A Cornered Season is the debut solo album from the well oiled Melbourne MC, Deece (of B Wiv Deece fame). While B Wiv still has a strong presence on A Cornered Season producing six of the sixteen tracks, this album sees Deece team up with some of the best MC’s & producers this country has to offer. The result?
A beautifully sculpted dynamic soundscape that complements Deece’s ever evolving sound. On the producer front Plutonic Lab has lent a hand between relentless Hilltop Hoods duties, WIK has jumped on board fresh from handling production on Maundz’s latest album Zero, Alter Ego handles four gems, J Squared contributes a spin tingler, Dave V drops a banger off the back of entirely producing Lazy Grey’s last album The Soundtrack & Mat Raffle from WA delivers the perfect vibe for the title track.
On the MC tip A Cornered Season is brutalised by the return of the Boss; Mass MC, the one and only Bigfoot, Fatty Phew, Maundz, Maggot Mouf, Swarmy, Geko, Force, & the lovely Alyson Murray with some haunting additional vocals on What I’ve Seen.
Pre-Order Deece – A Cornered Season now through JB Hi-Fi or Soulclap Records and receive a deluxe bundle with a heap of goodies. Once you’ve done that head over to Goonbag Radio, and enter the exclusive Deece comp, where you can pick up an amazing prize pack. Deece – A Cornered Season is available Friday 23, November.
A Cornered Season is the debut solo album from the well oiled Melbourne MC, Deece (of B Wiv Deece fame). While B Wiv still has a strong presence on ‘A Cornered Season’ producing six of the sixteen tracks, this album sees Deece team up with some of the best MC’s & producers this country has to offer. The result?
A beautifully sculpted dynamic soundscape that complements Deece’s ever evolving sound. On the producer front Plutonic Lab has lent a hand between relentless Hilltop Hoods duties, WIK has jumped on board fresh from handling production on Maundz’s latest album Zero, Alter Ego handles four gems, J Squared contributes a spin tingler, Dave V drops a banger off the back of entirely producing Lazy Grey’s last album The Soundtrack & Mat Raffle from WA delivers the perfect vibe for the title track.
On the MC tip A Cornered Season is brutalised by the return of the Boss; Mass MC, the one and only Bigfoot, Fatty Phew, Maundz, Maggot Mouf, Swarmy, Geko, Force, & the lovely Alyson Murray with some haunting additional vocals on What I’ve Seen.
Fair to say this is a line up not for the squeamish. To add to the stellar line up of producers A Cornered Season has been mixed at Three Phase studio’s by Joel Taylor & Mastered by Joe Carra at Crystal Mastering to be one of the most bad arse sounding hip hop album’s you’re likely to hear from this country. Pre Order A Cornered Season today & receive a signed copy, along with a signed A3 poster, a limited edition UV vinyl sticker of the album cover & a limited edition Deece (bearded hearts you) fridge magnet. These are all sure to become collectors items so don’t miss this opportunity.
Track Listing D double E C E (prod by Alter Ego) We’re over it (prod by Dave V) Originals ft. Geko & Maundz (prod by WIK ) Sleeping Giants ft. Mass MC (prod by B Wiv) Back up ft.Bigfoot & Fatty Phew (prod by WIK) What ya ready for? (prod by B Wiv) Hells frozen winter (prod by J Squared) Sad Saga (prod by B Wiv) Ain’t it ft. Fatty Phew & Force (prod by B Wiv) Just let me (prod by Alter Ego) Who Want What? ft. Maundz (prod by Plutonic Lab) Planet of the Apes (prod by Alter Ego) Mend a Saga ft. Maggot Mouf & Swarmy (prod by B Wiv) What I’ve seen ft. Alyson Murray (prod by B Wiv) Drawing Board (prod by Alter Ego) A Cornered Season (prod by Mat Raffle)
Deece – A Cornered Season is available November 23, 2012.
Born from a hazy laboratory, where the scent of stale weed smoke wafts among brown paper bags covering empty longnecks, and calloused thumbs clutch PlayStation controllers in interim… Maggot Mouf’s – Running With Scissors took its form. The album is an imaginative journey from start to finish, with dark undertones unwilling to succumb to the played-out battle style status-quo of Hip-Hop.
Honest, conceptual, topical, and often quite humorous, lyrics roll over both brooding and snappy arrangements to create the perfect Winter sound scape. After forming a bond after discovering a chemistry during the making of the You’re All Ears album (2010), Sammy Scissors and Maggot Mouf decided to go all in on this project. As Maggot Mouf says, “I quit my job to focus on this album and we’d have a studio session every fortnight. Sometimes I’d write two songs in one night, others we’d go through a Q and play PlayStation” – a remarkable work ethic indeed.
When questioned about the album, Maggot Mouf could express no truer words than “I’m no press cunt, I can’t even spell properly”. This is no bullshit, no fuck around, tell it like it is rap with a tongue-in-cheek twist that lends itself to some hard hitting topics.
The Mish is a candid presentation of the stressful upbringing and septic environment that Maggot Mouf grew from. Over an ominous Scissors arrangement, Maggot Mouf explores the current state of his life and how, through dumb luck, he’s risen out of the downward spiral that has surrounded his family and friends. Must lends his hands to the project with cuts on Crave, a clear standout on the album, that embodies the insatiable lust for cash to pay for rent, booze, floozies, and food.
Rigorous Recordings pass through on How We Spit, graced by the dexterous Scott Skillz, while Plarks The Fumble Tongue makes an energetic appearance on Runner. Dreamscape and F The W both feature an emerging talent in the form of Gutz. It’s track like these that show the synergy of real life brothers meeting over the Sammy Scissors backdrop. Also featuring the likes of Mata & Must, Kid Selzy andRetainer the album is sewn together with some final touches care of DJ’s Buick (3 x ACT DMC Champ) and DJ Paypercutts.
With Sammy Scissors’ daughter on the way, Maggot Mouf’s lack of employment, and both having a history of legal issues, the album speaks for the everyday person that is sick of all the mundane bullshit that life brings. In their world of uncertainty, the one thing that remains certain is Running With Scissors stands as a cut above the rest.
Tracklist: 01. Intro 02. Raw 03. Immortal feat. DJ Paypercutts 04. Glory feat. Mata & Must 05. How We Spit feat. Scott Skills & DJ Buick 06. Haunted 07. Dreamscape feat. Gutz 08. Up/Down 09. What U See feat. Kid Selzy & Retainer 10. The Mish 11. Can’t Think Straight 12. Deadly Interlude 13. The Feast 14. F The W feat. Gutz & Buick 15. Midnight Sesh 16. Crave feat./ Must 17. Style feat. DJ Buick 18. Runner feat. Plarks the Fumble Tongue 19. Bragger
Available May 11, released by Broken Tooth Entertainment and distributed by Obese Records.
It’s the return of the chosen ones. Perth’s undisputed Overlords of hardcore; Clandestien, from the mighty SyllabolixCrew, are back in effect. The trio of Tomahawk, Graphic and Mortar have ventured out from the Citadel to once again unleash their trademark darkness upon those who would claim king. They’re back. And this time they’ve bought the whole armoury.
Unlike the groups previous releases such as Dynasty 2004 and Chasms of the Citadel 2007, where production was handled predominately by Mortar, here the sonic weaponry has been deployed by a variety of arms dealers. Suffa of the Hilltop Hoods provides a guitar heavy stomper with Relaxing In Blood. Trials kicks the system into def-con 1 mode with Daydream Of A Killing and Tornts wires up the beat for shock and awe with InTerrorGate. Conseps and Beats lay down heavy covering fire on The Stampede which sees the Clan, AE, Trials and Evolve absolutely smash through the speakers and run wild through your cities blocks taking no prisoners.
With uncompromising lyrics, sharp witted intelligent word play, bomb production and their signature artwork Clandestien have earned a cult status in the minds of many a hip hop aficionado. The timer is set and Weapons Grade is set to explode.
Track list: 1. Clandestino 2. Relaxing in Blood 3. Light It Up 4. Daydream of a Killing ft. The Funkoars & Vents 5. Firebrands 6. The Offensive ft. Brad Strut 7. You’re All Goners 8. Warning Shot ft. Hunter 9. Battle Hymn of the New Republic ft. Ciecmate & Maggot Mouf 10. Horror Movie Life ft. Defyre 11. Australian Gothik 12. InTerrorGate ft. Tornts 13. Shield Your Fearful Eyes ft. FlashOne 14. The Mangled Frame of Truth 15. The Stampede ft. Addroit Effusive, Trials & Evolve 16. Put in Work ft. K21 & Motion 17. The Joint ft. Bunks & Briggs 18. Swan Song ft. SBX
Credits: All tracks Produced by Mortar except: ‘Relaxing in Blood’ Produced by Suffa ‘Daydream of a Killing’ and ‘The Mangled Frame of Truth’ Produced by Trials ‘InTerrorGate’ Produced by Tornts ‘The Stampede’ Produced by Conseps ‘Put in Work’ Produced by K21 All cuts by Defyre Artwork by Tomahawk and Deej Mastered by Neville Clarke at Disk-Edits
It’s the return of the chosen ones, Perth’s undisputed overlords of hardcore, Clandestien from the mighty Syllabolix Crew are back in effect. The trio of Tomahawk, Graphic, and Mortar have ventured out from the citadel to once again unleash their trademark darkness upon those who would claim king.
They’re back, and this time they’ve bought the whole armory. An armory full of weaponry in the form of hip hop at its most razor-sharp. Weapons Grade, the groups forth release, sees the cohort combine their venomous lyrical prowess teamed with a gang of the countries standout bomb manufacturers to conjure up eighteen tracks of raw firepower. Clandestien again display a depth of skill which lies beyond the norm; alongside such esteemed marksmen as Brad Strut featured on ‘The Offensive‘, an onslaught of vicious spiticism. The Funkoars and Vents on ‘Daydream of a Killing‘, a foray into the twisted writings of rap’s most heinous. As well as Billy Bunks and Briggs on ‘The Joint‘. Other appearances also include Ciecmate, Maggot Mouf and Tornts, Defyre, FlashOne, K21, Motion, Evolve and the un-stoppable Adroit Effusive collective. The album detonates with ‘Swan Song‘, a track that sees the Syllabolix squad, including the late great Hunter, breach all primary containment barriers and burn through the reactors core in a critical meltdown. Unlike the groups previous releases such as Dynasty (2004) and Chasms of the Citadel (2007), where production was handled predominately by Mortar. Here the sonic weaponry has been deployed by a variety of arms dealers.
Suffa of the Hilltop Hoods provides a guitar heavy stomper with ‘Relaxing in Blood‘. Trials kicks the system into def-con-1 mode with ‘Daydream of a Killing‘, and Tornts wires up the beat for shock and awe with ‘InTerrorGate‘. Conseps and Beats lay down heavy covering fire on ‘The Stampede‘ which sees the Clan, AE, Trials and Evolve absolutely smash through the speakers and run wild through the city streets taking no prisoners. With uncompromising lyrics, sharp-witted word play, masterful bomb production, and their signature artwork, Clandestien have cemented themselves a cult-like following in the minds of many a hip-hop aficionado. The timer has been set, and Weapons Grade is about to explode…
Track List 1. Clandestino 2. Relaxing in Blood 3. Light It Up 4. Daydream of a Killing – Feat. The Funkoars & Vents 5. Firebrands 6. The Offensive – Feat. Brad Strut 7. You’re All Goners 8. Warning Shot – Feat. Hunter 9. Battle Hymn of the New Republic – Feat. Ciecmate & Maggot Mouf 10. Horror Movie Life – Feat. Defyre 11. Australian Gothik 12. InTerrorGate – Feat. Tornts 13. Shield Your Fearful Eyes – Feat. FlashOne 14. The Mangled Frame of Truth 15. The Stampede – Feat. Addroit Effusive, Trials & Evolve 16. Put in Work – Feat. K21 & Motion 17. The Joint – Feat. Bunks & Briggs 18. Swan Song – Feat. SBX
2011 brought a shift in tone for local crew Dazed & Flawlezz with the release of Land Of The Savages. Opting for a much darker and mature view of the world, Land Of The Savages featured production from not only Dazed, but seasoned producers Geko, Ciecmate, and Mizari, as well as guest verses from Maggot Mouf, and the introduction of their extended family, Sydney’s Grand Arkiteks.
Dazed & Flawlezz are now working on their debut LP, as of yet untitled, the LP features production from Vanderslice (Vinny Paz, Roc Marciano, Maundz), Mata (Mata & Must), and WIK (Crate Cartel); penned for a 2012 release. Dazed is also keeping busy, with the recent release of his debut 7″ Rest In Syn, featuring Rinse and Grand Arkiteks, as well as producing tracks on the debut Fraksha (Nine High) LP, as well as for fellow Down For The Count Records heads G-Force, and Sparts.
Now armed with long-time friend, Mad Cow as their DJ and engineer, Dazed & Flawlezz are ready to lay their mark. Check out the brand new track Found Space featuring production from Must.
BTE is setting off 2012 with a 21st birthday bash at Melbourne’s Laundry upstairs! Come down and party like it’s a 21st birthday party with the BTE fam on February 18th. Everyone will be there and hitting the stage over the night so it’s sure to be big!
2012 looks to be a busy one, with the release of Tornts’s next album Concrete Slang. Tornts will undoubtedly bring forth his vivid imagery and stoic refusal to shy away from the brutal truth in another instalment from one of Australia’s most prolific and original styled no-nonsense artists. This will be followed by Maggot Mouf and Sammy Scissor’s new project; Running With Scissors, as well as a new offering from Gargoyle entitled Sink or Swim, both of the later scheduled from mid-year.
After that, who knows? Broken Tooth like to under promise and over deliver, however it can be confirmed that Swarmy and Newsense are both busy on their individual solo albums and Ciecmate is as relentless as always. Stay peeled.
At BTE, 2011 has been the year of Ciecmate. With all of our artists being quite vigilant on the local show front, Ciecmate has risen above and beyond releasing both his debut full length solo album, Game Over, and a production album, Chess Sounds Vol. 1 highlighting local and international guests over his signature sounds.
Following on from the success of the two albums, Ciecmate toured the full country with the Funkoars in support of their new high energy album, The Quickening. Joining the tour with Ciecmate, and also officially joining the BTE fold was $2 Scratchies star, 2 x ACT DMC Champion, and general lord No Name Nath. Bigfoot & Tornts, Maggot Mouf, Diem and Gutz were all busy on the Melbourne front frequenting support slots on shows and radio appearances.
December also saw the release of a free download, Maggodatron featuring Maggot Mouf and Dekoda as you’ve never seen them before. With a number of releases lined up for 2012 including Tornts, Maggot Mouf, and whispers of a Newsense album, February will see BTE’s 21st official release and a massive 21st birthday party at the Laundry on February 18th. Come down and party in true style, will the whole BTE roster on board and typical 21st birthday shenanigans!
We go track by track on the Game Over LP with Broken Tooth Entertainments’s very own Ciecmate. Ciecmate has craftily built a stable of some of Australia’s most influential underground hip hop artists. A scene builder. It’s time for him to reveal the vision he’s been refining over the past ten years.
1.) INTRO/SANE Ironically, this was actually the last song I did for the album. I had already made the beat and was holding it and waiting for the right time to use it. When I had finished all the other songs , I was searching for the right way to start the journey off and when I heard this beat again I knew instantly that it suited the overall theme and sound I was going for. I penned the lyrics to act as an index of sorts for the rest of the album, recorded and mixed the whole joint in less than an hour and the shit is definitely inSANE!
2.) GIVE YOU This song is a reflection of the difference between what ‘they’ (Being our current established order of government s, overlords and overseers.) Give You and what I Give You.We’re continually being lied to by media, scientists, politicians, police, the list goes on & on.In a world where the more wicked of our desires are catered to in order to create an atmosphere of contentment, desensitization and CONTROL. Anything you want… It’s yours. Just DON’T ask questions about what’s really going on in the world around you.But me… I just give it to you how I see it, take it or leave it.
3.) I AINT THE ONE TO FUCK WITH This one is actually about 4 – 5 years old. Classic rap braggadocio shit. Originally I recorded it over another beat I had written with the same drum pattern, so I re tweaked the instrumentation and brought it up to date with my current sound and production skills. I’ve always been a pretty self sufficient person and in regards to music, things are no different. I write my own rhymes, produce my own shit… Yeah boyeeeeeee I aint the one to fuck with!
4.) THERE GOES MY MIND AGAIN Anyone who knows me well will attest to the fact that I occasionally fly off the handles and let my thoughts get the better of me. Life gets crazy at times and everyone has their chosen vices that provide an escape from all the stress. Mine is the trusty Herb. I always wanted to use the Onyx sample for a hook and this song just came together really nicely. Wrote it all in one session and when it was finished I stumbled upon an interview with Bob Marley where he speaks about the Herb, it’s wonderful properties and questions why the establishment have made it illegal to consume.Newsense did the remix for this and it HOT! I actually wish I used his version for the album, but he made his version after I’d sent the album of to press. It’s on iTunes though. Peep it!
5.) MAD VEXED This beat is pure fire in my opinion! The second I finished writing the beat, the words came straight to me. Then it was straight into the booth to lay it down. I sampled parts from a film called ‘Network’ (Watch it!!) for the hook and then No Name Nathan came thru and tore up the cuts. There’s a film clip for this too! I wrote this song because, as the title suggests I was Mad Vexed at things happening in the world and when I would speak on it with some people I care about, they don’t wanna hear it. Ever wondered what some rappers mean when they mention stuff like ‘Illuminati, New World Order, Babylon’ and so on? Look that shit up and be prepared for a lot of long nights of confusion, contemplation, doubts, fear and then finally clarity. To quote JFK “We as a world are opposed to a ruthless, monolithic conspiracy which operates primarily by covet means…” And we all know what happened to him! That very same conspiracy he spoke of has been quietly growing all around us and as the news events play out daily in the soap opera which is our mainstream media, so do the said plans of the conspirators and their ilk. Read of these plans, you’ll be mad vexed too!
6.) PARADIGM MISFIT This is another old song, I actually recorded it about 4 years ago and I put it out on Pre Emptive Strike under the title ‘Anti Social Anthem’ I couldn’t come up with a chorus for it for ages and then it just hit me one night and that breathed new life into the song. This song reflects my view on society in general.
7.) YOU KNOW THE SONG (Feat Maggot Mouf) Mouf rolled to the studio for an in house session, just chillin with drinks, herb and the goal of writing a song together and recording it in the one night. We trawled through a folder of beats I had set aside for the album and picked out this one and got to work… We filmed the whole process and I sped it all up to play it on a projector while filming the clip. No Name Nathan came around to slice and dice. I gave him the samples to work with, including the drum sounds and he just went to work with it. Then I picked which cuts worked well and put them all through the song in certain spots to add some extra depth.
8.) LEAVE ME ALONE One day in late 2009 Tornts gave me some beats on a disc to sell and I was headed home on the notorious 57 tram. Anyone who’s ever caught this tram knows you’re in for a wild ride more often than not. Anyway, as soon as I got home I listened through the beats Tornts gave me and this one stuck out to me. I wrote down what happened on the tram home, then the chorus and then thought about times I’ve been in the city and had cops hassle me or friends and I wrote down some of that too. Shit makes me laugh every time I hear it.
9.) ALL THAT THERE IS This is the oldest beast on the album. I made the beat ages back and enlisted Bigfoot to play some guitars on it. He did all the guitars parts and daaaaaaaamn he is one talented lad. This song was so close to extinction it was endangered, but I decided to give it a second chance. I always liked it, but it was just so old to me and didn’t feel as relevant to who I am now as the other songs on the album. I relied on the good word of trusted crew to decide on if I should put it out and it was agreed that I should. So it lived to fight another day.
10.) NEVER WALK AWAY (Feat Bias B) This was the last song done for the album. Bias B is like an older brother to me. We get along really well and he’s always been a source of inspiration and good advice for me. I wanted to get him on a song for my album and I had already recorded a few verses for this joint and thought it’d be a great song to share with the B. I played it to him and asked if he’d fill the song out with verses of his own that were on the same sort of topics as mine… Things I feel strongly about and wouldn’t walk away from. He came to the studio about 5 days later with his stuff ready to go. This has a really classic feel to it. Raw, honest, sparse and atmospheric.
11.) WIDE AWAKE When I wrote this beat I literally sat shivering for an hour in the studio from the energy of it. The strings are so moody and the rhythm of the drums so hypnotic that the feeling I had listening back to it is indescribable. I penned the lyrics then and there. On the same tip as Mad Vexed, but less angry and more as an honest statement that I’m no longer blind to the things I used to be and that I am the only one truly responsible for where my life leads me. Film clip for this is done, but I’m sitting on it till Mad Vexed is out first.
12.) EVERY BREATH This here is the summer jump off, mad warm bass, hype snapping drums and that saxophone just brings it all home really nicely. I can’t be angry and suspicious 24/7 now, can I? This one is an ode to life and everything it’s brought me thus far and all it will bring in the future. No matter what my opinions on the world and our society, I’m still here in it and there’s no sense being here if I don’t enjoy myself. I’m blessed for being alive and while I’m here I plan to make it an enjoyable ride.
13.) UP, UP & AWAY I like writing short songs like this… Makes you wanna play it over again and again.The beat for this one got me really amped up to write so I just let loose until I felt I had a strong line to end on. As it turned out, the final line provided the perfect spot on the album for the switch up into some Grime influenced music.
14.) IRON FIST (Feat Diem) This one just had a whole momentum of it’s own… There’s no samples on this one, just crazy synth sounds I twisted and contorted beyond recognition and some ethnic instruments from the Middle East (Synthesized). Like most of the other songs on the album, I wrote the beat and lyrics within 24 hours and I let it marinate for a bit.And straight up, a grime track here in Australia isn’t a Grime track if it doesn’t have my mah’farkin bruvvah DIEM. Hands down, illest spitter I know. Glove up those Iron Fists!!
15.) GONG SAU/TALKING HANDS My good friend Sterling found boxes of records on the side of road, so he gave them to me. When I got around to sniffing through them, the very first record I grabbed was a goldmine! I made the beat for this one then and there and it got me all hyped up to write a hype story. Gong Sau is Cantonese for Talking Hands which is a term for Challenge/Grudge Match. So I wrote the lyrics on that sort of theme, aiming to make it really graphic so you can imagine what it looks like. I’m planning on doing a clip for this one too. That’d be ill!
16.) WHERE YOU FROM Now how much fun is this song? That guitar riff was originally something that sounded soooooooo different until I worked my magic on it. I won’t say what it was or what I did to it, but ya’ll know how it turned out once I’d written, recorded and mixed it. It’s about 4 years old. I wrote it coz at the time there were all sorts of weak ass rappers popping up that nobody seemed to know and it was just like ‘Where you from?’ plus the fact that some heads were still trying to rap in an American twang when they were born, raised and still live here in AUS, so again… I was like ‘Where you from?’
17.) NOTE TO SELF This one was originally just for my ears only… An actual note to self that I could refer back to when I’d feel the need to reflect on my actions and where my life is heading. Rules to live by on this rock called earth and this journey called life, if you will… The beat is very energetic, with alot of atmosphere, semi-erratic drum patterns and a whole lot of subtle synthesized sounds. I leaked this one out to a few trusted crew and they pretty much made it clear that I had to put it on the album.
18.) GAME OVER The crown chakra of the album… An amalgamation of my thoughts, who I am, where I’ve been and how I got to where I am now. I wrote and recorded this one about a week after I laced the beat, which I had done using a sample from the record stash I mentioned earlier. No Name Nathan came through yet again on the cuts and his work really brought this track out. If you listen closely to the chorus you can hear that each corresponding echo to the original cut is actually different members of my crew and associated musical cohorts.I asked DIEM to speak some words about what he thought of me and my achievements in the Hip Hop world and I was thrilled when he came back with what he did! I see it as a great compliment coming from him. Look out for his work with SMASH BROTHERS and a solo project that’ll eventually surface.
Strategy is the cornerstone of any good plan. This rule remains intact and relevant regardless of what path you are on, where you are, what you’re doing, or what medium you are working with. If there’s a desired end outcome than a strategy to achieve it is always required. Chess being the ultimate game of strategy, its principles translate well into the music industry and all things it encompasses.
Artist is King. Chief strategist who gives subjects a purpose and job to do (Aid in the growth of the empire being the artists music career.). Publicist is Queen. Moving in all directions to protect the throne (Artist recognition and time in the media), The Label are Bishops. Hitting the board from all angles to secure positions of advancement (Strategy development and implementation, revenue streams, new contacts, etc..) The Distributors are Castles. Moving straight forward to take out obstacles and clear the path for the Kings advancement (Sale into stores, new stores, territories, etc…) Associates are Horses.Galloping about everywhere to open paths for the Castles, Bishops and Queen to move freely (Friends and word of mouth that generates interest.) Songs are Pawns.Frontline soldiers who always attack, sacrificing themselves to aid in the fruition of the plan (Leaked songs, the artists music, the product that is being sold.)
But as with all things in life… It’s not just what you’ve got, but how you use it. So in music, having the illest skills doesn’t mean you’ll get recognition and have a long career as an accepted artist unless you can bring it to the people in an organized manner through channels that actually reach them directly. And ya’ll know what that requires don’t you?? Strategy.
Ciecmate – Game Over LP
Ciecmate is in it for the long haul. His label, Broken Tooth Entertainment, is eighteen releases deep, each one another move in a coordinated plan of attack. Since BTE’s inception, Ciecmate has craftily built a stable of some of Australia’s most influential underground hip hop artists. A scene builder. It’s time for him to reveal the vision he’s been refining over the past ten years. Game Over is Ciecmate’s magnum opus. Entirely self-produced, recorded, mixed and mastered, with the exception of one track produced by fellow grim soothsayer Tornts, Game Over captures the jagged texture of Wu Tang, and the savage truths of Immortal Technique.
Melodic keys twist and layered synths slide throughout Game Over dramatic string and horn riffs twine through random dark sound stabs and shards of broken mirror as Ciecmate demonstrates his meticulous, bold production. Dauntless sample selection brings a complexity that’s often lacking in local hip hop: we’re left running through a labyrinth of emotive guitar cries, off beat snare trips and dangerous, seething bass as Ciecmate prowls the perimeter, ready to pounce. You Know the Song, featuring label mate Maggot Mouf, is shrouded in a nightcreeping prickle on the back of the neck atmosphere. A spooky cello meanders through blurry, insistent bass and sprinkled arsenic glints across swiped rough cuts while Ciecmate and Maggot brood over the machinations of modern Babylon.
Legendary Melbourne veteran Bias B joins Ciecmate on Never Walk Away, a ballad to the artform that’s been an obsession and addiction, a temptation down hazardous paths and a slender ladder towards hard-won truths. The warm, amber coloured tumbling beat of Every Breath thrills in the freedom of “everyone that lives, anything to come, anything that is pure, every step ahead, every breath til dead.” Eyes open, it’s hard not to delight in each step along the way. Each move, each challenge, each set back has been worth it. A tougher soldier, Ciecmate has earned the time to marvel at every breath. But with that serenity comes responsibility. Mad Vexed is the anthem for those who have fought for the right of freedom for each breath. The onion layers of secrets and lies in this post-Wikileaks information age are endless, so hone your tactics. Rook takes Knight. Bishop takes Queen. This is no place for amateurs. Ciecmate. Game Over.
Tracklist: 1. Intro (Sane) 2. Give You 3. I Aint The One To Fuck With 4. There Goes My Mind Again 5. Mad Vexed 6. Paradigm Misfit 7. You Know the Song (Ft. Maggot Mouf) 8. All That There Is 10. Never Walk Away (Ft. Bias B) 11. Wide Awake 12. Every Breath 13. Up Up and Away 14. Iron Fist (Ft. Diem) 15. Gong Sau (Talking Hands) 16. Where You From 17. Note To Self 18. Game Over
