Raph Boogie

Raph Boogie is somewhat of an enigma, the Melbourne emcee manages to juggle a number of enterprises including the Crookneck and Blank Clothing imprints and on top of that, fathering a family. Thankfully for fans of his efforts as part of Mnemonic Ascent, he has found time to craft his debut LP Le Bump. It’s a diverse effort, filled with party anthems as well as a handful of slower, intimate tracks.

You’re an individual with his fair share of preoccupations, how do you find the time to record an album?
Writing raps is just something I have always done, once I started mixing the music with visiting my friends like Plutonic Lab and Danielsan then naturally we would just work on stuff. I love hanging out and socialising but I get caught up with my projects and family and in turn miss lots of events and stuff, so when I worked out that I could catch with friends and make music at the same time I was real happy.

There is an impressive, global array of producers all wrapped up in the new album, has your previous work on Behind The Beat endowed you with a greater level of insight when selecting producers?
One thing I learned from my experiences from the book is that everyone works differently, some producers make beats and send them out for sale, other guys only make tracks with the rapper and other producers will sell beats to whoever just to survive. When it came to my record I was more interested in working with the producers from the start and
getting the music up together with the ideas I had. Like everything there is no wrong or right way, and the way I did this record is probably not going to be the way I do the next.

Do you feel the full potential of your music was realised on Le Bump? Or was this more of an exploratory, ongoing concept?
I think I nailed all of the ideas I had for this record, essentially it’s a party joint. I have some other territory that I want to explore next. But yeah, exploring can be crazy, never know what is going to happen(good or bad). I guess that is the beauty of not being a commercial artist and caring about sales, etc. I just want to make sure we are pushing boundaries.

Boogie Bump is a definite highlight of the album, can you tell me how that one came together with Danielsan?
Yeah that was a funny night, I remember Dan looking at me like, ‘are you with this ?’ And I was like ‘this is some other shit.’ I went into the session with a whole different song in mind and came out with this crazy beat. In the session I put down some rough ideas, but it really came together when I went out to Adelaide to record my vocals for some of the other songs. I had finished my other tracks and then started playing BVA the track, we just started vibin’ off it .

Is it simpler releasing an album on your own label or does the process throw up additional pressures?
Honestly I want a record deal! It’s too hard for me to keep up, but fortunately I was blessed with a great publicist/project manager, Dan Cameron from Shogun will be sorely missed from that position. I just find it hard to keep the momentum up, there is a lot of stuff that my brain just cant function on. Being the label we are doesn’t allow us to have staff, etc. So we got to do everything, which is hard. So yes long answer short, there are many additional pressures that I find hard to deal with.

How do you negotiate self-promotion?
It is hard, I’m in the balance. Australians in general are a little bit more chill, also being from Melbourne, it’s a city that is proud of letting your craft speak for itself. Saying that you still got to get your shit heard, so yeah i am probably a little shy when it comes to shameless self promo.

“…Like everything there is no wrong or right way, and the way I did this record is probably not going to be the way I do the next…”

Much is said of the contribution of powerhouse label Obese Records. Do you feel that more modest imprints such as Crookneck are just as instrumental in creating a strong, diverse scene?
I would say yes for sure. When you look at it most of the labels have brought their own identity to the landscape. I would like to think that when people see the Crookneck logo they know they are going to get a quality record. Diversity is essential in any scene, of course certain styles are going to be more popular than others. We all know that the record industry is changing so I hope that all the styles can continue to get heard out there.

The press release for Le Bump slates the LP in a party sense. Do you feel this is accurate? How would you describe the music you have produced?
Yeah I think these tracks are pretty much on the party tip, they’re all pretty upbeat. Lets not forget though that not all parties are ‘in the club’ type parties. I’m more about making some house party type shit…tracks that you can jam with your friends and have a good time in the backyard.

Family seems to be a very prominent muse of your’s, does this hold true with your music?
I’m always playing my kids my songs, plus my son Tyke and his friend Jay are on Tea Cakes. Fam and friends are a really important part of who I am. I got 2 brothers and we hook up once a week to chill. I think being able to show your family and friends your music is about as real as it can get cause they know you the best.

You have previously stated ‘Everything I do effects everything else,’ in regards to your multiple enterprises. Can you demonstrate how this process works in reality?
By this I mean, I work on things in conjunction with everything else. So working on my music at night gives me the opportunity to work on Blank during the day, then I can also make time for shooting my new book and doing live shows.
Being in the flow of work is what I really need to get things done . So in a sense, none of my projects are really full time, they all just gel together. One things helps the other. Plus I want all of my projects to push each other in a quality sense.

In another interview you explain your philosophy behind releasing a product of any kind: ‘Don’t put things out if they aren’t up to the highest quality standards you can achieve.’ Is this the reasoning behind waiting until now to release your debut LP?
Yes for sure, when I talk about the highest quality standards I relate this to the highest quality of originality and ideas. For too long I thought that quality was something that could only be bought. Then I realised that I was on the wrong track and many high quality things were really just great ideas, ie. some of my favourite pieces where done with two cans of cheap paint. Some of my favourite songs were recorded on 4-tracks or budget type set ups. So when it came to my LP I was more concerned with the content and beats than I was with recording my vocals in an isolated booth. Sure I am still concerned with my shit sounding good, but I really got to make sure I am trying new things, that the ideas are new. It’s important to me to give the listener something new.

Le Bump takes a definite nostalgic deviation on I Know. Do you feel these blue touches are important in complimenting the more upbeat party rhythms present elsewhere on the LP?
Yeah I’m real happy I Know is on the record, I think it rounds it out. Not that I think the party shit needs to be justified, but I like that I Know gives the listener a little dip in the middle. It’s the deep and meaningful you might see going on in the corner of the party!

There also seems to be a strong culinary motif in some of your lyrics. Is cooking another recreation you approach enthusiastically?
Yeah man for sure, two of the greatest things in my world are music and food. As far as I am concerned the two go hand in hand.  I think pop music is like fast food, sure every now and again you might each some crap drive though, just like you might like some top 40 pop music. But you aint going to eat it everyday, same as pop music, listen to that everyday and your mind will turn to mush. So with the food, what I put in is important to me. I don’t want to waste time eating crap, and I don’t want to listen to garbage either. I want my kids to try everything, too many people are crazy fussy. It’s just not me, gotta keep the mind and the taste buds open to new flavour all the time.

Are there any plans to tour Le Bump?
I have a couple little spot shows coming up, I’m down if anyone wanna hook it up.

www.myspace.com/raphboogie