Mastermind of The Bloody Beetroots, Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo has brought his latest album, Hide out of the woodwork and into sweating clubs and dance parties. KRISSI WEISS chats with Rifo ahead of their appearance at Stereosonic this Saturday November 30 at Claremont Showgrounds.
With an infectious determination, Rifo has created a whole new tapestry of Italian dance/punk earworms that will be brought to life onstage by The Bloody Beetroots (version 4.0). The live arrangement has been fleshed out once again into a three-piece, as debuted in Australia in January; essential for bringing to life the collaborative influences on the new album.
This time around, madman Rifo enlisted rock royalty in the form of Sir Paul McCartney, Tommy Lee, Theophilus London and Peter Frampton to help out on second album, Hide. Yep, no one else can believe it either, but it’s all true.
What are you up to at the moment?
I am about leave the hotel and go to the video shoot of my new single, All The Girls (Around The World) featuring Theophilus London in Los Angeles.
Collaborating with Paul McCartney – was it as amazing as we’d expect?
Working with Paul McCartney really was a dream come true, after all it’s Paul McCartney. He is such an iconic figure.
How did that collaboration come together?
I was in the studio with Youth and he basically helped make it happen. He asked me who I would like to collaborate with on my new album and I told him Sir Paul McCartney – he actually had an old song from Paul, one thing led to another and Out Of Sight was created not long after.
What is influencing your latest releases?
My influences come from a very wide palette. I love music and I never even think to classify it. Classical, contemporary, electronic and punk are all part of my musical spectrum. I’ve been inspired by everything from The Clash and Massive Attack to Bach. There are no boundaries.
The Bloody Beetroots live that you brought out here in January – is that lineup still going strong?
Absolutely. The whole ‘live’ show is brand new and always evolving. The structure of the show hasn’t changed that much, but the energy has. It’s going to be ‘live 2.0’.
Tell me about the social media platform you’ve begun and why you felt it was needed?
The real Church Of Noise is an evolving framework, created by myself, where activists can share and create content with each other in complete autonomy. In fact, I actually worked with the team behind Lady Gaga’s LittleMonsters platform. It’s an open door into The Bloody Beetroots’ universe.
What are your plans for the rest of the year?
Touring. Touring. Touring. There are more shows being added all the time.
