It’s Official’s own personal media assassin AKA Mr. Syntax took some time to chop it up with two of Sydney’s best…
There’s something so definitively smooth about Spit Syndicate; a seemingly effortless aura surrounds their music, something that is testament to traditions of swagger, emotion and bragging rights that runs at the core of all hip hop.
Coming from Sydney, you would have heard their considerable talents on numerous releases, including two highly publicised albums on Obese Records. Their latest album ‘Exile’ is available now, and as they set forth on the first of many national tours, I caught up with the boys to shed some light for those who are still unitiated with their music.
But like girlfriends for science fiction nerds, those people are few and far between.
Your new album is called ‘Exile’, of all the songs on the album, why do you guys feel this summarised the direction of your LP as opposed to other songs?
It happened the other way around actually, we knew we wanted to call the album “Exile” from the very beginning. The intro to the album was the very last song we wrote and it briefly touches on some of the core themes of the album, the feeling of wanting to get away, not quite feeling right in your regular surroundings, etc.
So how is the new album different from your debut release, Towards the light?
Well I’d prefer to let the music speak for itself, people who’ve heard both albums can judge for themselves how they feel it’s different. But from our perspective, we put a lot more thought and effort into crafting the second record, there is more attention to detail and that attention ranges from lyrics to song structure to album artwork. “Exile” is much more of a coherent listening experience, we think.
The vast majority of your album was produced by Adit (of Horrorshow fame), was this a conscious choice? or was it something that just naturally evolved as the project rolled on?
Bit of both man, we were putting the album together in the early stages (choosing beats, choosing ideas, writing songs) but we wanted somebody to come on board and oversee the whole thing, someone external but who still knew our steez and what we were after. We’d worked with Adit before and he’s a good friend of ours so that part of it was definite natural.
The first single is called ‘Starry Eyed’, but the song that stands out for me among all others is ‘The Creditors’, something that has a deep message behind it; are these the kind of tracks you prefer to write?
That’s the sort of hip-hop that we like to make, shit which sounds cool but there’s gotta be something in it, you’ve gotta be saying something. I love the ignorant swaggerific shit as well but the music which resonates with us the most is that which is laden with a message, a story, something to say.
I first heard you guys back in ’07 on 13th Son’s album Our Lives; even in just that short time has your sudden rise to among the top of the Obese roster been a humbling experience?
Word that feels like a long time ago man..god damn. Definitely had some humbling moments in the last few years, it’s been one hell of a ride – but there is way too long to go to get too nostalgic. We’re really just getting into it.
So you’re in the middle of your Starry Eyed tour, got any favourite spots where readers can get some top quality grub? or are some secrets not worth divulging?
Eating boss meals is our favourite ritual when we’re on tour – big breakfasts especially. They allow the crew a chance to catch up on the latest debauchery . Best big breakfast spot in Australia is arguably The Little Larder in Brisbane.
Kat Stacks, would you or wouldn’t you?
I don’t even know who that is, some muppet that fucked a whole bunch of rappers in America? No thank you.
So how hands on do you guys like to get with your songs? Are you of the kind that like to record and let the producer do their thing, or do you like to be in on the action every step of the way?
Very hands on man, in the past we’ve let the producer do their own thing but nowadays we like to be involved every step of the way. As much as is humanly possible anyway, you’ve gotta let the producer do their thing but we like to have input.
Do you still get the whole ‘rap hands’ thing when you tell people you’re rappers? or do you find people are far more accepting of hip hop music in this day and age?
Yes and no – we definitely still get weird looks from people from time to time when you tell them that you’re an Australian rapper, especially people from overseas..but it’s definitely becoming a more accepted genre. Plus, once people come to a show or hear some music then they are much more open to the idea of some whitey’s rapping.
Coming from QLD it was hard to stay on top of the entire scene in the early days, for you guys in Sydney was it a similar experience? and do you think the local scene is now homogenised or is there still a definitive Sydney sound?
I think there are certain similarities that can be heard from different crews within parts of Australia, Sydney included, but I don’t think Sydney has a homogenised sound.
So you’ve now got two exceptional LP’s under your belt, what’s next for SS? Are you guys resting on your laurel’s or still writing/recording?
We’ve got two more national tours on the cards before the year is out – which will bring the total number of tours in one year to 4 – and we’re pretty keen to get back into the swing of writing. No rest for the wicked homie, cheers for the interview.
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