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H: I'm Harold. All about banging drums and bad necks from nodding heads. How did you get into doing what you are doing? R: I was sort of surrounded by music all my life. My dad used to play bass in bands and take me along to gigs. My parents heavily encouraged music in my childhood… so I’ve always had access to it. I went through some dodgy stages of liking some odd people. I used to draw posters of Michael Jackson because I couldn’t buy them. The music he made got me into that groove…. then I think it was sort of The Fresh Prince that got me spitting. We used to spit the title track on the coach on school trips and the person who knew all the words used to get a smooch with this fat hunny bun on the back seats. I love the fatness ya heard! So I made sure I knew the words well. I always used to write as a youngun’ anyway…draw and script my own cartoons, stories and all that jazz, so it was a natural thing to start writing some lyrics, then I went to college. Big step up… people wearing their own clothes, girls, short hair etc. That’s where I met Harry. Duke was a basketball head and had stuff that I didn’t dream of buying. I’d say he was more advanced musically than me at that stage and had the Wu-Tang stuff. I remember during the first couple of weeks knowing him I saw him in the shopping centre in town and he had Witchdoctor LP. I mean what type of 17 year old knows about that in Swansea. It spun my head out and still does to this day. So I was like right…he’s on it. He knows something I don’t know. We used to battle each other on the net too…the Source had a website with a battle page and all the basketball team and me and my friends would just go at each other on there. It was funny really. You’d have people on there really critiquing your lyrics…net-cees! Ha. From that I starting recording stuff at home on my own over instrumentals. I think it was the body rock instrumental that most of my stuff was on and I’d bringing the tapes in for Harry to check. I think he was impressed cos he said I sounded like B-Real! Well maybe he wasn’t impressed!?!?!?!? Who knows? Form that we both started recording up my house and then took it from there….clubbed together and bought a 4-track tape and SM58 and the rest is history! The Breaknecks, where did that name stem from? R: I think Harry came with the name The Breaknecks really…. H: We kinda flipped the idea of being bad men into being raw instead. I mean Breaknecks could be taken as us trying to say we're about fucking people up, but it’s actually about having the baddest breaks and the representation of the neck that makes your fucking head move. It ain’t any cleverness, just a raw name representing us. Fuck a name anyway, it’s about the music.  Ralph “...I can’t really write lyrics when anybody is around me cos I get sort of aggressive and have to be naked..." Your EP, ‘Music For Bachelors’ has been on the Streets for a week or two now. What’s the reaction been like to it so far? R: I think the most important thing to me is that it’s dope. To me it’s dope. I have a fear of being just another emcee or act. That ain’t my dream. That ain’t me. I want people to love it or hate it, I don’t want polite little middlers. So on that basis, I can’t complain. The reviews have been the bomb. Who knows how it’s selling. I know I ain’t making a living off it so I don’t depend on it, I work. So the real issue to me is its quality. I know you’ve received some plaudits for your live shows and having seen you recently it has really tightened up. Is it something you’ve worked on, or just a case of practise makes perfect?
Tell us a bit about Fozzy, the new crew member. H: Beatbox Fozzy is 18 and WORLD CLASS!!! Check him out at our livest live shows worldwide. Plus we got Paul B on the decks now as well. The family’s forming. Do you think Beatboxers can make good records? Any plans for Fozzy to release some material? R: No, I don’t think beatboxers make good records. Rahzel first LP was ok, but that’s all it was…Okay. I’m not a fan of Kela’s music. To me a beatboxer’s canvas is live. I’m not saying that people should stop making music, they should just stick to what they are strong at. H: I disagree. I think beatboxers are capable of making good songs. It just depends how creative they are. It shouldn’t be a representation of their live show. Just remember that a beatboxer is a versatile instrument and cats can do crazy shit with trumpets. I'm down for seeing how far it can be taken. And yeah Fozzy’s got plans and we’re backing them. He’ll deliver when it’s time. So who’re you rating in the Welsh scene and the world at large at the moment? R: Kanye’s new album is incredible. The man has gone from amazing to another level again. His lyrics are sharp and nice and it ain’t even worth discussing the mans beats! Sweet lord. Other than that, I’m just listening to a lot of older stuff to get my head round it. Kool Keith has exploded in my head, Organized Konfusion are THE single best group ever (well maybe Wu-Tang too), Graph is stupid sick and Sway Da Safo is just ridiculoid. Best emcee I’ve heard with a British accent ever. H: No doubt about Kanye's LP, bad bad. I check for Madlib, EL-P and DJ Premier consistently. I love any music with heart in it. You can hear when an artist is feeling what they're doing and I value that in music. That’s what inspires me. Harold “...It’s about having heart and feeling in the music and originality. That overrides location any day...” The Welsh scene still isn’t quite on the consciousness of ‘them’ across the border, why do you think this is and what can be done to improve the situation? R: Who cares? I’m not going to go out canvassing support for a local scene. F**k that. I’m about to get sale or return in Venus. H: True, what the fuck does a place matter. It’s about having heart and feeling in the music and originality. That overrides location any day. Cardiff’s premier hip-hop night, ‘Higher Learning’ has been turfed out of their home. Do you think this could have a big negative impact on the progression of the Cardiff and Welsh scene?
I know you don’t all live within the same city, so how do you go about putting a record together when you’re all spread about? R: Free text messages courtesy of O2, free phone courtesy of work and a lot of petrol. It’s hard, but it’s a labour of love. The studio’s in Cardiff so we spend a lot of time on the M4. It’s all good. We don’t really get time to chill with each other much nowadays because anytime me and Mud travel down we are doing it for a purpose of recording or practising or doing a show, but that’s probably for the best. I mean I can’t really write lyrics when anybody is around me cos I get sort of aggressive and have to be naked. So it makes it kind of awkward. When it comes to recording, it’s just a matter of having somebody on the boards and me in the booth. That’s it. Harry, can you break down how you go about the beat making process? H: Nope, not today, it’s boring. As a producer, do you ever feel a bit left out when it comes to the live shows? Or is hearing your beat getting a reaction enough for you? H: We do live shows? It ain’t about live shows for me really. I'm a studio cat. I did use to hype for Ralph when we did early Breakneck shows, but the show developed for the better when Mud, Biz, and Foz came together, so it would have been selfish for me to want to be involved. Plus I get to watch the shows as a fan. Ralph “...I’m just trying to get to a level where all my music is accessible to every single person who is interested...” Any plans to branch out from being a purely ‘hip-hop’ beatsmith? Is H. Macadam going to go Grime? H: Grime, not sure yet, we'll see how I'm feeling on that day, if it comes. I have been working on a Breakbeat album for the last year pushing myself creatively, but ain’t really intended for that to be released or nothing. It’s kinda been me locked in a hut learning about myself and the music I make. I just needed to do something different after producing Mudmowth’s EP and The Breaknecks EP's. Ralph, tell me about your new solo 12” and LP which are in the pipeline?
You’ve hooked up with some big names for those releases, how did you wangle those? R: First and foremost I’ve got skills. Secondly, I don’t look at them as names. I look at them as the best producers I can reach. They make some of the best music I have ever heard. To me Apollo’s 12” “Think” is one of the best 12”s ever… NO JOKE! Benn Grymm’s beat's on Braintax album is pure music. People should already know about Secondson and what he’s about, the man makes some of the dopest beats about. Sam Rockwell is the hidden weapon… back off! What can we expect from the Associated Minds in the months and years to come? R: You can expect ever-increasing ground breaking music. We ain’t looking for fame, were looking to carry on what we love doing. I’m just trying to get to a level where all my music is accessible to every single person who is interested. Finally, any plugs or shout outs?
NOW GO PEEP Ruffstylz – ‘Lyrics’ CD – Out October 24th Paul B – Sneakerfreex Mixtape Ralph Rip Shit – ‘Best Name’ 12” coming shortly Mudmowth – ‘Breaking Blocks In Legoland’ LP coming soon PLUS projects from Harry Macadam, P.L.O., Beatbox Fozzy and Willo Wisp (of The Colony) in the pipeline.
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The Breaknecks Interview
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