Astronomy Class - “This is Hip Hop, Baby”
» Astronomy Class take their debut release on the road - October 18, 2006
» Astronomy Class - Republic Bar and Cafe, Tas - May 19, 2007
» Astronomy Class - Republic Bar and Cafe, Tas - May 19, 2007
In anticipation of their visit southward, Steph Marker gets her pencil ready and goes back to Hip-Hop high school with Astronomy Class.
Don’t blow your pants off with dismay; I’m not a hip-hop aficionado. However, I do know that the Astronomy Class boys have a fine Oz hip-hop pedigree, bringing together Ozi Batla (The Herd), Sir Robbo (Tooth) and Chasm. I was given the opportunity to chat with the chaps regarding their new album Exit Strategy and some other eccentric tit bits.
I desperately wanted to know why anyone should listen to their album if they’re not already versed in hip-hop and reggae. “Beautiful music, challenging lyrics, some awesome guests, and incredible artwork – this album will transport you.”
Speaking of guests, one thing that’s always fascinated me about hip-hop is the phenomenon of ‘feat.’ How does one develop a signature, personal sound when you have so many guest artists appearing on an album? “I suppose the producers define the sound; and the MC’s voice. Our sound is fairly unique, there’s no one in Australia pursuing the dream of ‘roots rap’ like us Astronomers, so that’s not an issue. We felt the number of guests was justified, some of the guest spots are just on choruses and some have full verses, either way, we felt it would extend the ‘listenability’ of the album and also bring to light some of out favourite musicians like Ben Ezra and Sloth.”
Sloth? Ozi Batla…Chasm…ok, I give up. Why the alias names? “This is hip hop, baby.” Ok…so it is. “Even if it ain’t, this is reggae, baby.”
So what ethos keeps you together? “It’s not really intentional, but in our own minds we are bridging the gap between our love of hip-hop and our love for reggae. The two musical movements have so much in common, and yet so many fans are very purist and won’t touch the other. We are far from purists; we just love the music and wanted to tap a rich source of samples we love in a hip-hop vein.”
Well then, after seeing some serious passion, I was concerned that this album might spark a grand scale reggae revival! Apparently, “if you ask Sir Robbo (who has been in and around the Australian reggae scene for close to twenty years), Australia’s been awaiting a reggae revival forever!”
From the sound of that I say we go get some dreads and jump on the bandwagon!
