Pure Product

Amongst the many crews making noise north of the border, Pure Product has come to the forefront in recent times. Last year’s release of their debut album, Eviction Notice introduced the other states to the brilliant lyricism and classy beats that characterise the young group and denote their close ties with Brisbane legends The Optimen. 2009 sees them embarking on a comprehensive tour with Adelaide’s Funkoars.

Was the concept of ‘eviction’ on your debut album something that was present from the outset of recording or did it develop naturally with time?

4TH: Kind of…the song Eviction Notice was one of the really early dinosaur-old tracks in the whole scheme of things so it kind of just came together like that. But really we just wanted to play dress ups for the album artwork (big ups Kingdom of Sad Machines). At the time we thought it was some cool shit in comparison to an over saturated scene.

Do you regard it as a concept album or just something designed to generate a bit more intrigue to what you were doing?

4TH: Nah it was never intended to be a concept album. We were just trying to give the album a bit of balance between upbeat and conscious shit. And crunk. Mostly crunk. Actually the concept was crunk. We just wanted to make sure our first to the scene impression was solid.

Keep An Eye Out has a real class about it, a wonderful polish for a lead single. Did this distinctness make it an easy choice?

Ten: The fact that the hook got caught in our heads was a bit of a clincher and everyone we showed it to really dug, so that made it an easy choice.

4TH: Yeah man! This was one of the latter beats that Sammonsite hit us up with, with the vocal sample in it and seeing as it was our debut it kind of made the decision for us. But again, a lot of the choice was so we could play dress ups for the film clip and I could wear an eye patch. Watch it!

One thing I noticed about Eviction Notice is multi-faceted lyricism varying between the staunch and rawer, emotional sentiment present. Is this something you believe sets Pure Product apart from other, more tiresome acts that you would want to notice the concept of ‘eviction’?

4TH: Maybe. I think a lot of it had to do with us maturing during the process of recording the album. When we first started out most of our raps were battle shit (as most normally are) and as we progressed we started veering away from it a bit-but still keeping it a bit ‘fuck you.’ We also wanted to show a bit of diversity so we couldn’t be pigeonholed as ‘those battle rap cunts’ or those ‘whiny emo rappers.’ So now we’re those whiny battle rapper emo cunts. Checkmate.

Was there a conscious effort to maintain a balance between the party-vibe tracks and those focussing on heavier concepts? Or did you just let it develop naturally?

4TH: A bit of both, we knew we wanted variation of topics and actual feel of tracks on there. But you can’t force out the heavier tracks so they just sort of happened and it worked well to balance out the more upbeat ones on there. But we definitely did want that balance because we didn’t want to put out an album where all the tracks are the same.

Is The Music a good indication of Pure Product’s philosophy when it comes to producing music?

T: Making music is the inspiration for that song, we’re doing what we love and so we wanted to pay homage to that.

Marvel: I don’t think so. I just think it was a statement about our passion for music and resentment towards a large majority of music that’s made nowadays. Where we were also trying to put across the fact that regardless of what’s happening around us in the music industry and how well received out music is, we will still be driven to make the music we wanna make.

“…We also wanted to show a bit of diversity so we couldn’t be pigeonholed as ‘those battle rap cunts’ or those ‘whiny emo rappers.’ So now we’re those whiny battle rapper emo cunts. Checkmate…”

Can you tell me about the process behind your epilogue of sorts, Boomtown II, to The Optimen’s original track Boomtown? What was behind the decision to make the track?

M: The idea was brought about vaguely through listening to the beat and trying to write a song with The Optimen that meshed with that particular beat. We thought an anthem style track like Boomtown II would be the perfect fit. Plus they begged us to be on the album.

4TH: The beat has a sort of ‘theme music’ feel to it so theme music for Brisbane is what we did.

Do you believe that the consistent need to label music into rigid ideals of genre or sub-genres, as well as prejudice between these, is counter productive and doesn’t get anyone very far?

Butcher: Well, I think putting music into specific genres has positives and negatives, it somewhat limits a bands fan base by making their music only available to a particular group of people, but at the same time, that group of people are more than likely the target audience. Although there is a positive that the niche market is more easily infiltrated it makes it harder for a group to become more popular on a national scale. Again, this may be a positive if that population of the niche market can support a bands lifestyle (if they wish to live off music and quit their jobs like myself), though within a smaller scene like Australian hip hop, labeling music into rigid genres is very counter-productive and limits peoples fan bases to a small group of people. As for sub-genres…well, lets not get into that.

Was Shades Of Grey composed closer to the heat of the moment or with the benefit of retrospect?

4TH: Kind of both…I was dating this chick and we broke up and I wrote the first verse. Then we got back together. Then we broke up, and I wrote the rest of it and recorded it. It was probably the quickest song to do on the album-during the second break up Sam called me up to show this beat he thought was perfect for the track idea and I went in a couple days letter then BAM. Then we got back together…haha. Then we broke up for good but there’s no bad blood. Bitch, I dunno if she has ever heard it though.

Is the venting of such things on a track a more hollow consolation or was it an important part of what you were going through at the time?

4TH: At the time of writing the shit it was all about getting it on paper…venting, and the recording just happened at a good time really. It’s not an original concept but we thought it was something a lot of people could relate to.

Have tracks like Heatwave and Showstoppers translated well at live shows?

B: From the first time we did Heatwave live, the crowd have always LOVED it. As for Showstoppers, any track with Clinic on set was always bound to tear the roof off a venue.

M: Uh…yeah! They probably go down the best at live shows because they call for a lot of energy.

There is great sense of humility relayed by the reflective lyrics of Thank You. It’s somewhat powerful without even having to try, what compelled you to write about highly personal contexts?

T: I came home drunk from the Brad Strut show in Brisbane and I sat down with a pen and a pad and that’s what came out. It ties in very closely with my past-everything has a time to come out and I guess that was it.

Favourite tracks and why?

B: Call Me, ‘cause its a good “fuck you” to all the haters.

T: It Goes On, my grandmother recently passed and that shit helped me keep my head up…go figure.

M: Showstoppers, because I’m sexually attracted to the beat.

4TH: Hypocrite because I LOVE that beat! I was so shitty when Marvel snatched it up for his solo. Dick.

What is on the double P agenda in the next few months? Any plans for another album?

4TH: The next few months we are doing a bunch of shows with the Funkoars on their Hangover tour-peep ozhiphop.com for dates, etc. Right now we are just starting to get shit cracking on album number 2…no title or anything yet but we have a few tracks brewing. Its definitely going to be a big, big step up from Eviction Notice. We will be working with The Optimen essentially for production but also a new producer by the name of Cam Bluff.

www.myspace.com/pureproducthiphop

Scott Burns

Scott Burns has been quietly plying his craft amidst the Sydney scene for quite some time now. The 24 year-old’s debut album Day 1 is a worthy exponent of patience with the emcee choosing to get the order right; maturing as an artist before making a definitive offering. This vital process is evident in the strength of Day 1. It’s certainly an album that displays the talent present in the city of Sydney.

Is there a particular personal philosophy behind the album title Day 1?
If there is-I think it’s explained a bit on the last track of the album The End (Day 1). It’s a new start, a fresh beginning, the end of something else and the entrance into something new. I’m not one for over-explaining metaphors and things, there is a philosophy there though.

Do you feel that the release of your album is part of a wider process of consolidating LookUP as a vital component of Hip Hop in Sydney?
Regardless of Sydney, it’s definitely a vital component of LookUP, the recorded music is finally seeing the light of day. Now it’s going to start flowing more constantly. We had the parties and events happening but that’s just one part of the bigger vision of the movement that is LookUP. Now we’ve got the two official releases and the mixtape behind us in 2008, we’ll have another two or three releases in the first half of 2009-some stuff from Bingethinkers, That’s Them, maybe DJ Mathmatics. After that, there are more facets of LookUP to reveal too. Shit’s going to get even more interesting!

The album has a really consistent, solid sound to it that would seem to translate well in the live arena, has this held true so far?
Yeah I’ve been happy with how the live shows have been going, we’ve had some real crazy ones. It’s enhanced a lot by having DJ Mathmatics to perform with, he gets busy on the turntables and gets his breakdance on at most shows too. A lot of the beats bang well on the big PA’s so it’s always a pleasure to get up and bang ‘em out.

Were you aiming for this sort of atmosphere during the recording of the album?
I wasn’t aiming for a live/party feel to the album as a conscious decision, no. It was only when the album was almost finished that I realised there were not many slower, introspective, moody tracks on there. I played with the idea of including some in order to give the album a bigger range of moods but at the end of the day though that I could maybe save some of those other tracks for a later date.

The first single off the album, Still Time, has a real class about it, something that does Sydney hip hop proud. Is this something you were also trying to capture with the video?
Cheers mate. The video was done by my close mates Suki and Tanya(as well as a few of their comrades), they pretty much do all the LookUP video stuff. It was filmed just outside my apartment in Sydney so it fit the personal nature of the track I guess.

“…I remember reading some bullshit that someone said in a street press about Sydney being crap and things like that, you forget who says it pretty quickly but then it just makes you rep your city harder…”

Is this strong sense of local representation something you were also trying to capture on Big City Music?
Yeah I came up in the community at a time when lots of people where hating on Sydney and didn’t want to know about it. I remember reading some bullshit that someone said in a street press about Sydney being crap and things like that, you forget who says it pretty quickly but then it just makes you rep your city harder. So when I was writing these songs I had a lot of that in mind about wanting to see Sydney back firing again and showing the rest of the country what we’re capable of. Now look what’s happening! That said, these days I’m more keen to travel more and understand how things operate in Melbourne, Brizzy, etc. I really enjoy doing shows in the other states and meeting new people again.

You drop your fair share of geographical references on Day 1.What does living and producing hip hop in the city of Sydney mean to you?
Well we are the biggest city in the country and with that comes some great things and some not-so-great things. They all inspire the music. Another advantage of having such a big city is more people and more people making hip hop. Lots of different styles, that’s exactly what it’s all about.

There is a definite contrast between the sparkling horn sections and dirtier drum pattern on The Sound. Was it this musical dichotomy that compelled you to use it on the album? Or was it something else?
The Sound is my cover version of KRS-1’s Sound Of The Police. It’s a heavy, angry track. I’ve had police lie against me in court, shut down a heap of my parties in violent ways and the list goes on – everyone has their problems with them and their mentality. Some choose to avoid them, some choose to smash the crap out of them and I chose to write a song about it. It’s an important song on the album.

Lyrically, is Something To Write Home About a means of taking stock and evaluating the purpose of this rap caper you persevere at?
Ah sorta. It’s A-Love and me just reminiscing about some of the good times we’ve had on tour-playing dope shows, crap shows, meeting legends and gronks…it’s all character-building stuff!

There’s no doubting you’re a key figure in Sydney’s live hip hop scene. Do you feel as if you are a facilitator or ambassador for the scene?
I just do what I can man. I have lots of things I want to do and some of those things are going to reach people way outside of our little hip hop community. Some of those things are just going to be for the community, or for the LookUP family, or for myself.  If I can help out other people on the way that’s all I good but I’m no holy samaritan. More of an ambassador than a facilitator though, especially now we’ve got LookUP-it’s about building on what’s already there rather than worrying too much about what’s already there.

Is avoiding the hallmarks of battling such as: self-proclamation, cursing and an abundance of punchlines an important part of this process for you?
No not necessarily. Look at someone like Sean Price-he ticks those boxes but I’ll still bump his songs from time to time. What is a song? Sean Price’s P-Body is just as much a song as Prince’s Purple Rain. I’ll listen to both of those at different times. Doesn’t need to be deep to be a song. That said, when you freestyle(especially if you’re not very good) you can tend to rely on gimmicks and pretty shallow things that don’t have a great deal of replay value-that’s the stuff I reckon you want to avoid in your songs, that’s what I will avoid.

There is a wonderful array of local talent that features on Day 1. Was there a particular basis upon which you selected these individuals? Or is it more crew and those who are making noise you enjoy?
It’s almost all close crew on Day 1 in both production and guest vocals. That’s the best way to get this thing kick started.

www.myspace.com/scottburnsthings