Chris Lake on ‘Chemistry,’ Independence, and the State of Dance Music
After two decades in the scene, the British producer delivers his debut album, a deeply personal project born from a desire for creative reinvention and a rejection of industry expectations.
Chris Lake, a mainstay of the house music scene since the early 2010s, is enjoying a rare moment of calm. He’s kicked back in a sprawling Los Angeles office space, more storage than studio, overlooking the city’s west side. This respite comes on the heels of releasing Chemistry, his first full-length album, independently through his longstanding label Black Book Records on Friday, July 11th. While Lake’s discography stretches back to 2002, this marks a new chapter for the artist.
“I got to a point where I felt like I should challenge myself in a different way,” Lake explains. He’d long resisted the call to create an album, feeling he lacked a cohesive sound for a 12-15 track project. But a vision gradually formed, fueled by a desire to push beyond the confines of single-track production and collaborate with a diverse range of artists.
The album’s creation was a deliberate process. Collaborators like Kelly Lee Owens, Amber Mark, and Nathan Nicholson would spend hours in conversation with Lake before even touching the music. He admits to initial anxieties about working with someone like Bonobo, a long-time musical hero, but the collaboration yielded “Falling,” a standout track featuring vocalist Alexis Roberts.
Lake’s approach to music is distinctly focused on production and the impact of individual songs. “I don’t fawn for DJ culture… It’s just never been my thing,” he says with a laugh, playfully winning a round of rock paper scissors with his team. “I’m obsessed with music production and the power of the single and how one song can just make such a difference to people’s lives.”
The release of Chemistry is just the beginning. Lake is set to play back-to-back shows at New York’s Brooklyn Storehouse, followed by a busy festival season including Shambhala, Deep Tropics, North Coast, Portola, EDC Orlando, and a Red Rocks performance alongside his Anti Up partner, Chris Lorenzo.
A Vision for Musicality in a Simplified Landscape
Lake describes his album’s core vision as a “course correction” within the current dance music landscape. He acknowledges the power of the radical simplification of beats and ideas that has defined recent trends, but felt compelled to create something more musically rich. “I’m a naturally musical person, and I had a vision of how I could make things more musical, but still feel substantial and effective in a club,” he states.
The album, two years in the making, represents a deeply personal journey. “What I’m kind of saying is, I’m not making things to be popular. I’m making them because this is how I want it to sound,” Lake emphasizes. He notes a surprising disconnect between his own creative motivations and those of many other musicians, who often prioritize popularity and commercial success.
This commitment to artistic integrity has been a consistent thread throughout his career. Lake readily admits to making “odd decisions,” such as consistently collaborating with smaller, lesser-known artists rather than pursuing high-profile vocal features. “A popular thing to do is work with a really big singer; it helps to market your song. I’ve never done it.”
Navigating the Industry and Finding Independence
Lake’s sustained success, despite eschewing conventional promotional tactics, is a source of gratitude. He acknowledges a period roughly 10-12 years ago, during the EDM boom, where he lost his way, making decisions driven by money rather than artistic vision. “I made music that felt odd compared to the rest of the stuff I’d done up to that point,” he recalls. “At the time, I felt like it was one of the worst things that happened to me, but I look back on it and it was one of the best.”
This low point ultimately served as a catalyst for change. Lake faced a choice: abandon his project or recommit to his artistic principles. He chose the latter, embarking on a challenging but ultimately rewarding path. “I had a choice to either abandon my Chris Lake project and start fresh, or work extra hard and make better music that would make people forget some of the things that happened before,” he says. “That was the decision I made, and it was an absolute nightmare, but it ended up working.”
He recounts a particularly disheartening experience during a residency at XS in Las Vegas, where he felt disconnected from the performances and motivated by the wrong reasons. “I’d finish these shows, I’d get in the elevator, the doors would close, and I just feel like [makes deflating motion]. I’d just be so sunken and defeated, so I knew there had to be a course correction.”
The decision to release Chemistry independently, after his deal with Astralwerks expired in early 2024, further solidifies Lake’s commitment to creative control. “Massively. These are all my team’s decisions. Everything’s put together by us. It’s kind of like, live or die by the decisions we make, and that feels great.”
A Legacy of Influence and a Critical Eye on the Current Scene
Lake’s career has been punctuated by significant moments, from his 2017 contribution to Skrillex’s HOWSLA compilation to his Coachella performances. He views these moments as impactful, particularly HOWSLA, which he believes helped to legitimize and broaden the appeal of house music. “Skrillex was essentially co-signing a genre,” he explains. “It was almost like he brought an awareness to [the house] genre that I don’t think a lot of people necessarily understood was happening at the time.”
Looking at the broader dance music scene, Lake expresses concern about a lack of originality. He points to the increasing prevalence of sampling, facilitated by AI-powered stem splitting technology, as a contributing factor. “But now there’s this whole world and catalog of songs that anyone can sample. For the most part, people are taking a simple beat, putting an unbelievably previously successful vocal over the top, and that’s now a song or an original composition. It’s rewarding, but it’s kind of like McDonald’s, where it’s rewarding at the time, but it’ll leave you feeling like s–t if you have too much.” He advocates for a return to more nourishing, original songwriting.
He cites Skrillex, Fred again.., Rüfüs, Chemical Brothers, and Sault as artists pushing boundaries and creating genuinely innovative music.
As for his own place in the scene, Lake acknowledges a shift in perception. “Yeah. It’s just a reality. I’ve noticed, especially since the pandemic, this shift in how people talk about me or to me.” He embraces this role, recognizing the importance of mentorship and the arrival of a new generation of artists.
Ultimately, Chris Lake’s journey is a testament to the power of artistic integrity and the enduring appeal of authentic musical expression. He’s a veteran who continues to evolve, challenge himself, and inspire others, and Chemistry is a powerful statement of his continued creative vitality.
