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Interview: Craig Torrance
Published in Mixmag September 2011

What did you want to be when you grew up?
I always wanted to make music, I liked singing and playing instruments. Or an RAF pilot because my dad didn’t get in.

What’s the worst club you’ve ever been to?
That one in Essex. What’s it called? Chasers or something. No, it’s called Faces, in Essex. It was full of cunts.

What’s been your worst job?
Working in a Sainsbury’s factory on the night shift from midnight ’til 6am packing food. It was horrible. I was working with loads of ex cons. It was really off key.

What are you obsessed with?
Angry Boys, the new Chris Lilley comedy. I just can’t stop watching it. He did another show too, Summer Heights High. He plays all the characters and it’s quite dark but really funny.

And what do you hate right now?
The crack dealers outside my house.

When and where were you happiest?
In the womb.

How do you describe what you do to someone who doesn’t know you?
“I make music and sing”, I reckon, that’s it.

Have you ever been arrested? And if so, what for?
No, I’ve never been arrested. I got caught with weed by the police when I was a kid. I was going to get my hair cut and they pulled up in a van and searched me because they reckoned I was a burglar.

What’s the best record ever made?
It’s got to be Stevie Wonder’s ‘Inner-visions’. It takes you on a total journey.

What’s the coolest thing in your house?
My ET doll. I bought it in an antiques shop; it’s an original from when the film came out. It’s about a foot and a half high with a big plastic head.

What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever had?
My friend José James, a jazz singer, told me: ‘Believe in your dreams and they’ll believe in you’.

Who’s your all-time hero?
My mum.

What do you collect – apart from records?
Vintage Ray Ban sunglasses. I’ve got about 20 pairs. I sometimes sell them, and then just buy more. At one stage I was buying them all the time.

What’s your vice?
I’m really into this Spanish ham called patta negra. Black-footed pigs are fed on acorns in the region it’s named after. It’s about £20 for 100 grams. It just melts in the mouth.

Who was your first love and what happened?
When I was nine I fell in love with a fourteen-year-old girl and she was really nice to me. I kissed her and then she didn’t want to speak to me any more. I can’t even remember her name.

What were you doing at 2pm last Sunday afternoon?
I was really ill. I had a bad stomach bug and was being sick into the toilet.

What’s your answer to everything?
Go to sleep. You can just forget about everything and you’re in a safe place.

On a scale of one to ten, how good are you in the sack?
Ten, because I just am. Because I make love to Shabba Ranks.

What’s your most prized possession that you’ve still got from when you were a kid?
It’s my first ever Walkman. I still have it in my room, and I never want to let go of it. It’s silver and it looks wicked. It’s got a holder and you can strap it on to your waist.

Have you ever had a homosexual experience?
Jesus Christ, this is pretty full on! No. I’ve just never fancied guys.

What was your last treat for yourself?
A Juno-60 synth. It a Roland synth I’ve been after for ages. It’s a classic. I bought it off eBay for £750.

What do you spend your money on?
My girlfriend… and food.

What’s your drug of choice?
MDMA. I’m into uppers and there’s nothing better than being on a good buzz with your friends.

What can’t you live without?
Sleep. I try and get about six or seven hours a night, but ideally I want eight.

Do you have a recurring dream?
I used to get them. I dream about ghosts a lot. Just being in my room, or around me. I’ve got a connection to the spirit world.

What would you change about yourself if you could?
I’d try and be more relaxed. I do a lot all the time, and can’t relax, I’m constantly doing stuff.

What’s the worst item of clothing you’ve ever worn?
I reckon it was a shell suit back in the day. I went through a Fila phase.

If you had a Tardis, what time would you go to?
The seventies, for the disco era, art and experimentation.

What’s your lamest claim to fame?
I sang a duet with Cliff Richard in the Royal Albert Hall when I was about 15. It was a show on BBC on Christmas day. I was in the choir at school and got selected.

Ben Westbeech’s new album, ‘There’s More To Life Than This’, is out September 12 on Strictly Rhythm

Buy on Beatport here