Unkle facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Unkle
Unkle performing at Somerset House in London in 2008
Background information
Also known as	UNKLE Sounds
Origin	London, England
Genres	Electronic trip hop alternative rock
Years active	1992–present
Labels	Mo' Wax Global Underground Surrender-All Songs for the Def
Associated acts	Josh Homme, Queens of the Stone Age, Ian Brown, Mark Hollis, South, Badly Drawn Boy, Mike D, Beastie Boys, Lupe Fiasco, Richard Ashcroft, The Verve, The Duke Spirit, Autolux, Oasis, Gavin Clark, Robert Del Naja, Ian Astbury, Massive Attack, The Stone Roses, Alice Temple, Kool G Rap, Thom Yorke, Radiohead, The Black Angels, John Debney, Mike Shinoda, Linkin Park, Elliott Power, Tom Smith, Keaton Henson, Mark Lanegan
Members	James Lavelle Matthew Puffett Jack Leonard
Past members	DJ Shadow Toshio Nakanishi K.U.D.O Tim Goldsworthy Rich File Pablo Clements

Unkle (also known as U.N.K.L.E. or UNKLE) is a British music group. It was started in 1992 by James Lavelle. The group is known for its electronic, trip hop, and alternative rock music.

Unkle often works with many different guest artists and producers. One famous member was producer DJ Shadow.

History of Unkle

How Unkle Started (1992–1996)

The first music from Unkle was a remix for another group called United Future Organization in 1992. At first, James Lavelle worked with Tim Goldsworthy. They were later joined by Masayuki Kudo and Toshio Nakanishi from a Japanese hip hop group.

Working with DJ Shadow (1997–1999)

For Unkle's first main album, James Lavelle asked DJ Shadow to join the group. They worked together on the album Psyence Fiction, which came out in 1998. This album featured many famous musicians. Some of these included Thom Yorke from Radiohead, Mike D from Beastie Boys, and Richard Ashcroft from The Verve.

After touring to support Psyence Fiction, DJ Shadow left the group.

New Sounds and Albums (2000–2007)

In 2001, James Lavelle and Rich File started making music as Unklesounds. They created a DJ mix for Japanese radio. This mix showed that Unkle was moving towards a more electronic sound.

Rich File helped produce and played on Unkle's second album, Never, Never, Land, released in 2003. This album also had many well-known guest artists. These included Ian Brown, Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age, and Robert Del Naja from Massive Attack.

Unkle also made music for a short film called The Seed in 2006. They worked with John Debney and Mike Shinoda from Linkin Park on this project.

In 2007, Unkle released their third album, War Stories. It featured more guest artists like Josh Homme and Ian Astbury. After this album, Pablo Clements joined Unkle as a new member.

Unkle Today (2008–Present)

In 2008, Unkle released More Stories, which had extra songs and remixes. Rich File, who had been with Unkle for 10 years, left the group that same year.

Unkle's fourth album, End Titles... Stories for Film, came out in July 2008. James Lavelle said this album was inspired by movies. It was like a follow-up to their earlier mix album, Edit Music for a Film.

In 2009, Unkle started working on their next album, Where Did the Night Fall, which was released in May 2010. This album also had many guest performers, such as Mark Lanegan and Nick Cave.

Unkle continued to release new music and perform. In 2014, they published two songs for the God of Light game. In 2016, they released the single "Cowboys or Indians." In 2017, Unkle announced their album The Road.

In 2018, Unkle worked with Michael Kiwanuka on a song for the Netflix movie Roma. A new version of this song appeared on their 2021 album Rōnin I.

Unkle Members

Current Members

• James Lavelle - He handles production and plays instruments (since 1992).
• Jack Leonard - He sings, plays guitar, and helps with production (since 2016).
• Matthew Puffett (Future Beat Alliance) - He plays keyboards (since 2016).

Past Members

• DJ Shadow - He was in charge of production and turntables (1997–1999).
• Toshio Nakanishi - He helped with production (1992–1996).
• K.U.D.O - He helped with production (1992–1996).
• Tim Goldsworthy - He helped with production (1992–1996).
• Rich File - He sang, played guitar, and helped with production (1999-2008).
• Pablo Clements - He helped with production and played instruments (2003-2011).

Unkle's Music Albums

• Psyence Fiction (1998)
• Never, Never, Land (2003)
• War Stories (2007)
• Where Did the Night Fall (2010)
• The Road: Part I (2017)

Unkle in Movies, TV, and Games

Unkle's music has been used in many different places.

Unkle Tours

Unkle has performed live in different places:

• 2008 Unkle Live – UK Tour Stories
• 2008 Creamfields Buenos Aires, Argentina.

See also

• In Spanish: Unkle para niños