Unkle

Unkle
Unkle in concert at Somerset House in London in 2008
Background information
Also known as	UNKLE Sounds
Origin	London, England
Genres	Electronica, trip hop, alternative rock
Years active	1994–present
Labels	Mo' Wax, Global Underground, SmurfDog Records, Surrender-All
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, Cattle Decapitation, 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
Website	unkle.com
Members	James Lavelle Matthew Puffett Jack Leonard
Past members	DJ Shadow Toshio Nakanishi K.U.D.O Tim Goldsworthy Rich File Pablo Clements

Unkle (often stylised as U.N.K.L.E. or UNKLE, occasionally known as UNKLE Sounds) are a British musical outfit founded in 1994 by school friends James Lavelle and Tim Goldsworthy. Originally categorized as trip hop, the group once included producer DJ Shadow and have employed a variety of guest artists and producers.

Lavelle and Goldsworthy were joined by Masayuki Kudo and Toshio Nakanishi of the Japanese hip hop crew Major Force (later Major Force West).

Lavelle drafted in DJ Shadow to work on the debut album, and essentially discarded all previously recorded material. Lavelle and Shadow released Psyence Fiction in 1998 to critical acclaim. The album included collaborations with an all-star lineup including Thom Yorke (Radiohead), Mark Hollis (Talk Talk), Mike D (Beastie Boys), Kool G. Rap, Jason Newsted (Metallica), Badly Drawn Boy and Richard Ashcroft (The Verve). The album was mixed by Shadow's long-time collaborator, producer Jim Abbiss.

Shadow left the group after touring Psyence Fiction and was replaced by turntablist group the Scratch Perverts, who deconstructed the album and performed it live on turntables in 1999. Also in 1999, former producer Rich File remixed the track "Unreal", adding vocals by Ian Brown, and the resulting track was released as the single "Be There".