 Lost Island Interview
interview 0019 added 31.07.00 words Spoon
'Straight outta Radford', Lost Island, two aging B-Boys Styly Cee & Frisco, caused a stir last year with their 3 EPs through Son Records. Now they've finally got around to recording and releasing the album It was only right that we should feature them, so our intrepid reporter Spoon headed off to 'Styly's House Of Hits' to find out what the old skool was all about and why it's still prevalent in their music today, found out he didn't have to suggest much as these two could talk.....
Start from the beginning, tell us your hiphop histories and stuff
[Styly Cee] From what I can remember I started first checking hiphop when I was in junior school, about 11, heard a few tracks, saw it on TV, got into it that way. I started going to the local community centre - Beeston in Nottingham, dancing and that. It went on from there, to Rock City, into the whole scene, got a Casio keyboard with a 3 second sampler and started messing around making beats, started writing a few tracks, doing demos, doing a few things at school with other people. I hooked up with these other guys at school and formed a crew UBP – United Beat Posse 'cos everything was a posse then. I was trying to push us forward but the others weren't as much for it as me and then I started DJing on a pirate called Heatwave and some URN (University Radio Nottingham). From that I got some scratching on other peoples tracks, a guy called K.I.D. from Nottingham, doing remixes for the radio show, building up a name really. I bought a new sampler, making my beats crispier. Frisco came round one day and we were both at a point where we weren't going anywhere career wise, we decided to do a few tracks, nothing serious at the time, before we knew it we had 20 tracks, put a demo tape together and sent it out.
[Frisco] I'm 28 now and I got into hiphop when I was about 11,12-ish leaving juniors. I was more on the dancing side than anything else, went to a school in Nottingham called Stanfield, we had little crews, getting into school early, getting into a room, even if you didn't have a key. You'd move tables & chairs back and we'd break, then lessons, breaktimes, lunch, eat dinner quick, after school. We used to break with Andrew Cole, y'know from Man United....we'd gett the small lad Mark and we'd put him through a broken window so he could open the classroom door for us....got in trouble many a time but it didn't stop us. I used to dance with Pure Genius...leaving school I still into breaking. We used to mess around MCing at school but I started proper MCing I'd say '89 probably because I used to be in a funk band....the producer for Lee Ramsey - Diamond used to be the bass player so the band split up and I did some work with a couple of guys from Nottingham, put a couple of 12s out, more of a dance 12, got into the semi-finals of the Sony Dance Championships, hosted by Derek B – the legend himself. I did that kind of thing, but the way I rhymed I wanted to find someone who could get hold of what I wanted to talk about. We did this K.I.D. thing, and when Styly played that track it was the first time I'd heard myself on the radio....
[Styly] I wasn't really doing anything serious that time, just DJing and I was on the path of supporting all the local and British talent, there was a good vibe in Nottingham, a lot of people listening to the station so I just played it.
Frisco & Styly
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[Frisco] It came to one day, I came round, he played a beat, and I said 'shall we do some tunes together' and that was it. On our Lost Demos tape, there were probably 3 of the first tunes we wrote together and most of them were the first recording of those tunes, the tape we sent out to a few people, one of them got to a women at Vital Distribution and somehow Max & Dave got hold of it.....there was a Nottingham crew doing an interview on Max & Daves show and as they were leaving the studio he played our tune....he played it off a little 4 track recorded tape
[Styly] The sampler I was using then, was one of those Gemini battery ones, quality wasn't good at all.
[Frisco] We put that tape out, people got hold of it without us promoting it, people played it who didn't know us, it just went from there. Then Alastair was starting up a label, we'd been in touch with him previous, he'd had our tapes, so when he was starting up Son he said he wanted to put a 12 out. Then three 12s down the line – the album.....I'm still chuffed today we've got it out. Even if we don't sell major copies, to walk into a high street shop and to see your CD it's an achievement.... it's in HMV, for something that we've both been through - the days on stage people booing you and whatever, but we're the first Nottingham crew to get an album out. So it's like, we managed to do it.
[Styly] I was getting pissed off, with the radio, and like the people I was working with, I wanted to do more rhyming, beats and I wasn't getting the access with people I was working with. So I had to do something for myself, so I packed the radio in, concentrated on Lost Island, giving me a lot more spare time.
Tell us about the Nottingham scene
[Frisco] Nottingham's got tons of MCs, a lot of bedroom producers working on stuff, that is really hot and tight....Nottingham heads travel, down to London, because you have to...Midnyte & Cappo who are on the album, Mr. 45 who's loved by people in London, Joe Buddha who's working on the L-Fudge album, and Supernatural's album, J-Live, J5, me.....there's so much on in Nottingham, people are like 'Nottingham, oh yeah Rock City'...it's still got that...the American artists who come over now are checking us out, they come to see Joe Buddha, DJ Noize plays here regularly now, Supernats been over loads....massive scene in Nottingham...
Why is that because the rest of the midlands seems a bit sparse
[Frisco] well there aren't many nights. Styly DJs at one ran by Big Daddy
[Styly] in the last few years it has picked up jamwise here a bit, been some good shows, its picked up again.... it seems to be, we had the album launch party and that went down really well, I would have liked more people, it was busy enough to be busy but I'd have liked it busier.
[Frisco] There's a lot of individual heads in Nottingham who all get on but when there's shows on you don't see everyone...
[Styly] that was the first jam in Nottingham where everyone was there, whether they were there because they had their own agenda or whatever, it was a good night, wide range of tracks.
[Frisco] Rodney P, Kela, L-Fudge, us, Cappo, Out Da Ville...i thought that was one of the best lineups I'd seen for ages. They do have jams but people don't want to have travel....or make the effort. The J5 album we did a few years ago, that was the first proper show we did and that was just mad. A proper hiphop jam, the old heads from rock city from years ago, no fighting, no trouble, a really good day and J5 blew the house down.
Tell us about the legendary rock city sessions
[Frisco] It was open to anyone, kids and that
[Styly] I can remember asking my mum if ii could go....but it was everyone in there right through to 20s, 30s.
[Frisco] when you think of that concept now – it's mad. It wouldn't happen.
[Styly] a pound to get in
[Frisco] old people and kids in the same thing. It was hiphop atmosphere, people who are growing up now hiphop for them is probably a totally different ballgame. The vibe and everything....the challenges, I remember the Assassinators and the Rock City crew challenge, when the word went out that was happening, everyone who was anyone went to watch it. The place was rammed. It was packed. That was incredible, it was like watching Beat Street, the challenge in Beat Street - this had the same vibe. That was hiphop when it was different....hiphop jams now people just go waiting for something to happen....all standing there. It's even worse if there's someone like DJ Noize doing a showcase, people are going to watch him. They don't respond to hiphop tunes, they're just there to watch a DJ scratch and go 'yeah he's good', we went to a show, Styly was DJing, there was half a dozen of us and the place was packed, Styly was dropping stuff like Cane, Brand Nubians and we went nuts and then suddenly thought 'no one knows what's going on' and we looked round and thought 'this is really messed up' it got to the point where Styly was playing just for us.....And in the old days, a few years ago, or in London, a proper jam that would have been massive
[Styly] last time we did Breakin' Bread that killed it.
[Frisco] playing out DJs, there's only a few like Styly, one of them is Crossphader, he plays to the crowd, he plays tunes to get the crowd to move. But Styly was playing these tunes and no-one moved....What's going on.
[Styly] I'm not saying everyone has to dance but a nothing response, it's not right. It's what you put into it, the division between turntablists and hiphop, a turntablist could be cutting up house music or drum n bass, it wouldn't matter because the people are there to watch the tricks they've seen on the videos
[Frisco] A few years ago if you were into hiphop then you'd probably do a bit of dancing, you'd have a sketch book that you'd mess around in....now you've got people who like music....you put an MC in front of a crowd who went to see the DJ they stand there 'where's the DJ'...there's people at jams, you can spot them, you know they'll respond to tunes, and then later if there's an open mic then they'll get up and MC, and if the DJ broke his leg he'd get up and drop some tunes, the people who'll do everything....that's what's gone out of hiphop.
[Styly] turntablism has gone into its own world....i'll always be a scratch DJ but you can get too much of it, i hosted one night in Notts and it was back to back turntablist DJs from America and everywhere...i came out of that with a headache, there's only so much you could take. I had people moaning to me asking when some tunes were coming on.
[Frisco] we've tried with the album, there's tunes like Notts that you could put on and a breaker could break to it, we wanted to mix it together, it's lost that flair of everyone doing everything, maybe its the age we are
[Styly] Everyones got their own ideas of hiphop
[Frisco] ' the rap and hiphop section' in record shops....what's that all about?
[Styly] to me there is two different things....say you put a heavy metal track you could rap over it and it's rap, hiphop is a type of music, like you can get hiphop instrumentals...
[Frisco] it's got to the point now of having it separate though, whereas back in the day things like Axel F, Paul Hardcastle, to me they were hiphop. If it came out now people wouldn't have the same response as we did then, like Fatboy Slim, people would have gone nuts over those tunes if they were released a decade ago
[Styly] people like to label things now....the tracks we do , we like to have a mixture, it's got an old school flavour but we want a mixture in our songs. I'm still buying new tunes
You've both got funk backgrounds, is it helpful to be open to other music than just hiphop?
[Styly] I think to be a good producer you've got to accept all music, you can take any music and make it hiphop depending on how good you are.
[Frisco] look back at what people have done like Jay Z sampling Annie, things like that.
[Styly] Its how you hear things, when you're sampling stuff to do a track you can hear things how it's going to work. There's records I've had in my collection for years, a couple of years after listening to it you spot something you can use and it's like 'how didn't I spot that before' because your ears develop, you get better.
Echoes said you were one of the producers of '99, what did you think of that?
[Styly] I was very happy about that, I think it was a combination of the Lost Island tracks, the remixes I did and the solo tracks on the compilation. I'm just trying to do a variety of stuff, gotta keep plodding on, we're working on new lost island already. Trying to do as much as possible. Production wise I just keep working and working
You've got a solo EP in the pipeline?
[Styly] Son are doing a double 12" DJ series, Mad Dr X is first, mines November/December or next year, i haven't done much yet....there's going to be a variety of MCs on it and some more cutup stuff 'cos i took that aspect out of lost island really, push Notts out even further, i know who i want to work with anyway, Cappo, Midnyte, that album track was the first he'd had out. We knew when we did the Cappo & Midnyte track, we knew it was a standout straight away.
A lot of the samples you use on the album are well known used before on other hiphop cuts, was that as a homage to those tracks?
[Styly] Half of it like the Jungle Brothers thing, it wasn't intentional, i like that break so i looped it up, put a couple of bits in it, it's been used by more than JB's anyway, i love that Jungle Brothers one, but I wanted to do something, like on the album, there's the intro and then it's just that....the other samples, it's like I don't hunt for rare breaks, like the Marvin Gaye, it just sounded good, it worked. We have to like the tracks ourselves and then we play them to others and the response was good so we put it onto the album. I don't try to please like trainspotter break people, i go for the wider picture...if people hear something they're already a bit familiar with they can relate to it quicker...its getting a balance. I just want to make good music, and if its been used before I'll try it differently, add my own flavour to it.
How did you divide the MCing up on the album?
[Frisco] sometimes Styly would do a track and say I need you to do a 16, and an 8 in here because I've got some verses already
[Styly] some beats I know, I know my capabilities as an MC and I don't profess to be a good MC, I'll know if I'll sound alright over the beat I've done, but others like 'Blabba' I'll just know that Frisco would be alright on that beat, so he would deal with it on his own.....other tracks I'll do and think I want something on that so we'll discuss content. It varies on each track really.
Freaky Dancing
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[Frisco] we've stopped and started on the album, about a year, we had a lot of shit going on, didn't see each other much, so we'd work on our own, get 3 or 4 done, we'd speak on the phone, but not see each other for a fortnight
[Styly] we just know each other really well, we've been working together for 3,4 years now, we know what level we're on, what we have to do.
[Frisco] we did want it done before Christmas, but we were just too busy
[Styly] luckily I haven't had a full time proper job for quite a while....but I can't force myself to do beats, I've got to have the right frame, i got let off my temporary job in February which let me concentrate more, doing as much work here, polishing tracks off to leave as little as possible to do in the studio.
Which studio?
[Styly] Blows Yard in London, Roots Manuva uses it, We know that studio, got the vocals down pretty quick, mixed it, decided what tracks to go on and the order, we wanted a flow, we wanted it to go somewhere and that's something I'm really happy with
Where does it go then?
[Styly] (laughs) Its like a journey, you've got the intro saying what we are, live, pure essence of hiphop then Notts introducing ourselves, who we are, where from. Then its like the first 3 tracks hiphop jam tracks and then as the album goes it goes into more conceptual tracks, stories and ideas
[Frisco] and then back into some old school and the last track is like a reminisce track....the intros fat, then a few banging tracks, then mellow off a bit for something you need to listen to a bit more, then it evens out and then a reminisce track, it's an up and down ride...
[Styly] if DJs can play some of the tracks then that's good, that's what I want, that's another reason I'm not bothered about the samples because really it's only the homelisteners who will break-spot, people in clubs just want something to dance to
On the track Lunch in The Limelight you rhyme about 15 minutes of fame and all that. What would be your highs and low
[Frisco] lunch in the limelight isn't about us, its about people picking you up and then your sell-by date goes and you're dropped. You're only as good as your last tune...it's like, for me getting the album out into a chainstore where its next to Stereophonics & Tracy Chapmans new album, that to me means I've been accepted as an artist, and stuff like we came offstage supporting J-Live, L-Fudge & Mr Complex. J-Live & L-Fudge came up and said we were the hottest support act they'd had and that's mad....a jam in Leicester with supernatural, I'd been playing playstation games with him that day, and so he was on stage and i shouted out for him to do a freestyle session and I went up and we just freestyled about playstation games, and he came up to me afterwards and shook my hand and said 'that was hot', and people telling me I held my own next to someone like Supernat.....other artists saying stuff to me, that they like what I did, that's a high point to me. Low points.... at times it's hard to fit everything into my life, I've got work, a house, a daughter....we've supported Noize, Crossphader, Rahzel, J5, J-Live, Dilated, we did a freestyle with IG Off, Gage and we keep in contact, these American artists we respect, they're not massive but they're telling us we've got skills
[Styly] it's nice if people appreciate it. When we did fresh 99, we did a soundcheck and Iriscience walked in when we had our DAT playing and he just started dancing to it...seeing people dancing to your stuff..It's cool
[Frisco] People like Crossphader, and I'm like 'you DJ for Common, and on tour with Pharoah Monch', and he comes up to me saying he likes what I'm doing, to me that's good.
[Styly] you don't really get appreciated around here, people have got double agendas, they cant big you up because their mates are in a group or whatever or they know Mark B and they can't be disloyal....
[Frisco] the politics in hiphop is the worst thing. UK especially, everything to do with the beats, what you sample, but American artists come over and say 'that's fat' and you're like, hold on, you're the people who should know what you're saying.
  
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