This is the 28th installment of rappertag featuring Motion.
New LP Motion Picture coming soon.
So far it’s been: 18.) Class A MC 19.) The Tongue 20.) Tuka 21.) Drapht 22.)Sesta 23.) K21 24.) Vents 25.) Maundz 26.) Delta 27.) Simplex 28.) Motion
To Come: Dedlee
Adelaide hip hop crew Adroit Effusive are set to release their long awaited debut album – The Album.
‘Australian Hip Hop group to watch out for’ J-Mag, 2009.
The time has finally arrived for the quintessential dysfunctional hip hop family, Adroit Effusive. After toiling in the depths of underground hip hop, honing their skills, paying more than their share of dues, going through as many setbacks as one group could go through and making some of the illest music that nearly didn’t see the light of day, Adroit Effusive are ready. After years of being posed the question, ‘Where is the album?’ The Album is here. Adroit Effusive are set to deliver their opus.
Born out of the Australian hip hop melting pot of Adelaide, Adroit Effusivebring something rare to Australian hip hop in both their composition and their repertoire. The unique 8-man band, who are all capable of standing on their own feet as solo artists, crew-up to create a smorgasbord of production sounds and lyrical concepts to engage and get the head nodding to The Album.
It is an eclectic tapestry of boom-bap beats conducted by Adroit Effusive’s five beat makers, a thorough collection of 19 songs by all seven lyricists and razor-sharp relevant cuts by a master turntablist.
The soundscape on The Album is an amalgamation of layered psych rock, blues, hard rock, funk, Latin acoustic, jazz and classical sounds, all with a hard-hitting hip hop character. Lyrically however, is where Adroit Effusive really stray from the herd. This crew of big characters do not hold back on expressing their diversity on The Album. From the conceptual posse tracks Chump Change and Five Days of Work, to the role-playing lyrical feasts Espionage, War and Suspects, to the storytelling of Crossroads and A Beer and Big Talk, to the B-boy anthems Understood by Few and In the Street, to the retrospective No Aim and Yin Yang, Adroit Effusive come into their own. The songs on The Album are a testament to the depth, breadth and talent of Adroit Effusive.
After previously releasing two vinyl-only EP’s plus side projects by Conseps and Patti, Common Cause and Red Whine Presents…, Adroit Effusive are ready to go. After featuring on countless other albums and sharing stages with numerous international and Australian acts over the better part of a decade, the time has come. Adroit Effusive members Blockade, Conseps, Patti, Bornski, Motion, Devious Dev, Beats and DJ Ad-Fu have created something that justifies their long-time dedication to hip hop music in Australia. A solid nineteen tracks (115 minutes) in length, The Album is a celebration of the struggles of Adroit Effusive and the colourful characters that make up Australia’s most under represented crew. Under represented that is until now, as The Album sees the light of day.
The Album is distributed independently and will be available in independent record stores Australia-wide + iTunes.
The Album is the first single off the upcoming Adroit Effusive album of the same name; The Album, dropping in April 2010 Australia Wide. Cuts by DJ Ad-Fu. Lyrics by Beats, Conseps, Blockade, Bornski, Motion, Devious Dev and Patti. Produced by Ad-Fu.
aahh: After years and years of waiting, we’ve finally copped the debut LP from “giant” of the scene Bigfoot. Why has it taken so long for us all to see a full length Bigfoot solo album? Bigfoot: I spent a lot of time working on music for other people, doing shows, moving house a whole lot of times, paying bills & laying on my back in hospital. I’ve never had somewhere stable to record everything, as evidenced by the number of different studios “Giant Steps” was recorded in, so I could never complete tracks to my satisfaction until recently. I could have put something out years ago, but I would have been looking back hating it, so I’m glad that I didn’t.
aahh: You’ve been involved heavily in the hip hop scene since the mid 90′s, repping The Burn. Tell us a little about your earlier days and also your role on the now legendary PBS Formula sessions? Bigfoot: I grew up listening to “Steppin to the A.M.” with DJ Krisy on 3PBS. That was the first place that I heard Aussie hip hop. All sorts of pioneers went through there and ripped it live. Bias B & Stewbakka took the show over about the same time I was getting my flows going, so I passed a 4 track demo tape to Bias through a mutual friend & was invited to go in there and spit something live. The first time I went in Strut was there & we exchanged numbers. I kicked it with Strut a little & went in there a few more times with me & him rhyming off of each other. Strut helped me out a lot in the beginning, hooking me up with supports & doing his backups, things like that. It used to be sick as a youngster to tune in & hear live freestyles every week. Radio is not quite the same these days.
aahh: Giant Steps – Massive album, massive name. Fully self-produced with a bit of help from Hired Goons mate Heata. Looking back was 2010 the year you felt that everything had just fallen into place for the album coming out or was there some rough time frame you were aiming for? Bigfoot: Things finally fell into place. I had too much other shit going on in Melbourne & was going ’round in circles, so I bounced to Brisbane to do some things with 750. Brisbane is a bit more laid back & slower paced, so I had a lot more time to concentrate on things, fewer distractions & I ended up with my own set up for tracking vocals. I could have spent another year fine-tuning, tweaking and bullshitting around, but I just decided to drop it and move on to the next things.
aahh: The production on Giant Steps is thick and diverse. We’ve got dirty funk samples, monster bass lines and banging drums plus some live guitar. Do you have a big experimental phase when you’re creating your beats or do you work in a more structured sense with a definitive sound in mind that you’re chasing? Bigfoot: I have no set ways of making music, it is different every time. If I am writing lyrics, I tend to get into the groove & keep writing for a few weeks at a time without even touching the MPC. For the most part it is usually a case of inspiration striking & banging out an idea that has popped into my head. Sometimes I’ll go through records & not vibe from anything, but when something catches my ear I get energized & go to town on it.
aahh: The opening track on Giant Steps, Stepped On throws back to the days when the battle circuit was your stomping ground. Do you miss the battle scene these days? Bigfoot: I grew up listening to rap in the 90′s. Battle rap wasn’t a genre, it was just a natural part of MCing. KRS, Kool G Rap, Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Ice-T, N.W.A., Geto Boys & Hieroglyphics all had a sick battle style. New school psuedo-journalists always seem to whine about rappers rapping about rapping, at the same time giving props to emo-rhymers for letting their feelings show. They seem to have no idea where this music has come from. I wasn’t catching the train as a teenager listening to Kanye trying to auto-tune, I was listening to classic b-boy shit. But as far as open mic contests are concerned, I don’t miss the battle scene at all. It went wack after 8 mile came out. All these kids had their rhymes worked out with gaps for inserting competitors names and things like that. It got so staged & fake that it thankfully self destructed as far as I’m aware.
“So ashamed of the state that the scene’s in. I’m enraged by the sights that I’m seeing. Bring hell on earth with fire that I’m breathing. Hit the mic screaming, driven by demons.” – Bigfoot (Let ‘Em Burn)
aahh: Let ‘Em Burn is a fierce commentary on the some off the younger emcees in Australia. What would you’re number one criticism be, or if you want to go the positive angle, words of advice for some of these younger cats? Bigfoot: I’d advise kids to be themselves, not follow trends, pay dues & make the music they want to make because they are driven to make it, regardless of whatever style the old guy at JJJ is putting on daytime radio…. That whole second verse in “Let ‘em burn” is referring to a near death experience that I went through. The line you quoted was basically me getting out of hospital & being fed up with the way things were headed after some time off & deciding to go hard on my own shit.
aahh: Hell’s Gate has been a much talked about track feat. Hired Goons. We hear a lot of discussion about tracks with catchy hooks and samples. This track flys in the face of that philosophy. What is it do you think that attracts people to a track like this one? Bigfoot: It goes back to the music that inspires me. All of the old school rappers always got their whole crew on one joint. Back to back verses just smashing on the mic, no need for a hook, the sentiment speaks for itself. “Bring it on” by the Geto Boys, “2 to the head” by Kool G rap “Symphony”….the list goes on. To get on daytime radio you need some catchy refrain between some inoffensive smooth talking. Obviously that is far removed from where I’m at. I make music that I want to hear. Why make more soft-ass cafe rap when the radio is already overrun with it? HG is my crew, so is 750 Rebels, so I had to rep them both.
aahh: What Goes Around… is 1.43min of pure lyrical murder. Tell us the reasoning behind this track. We also seen a film clip drop in the lead up to the release for the album (executed by Heat) had this one been in the bag for a while? Bigfoot: Those lyrics were written in the late 90′s. I changed a line or two, otherwise it is as written. It’s just a true story about someone who I knew through graf that rated out some writers & got caught up with. It’s pretty self-explanatory, I didn’t need to make up some abstract fairytale. We didn’t even draw up plans for the video, just went off the song lyrics. I think Heata shot it about 2 years ago at Pony bar. No need to fill the track with more words to make it 3&1/2 minutes when I’d already said my piece.
aahh: Over the years we’ve seen you work with the who’s who in hip hop, including Brad Strut, Bias B, Reason, Lazy Grey…the list goes on. Does it feel good to finally be able to call on some of these dudes after years of helping them out? Bigfoot: Yeah these bastards owe me!! I like bouncing ideas off other people when writing. Everyone on the album is a mate, no overpaid ring-ins. I basically made a name for myself over the years through guest spots, radio freestyles & live shows. My world revolves around music, so most of my friends are the same as me & it feels good to get it done together.
aahh: We always ask about the reasoning behind putting the lyrics in the album booklet and what the artists thoughts are on this? Bigfoot: All the classic joints had lyrics.. “Fear of a black planet” “O.G.” “Power”… I grew up rapping along with them, looking at the pictures & shout-outs. I put effort into writing the lyrics but streetpress misquote, people miss the double meanings & wordplay, so I thought I’d put ‘em in to avoid confusion. Discourse couldn’t get too busy with the design ‘cos there were too many pages of words, It also cost more to do, but I don’t care. All classic albums should have lyrics.
aahh: “Can’t Fool All The People All The Time feat. Len One and Lazy Grey” as Brothers Stoney really put us in nostalgia mode and I’m sure we weren’t the only ones. Was this a bit of a nod to the old days with a killer dub step spin? Bigfoot: I’ve been a big reggae fan for a very long time & that sample was always in the back of my mind waiting for its moment. Lazy is big on reggae as well & Len one is a walking encyclopedia of all types of music. I could just hear the two of them on that track so we made it happen.
aahh: As an artist do you have any expectations of the listener? Bigfoot: Who am I to dictate who can listen to what? If you like it, bang it. whatever floats your boat, I just don’t appreciate misinformed criticisms at the hands of imbeciles.
aahh: The names on this album are huge but you also have some great DJ’s on the cut, including The Master. You obviously have a lot of respect for these guys and the role a DJ plays? Bigfoot: You’re the first person to ask about the cuts. I love the sound of scratching on a track, put people just bang shit out with no attention to detail these days. Master came through sick on this, so did Lopsided from 750, plus Discourse & Mixa on one joint each as well. A lot of cuts I had laid out & planned, but some, for example “crime wave”, the Dj’s just did their own thing and smashed it. A lot of Dj’s can cut but can’t choose a sample to fit a song for shit. That’s why I roll with these guys.
aahh: Will we see a tour, State album launches or any plans of those in the near future? Brisbane Step Inn - 22nd Jan 2011 Sydney The Sando - 8th Jan 2011 Both shows with Tornts + Jakebiz at Brisbane show as well.
This is the 27th installment of rappertag featuring Simplex
So far it’s been: 12.) Lotek 13.) 1/6 14.) Suffa 15.) Headlock 16.) Lazy Grey 17.) BVA 18.) Class A MC 19.) The Tongue 20.) Tuka 21.) Drapht 22.)Sesta 23.) K21 24.) Vents 25.) Maundz 26.) Delta
27.) Simplex
To Come: Motion
Emcee Simplex will drop his long-awaited solo joint on Obese early next year titled Audiobiography. One of this country’s most talented (and under-rated) hip hop talents to grace this country. Simplex’s solo album is slated for a mid-year 2010 release. The album is pretty much a collection of tracks that Simplex has been working on for a few years now, ideas he had wanted to get out from inside his head and inside his computer. Simplex also admits that he is using a bunch of beats that span around eight years of production styles. He is trying to keep the album as varied as possible.
Simplex will spit on pretty much every track on the release, plus a few guest emcees featuring. No word yet on who these guys are, but we’re sure there will be some big name amongst it. Simplex has recently signed a deal with Obese Records, and has reveled that it is a two-album contract. So expect to see a lot from Simplex over the next 12 months. Fans of Terra Firma, have been put on notice that the Simplex album is going to be ‘kinda different’, but shouldn’t stray too far away from the sound they have.
This is the 25th installment of rappertag featuring Maundz!
So far it’s been: 1). 360 2). Urthboy 3.) Brad Strut 4.) Fraksha 5.) Bias B 6.) Newsense 7.) Briggs 8.) Hunter 9.) The Master 10.) Hau 11.) Nay 12.) Lotek 13.) 1/6 14.) Suffa 15.) Headlock 16.) Lazy Grey 17.) BVA 18.) Class A MC 19.) The Tongue 20.) Tuka 21.) Drapht 22.)Sesta 23.) K21 24.) Vents 25.) Maundz
To Come: Delta
A 3 Camera Breakdown of the Maundz Rappertag (25). Filmed & Edited on 3 cameras simultaneously at the Crate Cartel Leisure Suite by Full Clip (Heata & Discourse) & Josh Davis.
MAUNDZ INTERVIEW FROM EARLIER IN THE YEAR
Melbourne emcee Maundz released his full length LP yesterday, titled Mr Nobody. Let us tell you, it’s one you want to get your hands on. Distributed by Obese, mixed and mastered by Deece at Omni Hieroglyphic Studios, Mr Nobody is Maundz’ social commentary on a world that doesn’t seem to have a clue…and boy does it do it well. We caught up with Maundz to have a quick chat about the release of his highly entertaining album Mr Nobody.
Your debut album Mr Nobody dropped only yesterday, how are you feeling about it all? I feel fucking great man, feels good to have a big load off my shoulders. I got a phone call from Sheriff Rosco yesterday morning congratulating me about the album dropping, and i thought “ohh yeah?, thats today isn’t it?”. It’s turned a lazy man in to a busy man, so im a little behind the 8-ball at the moment.
What kind of reaction do you expect from the heads regarding the album? I can’t call it, man. I’ve heard nothing but great feedback at the moment from the people who have copped it/ the promo heads and all those good folk. We’ll have to wait until it circulates the traps a bit more perhaps. I’ve gotten props from some of my favourite artists and that shit keeps a fella’s head high. 17 tracks aint a small album, so there’s plenty of room for people to pick and choose what they do and don’t like, but at the end of the day, im feelin all 17 of em, and that’s a big part of what matters, right?
You’ve had some great reviews off the back of the album, Rap Reviews with a classic you aren’t really that angry are ya? Haha nah I’m all cool mate, just some of the tracks I wrote when I was in a shitty mood got reviewed, we all get them days.. Like Masta Ace said “Mad at the world, mad at you, mad at my girl mad at my friends and anybody drivin’ a Benz”.. People know my music to be humorous, some people might take that the wrong way.
You released a 7″ a few years back on DoubleBeef, did you think that the Mr Nobody album was ever going to happen? I had days when I didn’t wanna do it, losing files, dude’s going back on their word and all that jazz. I came close a few times to putting it up for a free download or something like that. But fuck it, gotta stick to your guns yeah?
You have a few great features on the album including Shawn Lov, Briggs and Fluent Form do you enjoy the collaborating process? I like the mixed and mastered result, the anticipation (short-term haha) of what I’m gonna hear and that’s about it. I don’t like chasing people for shit, luckily all the people who threw verses my way, were very professional about things.
Brutally honest, humorous, entertaining and downright gritty to the bone is how a few have described the album, does that sit well with you?
Yeah I like that haha, chuck physically flawless in there and I’ll print it and frame it.
The album in our opinion, is one the best of the year so far. Lyrically entertaining, great delivery and top-notch production, tell us a bit about the guys on the beats? Much appreciated !! I tried not to drop my guard on the album cos I couldn’t have these cats over shadow me too much haha.I love EVERY single beat on this album, man. This is another reason why it probably took so long to come out. People that know me through the music thing know that I am prick of a dude to work with when it comes to choosing beats. I sifted through a lot of other peoples beats including the dudes that were on it and these were the winners in my opinion. All of those dudes have their own distinct sound, it amazed me how well it all sat next to each other considering there are the tunes of 8 different sets of ears on there. Whoever the fuck thinks that the bigger name producers will always make a better beat don’t know jack. Next album I’m sticking to one producer, and that producer being WIK. Were 6 beats into it already and this dude is a fucking boss!! I can’t keep up!!
Should we expect to see you touring around AUS anytime soon? Were getting off our lazy backsides and sorting things out at the moment, in the meantime I’m playing all around Melbourne and I should have ADL locked in if all goes to plan. Were coming to your city, hopefully the masses dig the album.
Any last words? Your just in time for Mother’s Day, people!! Do Mum or Grandma Agnes a favour and give her some of that real Melbourne shit she loves Cheers!! Mr Nobody, out now!
Adelaide hip hop crew Adroit Effusive are set to release their long awaited debut album – The Album.
