A wall of sound is set to hit Auckland's Splore festival, writes Chris Schulz.
Neil Barnes has just played a gig that was so loud fans couldn't get out of their seats.
"We were given a brand new sound system big enough to power the main stage at Glastonbury," says Barnes, the founding member and sole survivor of British dance act Leftfield.
"We had it in a venue for 1200 people. Upstairs, people couldn't get up. The bottom end was so heavy it was pushing people into their seats."
Being a sonic force is what Leftfield is known for, thanks to their two late-90s albums Leftism and Rhythm & Stealth, records that cemented them at the front of UK's growing dance scene alongside the Chemical Brothers, Massive Attack, The Prodigy and Portishead.
Instead of capitalising on their success, Barnes and his bandmate Paul Daley went their separate ways in 2002.
This wasn't a cliched tale of drugs or excess. There are no hard feelings between the two, says Barnes, but "life got in the way".
"It's a very boring family thing. He didn't want anything to do with Leftfield. I did things with music that didn't really go anywhere. I should have been enjoying life but I was in my studio experimenting, being tough on myself." That was until 2010, when Barnes resurrected Leftfield, without Daley. He toured Leftfield's first album Leftism, and kept being asked if he was working on a new album.
He was, and that record, Alternative Light Source, was released this year. Despite receiving rave reviews, Barnes says he suffered crippling self doubt and almost didn't release it.
"It was a really difficult process to get it right. I kept thinking that it would be judged on the success of the first two albums ... it made me very sensitive.
"I was convinced it wasn't good enough. When you get intensely involved with something and you haven't done anything for a long time, you doubt your ability and I did, massively. Even when other people said, 'You realise that this is a really good record,' I still didn't believe them.
"I sat around worrying about how I was going to defend it in the press." He needn't have worried. Reviews have been overwhelmingly positive. The album is making appearances on year-ender best-of lists, and shows are selling out.
Kiwi fans will get their chance to see Leftfield when they make their first New Zealand visit in February to headline Auckland's Splore festival.
Barnes promises it will be an "audio-visual experience".
"It's really radical. We're playing behind screens that open and close, there's a stunning light show that's taken a month to put together, and it takes in the whole musical history of Leftfield."
He also warns: "We play loud.
"There's a lot of money spent on making the record sound right, so it's important that it's reflected in the live show.
"It doesn't hurt, there's no damage done to anyone. It just sounds nice."
Who: Neil Barnes from Leftfield Where and when: Playing at Splore, February 19-21, Tapapakanga Park Also: New album Alternative Light Source, out now
