La Roux Get Jennifer Lopez on the Dance Floor

Posted on Sep 26th 2009 12:00PM by Mike Ayers
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While La Roux's self-titled debut has been out in the UK since June, it's finally getting a proper Stateside release next week. It's worth checking out if you enjoy a hefty dose of songs that make you dance to and feel retro-sexy. In fact, La Roux's frontwoman Elly Jackson can attest that this is something that happens at her shows, all the time, no matter who's in the audience.

For example, this past April she found herself playing a Topshop Clothing party in New York. Sometimes, those things can be stodgy affairs, but this gig certainly wasn't. "I couldn't see anyone in the crowd because of the lights until I saw someone come to the front and start dancing," Jackson tells Spinner. "It was Jennifer Lopez. Surreal. The following night we played a proper gig at [Brooklyn, N.Y.'s] Studio B and had one of the best crowds ever. People knew all the words to all the songs and danced their hearts out. Thank you, internet."

Getting massive pop stars to groove to her live sets is a rather recent phenomenon, as Jackson's first foray into music was much more in the acoustic singer-songwriter vein. She got into folk luminaries such as Joni Mitchell and Nick Drake awhile back, and while those influences don't necessarily scream "groove," she still sees some of their influences seeping into La Roux. "I think it's helped when I write melodies and lyrics sure," she says. "There are a number of songs on the album, like 'Quicksand' and 'Armour Love,' that started as acoustic songs. 'In for the Kill' was the first song written from an electro point of view."

As one of her first singles in the electro vibe, Jackson says radio hated 'In for the Kill' but it did pretty well on the UK charts nonetheless. "We'd had like one daytime play before the single came out," she recalls. "Lily Allen called me and woke me up and said, 'Congratulations. You're No. 11.' I said 'Number 11 what?' She said, 'In the charts, dummy.' I literally s--- myself."

We think -- and hope -- she's joking, but actually selling records these days can make anyone a bit too excited ...