My Vision: By James Lavelle

As a young teenager I discovered 2001: A Space Odyssey at my local video store. On the first viewing, the film blew my mind, and my love affair with Stanley Kubrick’s work began.

Whilst recording Psyence Fiction, my first album under the guise of my band UNKLE, in the early 1990s, Stanley’s work and ideology became a massive reference for the direction, sound and look of the record. When it came to working on the single ‘Lonely Soul’, I tracked down a contact for Stanley via his assistant at the time, to ask if he would be interested in directing the music video for the track. I was surprised to hear that Stanley loved the idea but was immersed in the filming of Eyes Wide Shut, and I was asked to contact him after filming finished. Sadly, despite his interest in the song and the concept, our conversation was never concluded.

Looking back at this interaction in retrospect, what is fascinating to me is the extent of the impact that Stanley had on me as a young artist of just 22, so much so that I felt the need to track him down and involve him in the universe I was trying to build. This is what I want to share and encourage in Daydreaming with… Stanley Kubrick; which in turn I hope with inspire a new generation of inspired Kubrick youth.