Saturday, August 11, 2012

Rest In Peace Pakelika


"When you say goodbye to a tangerine sky, you lose your pain, lose your fear, lose your sorrow..."
Rest in peace to the Visual Assassin, Pakelika, formerly of the Kottonmouth Kings, who died August 11 of cardiac arrest during an asthma attack.

Monday, August 6, 2012

Take Me To Your Leader: Interview With Wrekonize

Bands aren't too common in hip-hop music. Typically, the combination of rapping and live instrumentation probably sparks the majority of people to think of late '90s and early '00s nu-metal, and with the exception of a few very talented groups like criminally slept-on Critical Bill and hip-hop-metal fusion chameleons Linkin Park, that tends to be an unsavory lot. On the flipside of that are true hip-hop bands, and well, with the exception of the exceptionally talented Roots, there are almost none of those to achieve any real commercial success, despite the increasing popularity of hip-hop acts touring with live bands.

Enter ¡Mayday!, a 6-person collective from Miami, Florida, who emerged on the scene in 2006 with their self-titled and self-released debut album. Since then, ¡Mayday!'s profile has been steadily increasing, with Cee-Lo Green appearing in their first music video ("Groundhog Day"), an acclaimed sophomore album in 2010 (Stuck On an Island), and appearances in two Lil' Wayne videos ("Da Da Da" and "Get a Life") as his backing band. I, like many others, wasn't a fan of Wayne's Rebirth project (to put it nicely) but the videos served to boost ¡Mayday!'s visibility greatly, leading to a somewhat surprising signing to Strange Music in April 2011 (only surprising because Strange tends to sign artists with whom they already have an established business history and the ¡Mayday! move seemed sudden to this long-time Strange fan).



In reality, the move wasn't sudden at all. The signing was a few years in the making, as Strange Music vice president Dave Weiner had actually been after CEO Travis O'Guin to look into them for quite some time. I won't detail this all here as it has been described in depth in ¡Mayday!'s free ebook, Darker Shades For Brighter Nights (download here). In any event, ¡Mayday! almost immediately embarked on Tech N9ne's "All 6's and 7's Tour" with Jay Rock, Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone, and Kutt Calhoun and upon returning home, produced an entire EP for Tech N9ne (Klusterfuk) before beginning work on their Strange Music debut, Take Me To Your Leader. I personally have the project as my album of the year pick so far, as it featured an organic, traditional boom-bap atmosphere mixed with hints of rock and blues along with stellar lyrical performances from co-frontmen Bernz and Wrekonize. The album dropped earlier this April to universal acclaim while the band was again on tour, this time as part of Tech N9ne's world-record breaking "Hostile Takeover Tour". Following the conclusion of the tour, I was able to contact Wrekonize for an interview discussing his band, his solo career, the tour, and their brand new EP, Thrift Store Halos, which releases tonight at 12 ET on iTunes.


Wrekonize's comments are in red.

For starters, can you initiate my readers who may be unfamiliar with the guys that make up ¡Mayday! and your functions in the band?

We're a 6 piece band made up of 4 instrumentalists and 2 vocalists. Plex Luthor is our guitarist, keyboardist, and main producer. Gianni Cash is our bassist, keyboardist, and our second producer. LT Hopkins is our drummer. NonMS (pronounced like "'nonymous") is our percussionist. Bernz and myself make up the vocals.

You just came off the Hostile Takeover Tour, a record-breaking 95-show tour with Prozak, Machine Gun Kelly, Krizz Kaliko, Stevie Stone, and of course, Tech N9ne. How does it feel to be a part of history?

It's an incredible feeling. Very fulfilling experience. It was a very intense schedule and we almost killed each other a few times but overall it was a bonding experience that is often hard to describe and put into words. There is nothing like touring at the level Strange Music does it to begin with. Then add on the fact that you're breaking the world record for a consecutive tour on top of that and it really puts the gold medal feeling around your neck for surviving it.

Was there a moment about this tour that really stood out to you?

The day after we played a sold out show in New York City we were invited on to Sway's morning show on Shade 45 (Sirius Radio). 4 of us from the group were able to perform and we were in studio alongside Tech N9ne, Krizz Kaliko, & Stevie Stone. It was an incredible experience to be a part of that group of artists and be proud of everything that was going out on the airwaves. It meant a lot to me because 10 years prior I was 19 on MTV battling for accolades with Sway hosting. So to return almost a decade later as an established artist on the rise signed to the best independent label on the planet brought me an incredible feeling of accomplishment. I wish I would have done better on the Five Fingers freestyle but i'll knock it out if and when there's a next time.


I attended the final show in Springfield, MO, and I was thoroughly impressed with the amount of energy everyone displayed. What's your band's secret to remaining that consistently high-octane for such a grueling tour?

You have to pace yourself and treat your body right. That's key. Get a good amount of rest and be really careful with how you treat your immune system. I drank a lot but I tried to counterbalance it with vitamins and decent diet, rest, etc.

You recently revealed that you've begun work on a new EP. Can you tell us anything about that?

Actually the EP is done already! We had pretty much the entire thing recorded before we left on the road. It's 7 tracks. 2 of which have been previously released. At the time I'm writing this there's one more day before it is released.

The first music video from Thrift Store Halos, "Darker Shades".

The group's collaborations on Take Me To Your Leader were extremely natural and organic. Every MC chosen seemed to have chemistry with you and Bernz to the extent that they could've passed as just another member of the band. Do you attribute that to the nature of ¡Mayday! that you guys are just super easy to work with, were the collaborations just that carefully chosen, or was it some combination of the two?

Definitely a combination of the two. We are an extremely easy bunch of people to work with. We may be picky with artistic decisions but when we work with artists I believe from our management down to our actual band members we create such a relaxed environment that it brings something organic out of the guests we feature. I'm very proud of that especially when we work with an artist that people would never expect.

Who was your favorite collaborator for Take Me To Your Leader?

I'd have to say Tech N9ne because his verse was so ridiculous on "Badlands". But I definitely enjoyed all the features we locked in for the album. Also loved Murs's verse on "Hardcore Bitches". I prided myself in being one of the ones who really saw the vision of him on that song. Just like I predicted, he delivered. Hard to imagine anyone else on that record now.


I couldn't agree more about that Murs verse, that was my favorite collaboration on the album personally. Can you tell us about collaborations you guys may be pursuing in the near future?

We aren't picky with collaborations. We love to work with people from all walks of life. There's still a few golden collabs I personally want though. Outkast being one, and Nas being another. But at the end of the day we have a great management team who makes collaborating with other artists a very natural cohesive process that I don't even have to be too conscious of at the end of the day.

Your albums to date have been exclusively produced by the band. Recently though, you released a remix to "Badlands" produced by Strange favorite, Michael "Seven" Summers. Did Seven create a new beat to the existing a cappella, or did he arrange a new track for the band to play? Do you see the band ever doing that sort of work with outside producers in the future?

We sent Seven the a cappella for him to remix. Plex serves as our main producer with Gianni Ca$h taking on more duties every other day. But I do think we'd be open to having an outside producer come and work with us. But more of a Rick Rubin type. Not just a beatmaker but a through and through producer. We'd definitely be open to that.


What is the demand like for ¡Mayday! production outside of Strange?

It's growing every day. Which is a beautiful thing. I've known Plex for a decade now and he's overdue to be a sought out producer.

How well do you and Bernz mesh conceptually? Are your ideas generally in tune for a song, is there much disagreement for where to take a song lyrically, or does one of you handle the brunt of the conceptualizing?

Bernz is the idea guy for sure. He is always noting down quotes and things he hears in conversation to bring up in our writing sessions. We have an extremely fluid working relationship. We have our disagreements but for the most part we mesh or clash just the right amount and the material comes out better for it.

What about Wrekonize as a solo artist? Will you be continuing your solo work and will that be through Strange or through some other outlet?

I'll always release solo material. There is something about writing something that is completely yours and knowing you can pull off a record on your own that exhilarates me. It brings me something that working in a group atmosphere can't bring me. That's why I enjoy doing both. Currently Strange is expressing interest in releasing a solo album of mine sometime next year. So we'll see how that pans out.

How different is the creative process for you as a solo artist versus your work with ¡Mayday!?

I love to write things that are personal to me. When writing by myself I drift off and tend to be a bit more cryptic. I just feel like I write things in solitude that I would never write with another person and vice versa. Hence my love for both.

You claimed a solo production credit on Tech N9ne's Klusterfuk released earlier this year, a dubstep-influenced track called "Blur." Did you already have an interest in dubstep music or did Tech specifically approach you for this type of track?

I been trying to find my stride as a producer for a long time now. It's been at a slower pace seeing as I have other duties to juggle. My vocals and video editing take up a lot of time. But I'm working more and more at trying to be a production force as well. I have been into dubstep for some time now. I didn't know if Tech was going to dig the beat or not but I did hear him on it in my mind. It was one of the last submissions for the EP. Bernz & I had laid the hook on it already and it matched up perfectly for a crazy night Tech had just experienced. "Blur" was born.


Will you be doing more production work on your own in the future?

Most definitely!

Some of the readers may remember you better as the MC that won MTV Battle a few years back. The prize was supposed to be a contract with Roc-a-Fella Records. Why didn't that pan out and do you have any kind of relationship with Jay-Z or Dame Dash now?

It was supposed to be a single deal. That was never honored. I never spoke to Dame or Jay after that. My thoughts then, along with my manager at the time, were if they didn't want to work with me, why hunt them down and waste my time. They also had a gang load of artists signed at the time so it seemed like I would be sure to get lost in the shuffle either way. Jay could make it up to me by jumping on a ¡MAYDAY! track though. haha

What role does your diverse background play in your musical taste and style?

My family have always been heavily involved in the arts. Mostly music & theatre. My parents were in a band together when they were in their teens. We always had a great variety of music playing in the house. I feel like my dad bringing in the new hot shit from all kinds of genres opened me up to having an expansive palette for music. My mother was a backup vocalist. She still to this day has impeccable harmonies. She would play records in the car and harmonize to them when we were younger. That was my subconscious ear training. I also do that today.

Finally, can you break down a few of your biggest influences in music?

I take influence from everything and everyone around me. Sounds cliche but it's the truth. Daily conversations and situations that happen around me weigh in heavy on my writing. My parents playing me a wide range of artists including everything from Pink Floyd & Led Zeppelin to Duran Duran to Fleetwood Mac and beyond played a great part of building me into not only a diverse listener but a diverse artist.

Thanks so much for your time. Looking forward to the EP release!

No prob!



Order Thrift Store Halos, which features appearances from Brotha Lynch Hung, Ces Cru, and Del tha Funkee Homosapien, here.