Delarge: Desktop wallpapers, stickers, posters & downloads

We caught up with Slug from Atmosphere whilst he was on the ‘3 the Hard Way’ tour with Brother Ali to talk about live shows, hip hop & being a slacker amongst other things… (more…)

It’s been over 10 years since his first album and Aesop Rock is still better than your favourite rapper. He took time out from the start of his 2008 European tour to kick the ballistics with us…

On the set for the ‘Coffee’ video - photo by Chrissy Piper

Can you remember when you first discovered hip-hop? Was there a certain track or artist that hooked you in?
It was sorta simultaneously RUN DMC’s Raising Hell, and License to Ill by the Beastie Boys. My mother took them and threw them both out so I knew I was onto something. Plus I guess being a white guy from the burbs knowing all the lyrics to “proud to be black” may appear odd to a mother. I dunno what is was exactly, probably the fact that it was the first time I had heard the personality of the artist show thru. Hip hop lyricists really get to do that more than almost any other writers. Let themselves really be who they are. It’s a shame it isn’t like that as much these days. Everyone must appear impervious to pain, instead of just buggin’ out and having fun with it.

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On one of the many Delarge crew outings into the vastness of Brighton’s gig land, we were stopped in our tracks and found ourselves immersed in the sounds of an artist called Crillix. A live show incorporating guitar, samplers and loop stations to create electronic cinematic sounds peppered with heavy hand made beats was enough to send us off into the night hungry for more Crillix material.

The few tracks on his Myspace page and a compilation guest spot show plenty to get excited about and wet the appetite for future releases.

We caught up with Crillix to discuss music, and a little bit of home town inspiration, surfing habits and childhood heroes.
We are also lucky to have been blessed with an exclusive new Crillix track for download:

In a Nutshell (MP3 3.2mb)

The track “False Starts” is featured on Abandoned Building’s Assemblage Sessions Vol 2 compilation and there are a handful of tracks your Myspace page, are there any other places where we can hear Crillix material?

I am in the process of setting up a Virb account. It’s sort of like myspace, but more stable and a little less stalker-ish… I’ll have different songs on there than the ones on myspace.
I have recently completed a remix for ‘DOF’, which should be coming out soon on Abandon Building as part of an album of remixes. I’ll also be selling home-made cds at my live shows.

What are your thoughts on the packaging of cds/records? Do you think artists / labels have to step up their game to make people part with their money?

Absolutely. This is something I have thought for a long time.
Most people I know now don’t even own a CD player. Everyone plays music from their laptops or ipods and things like that. The only viable reason I can think of that this has happened is that people never really cared about the ‘ownership’ of a cd. I know friends that buy cds, rip them to their computer, and couldn’t care less where the case ends up. That’s why mp3 sales are so successful.
However, I do believe some labels are aware of this, and are definitely a reason to keep buying cds and records. Take Constellation for example; i would never download anything that comes out on constellation because I respect their ethics so much, and also because they do everything either in-house and by hand, or as locally as possible to assist small, local businesses.
Lex are another prime example of why to keep buying cds. I don’t think i’ve ever come across a label with such a lavish attention to detail. Ehquestionmark are just on another level completely with their design. If you buy a cd from Lex, it’s like someone’s just bought you a beautifully hand-crafted guitar, as opposed to a ‘pluck-master’ from the Argos catalogue.

Tell us about your live set.
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