceeds will go to the HIV and AIDS charity Dance4Life, something that the song's thoughtful lyrics reflect. "We're lucky enough to go out dancing tonight," explains Smith. "People are moaning that they haven't got as much in their bank accounts, but it's like, come on. I think it's, like, every 12 seconds somebody in the world dies of AIDS."