Sauce

Happy birthday, Tasflow! The Tasmanian hip-hop community website has turned one year old, and a party is in order – which is exactly what MC, producer and SAUCE writer Ryan Farrington, otherwise known as Mynse, is about to help stage at Hobart’s Brisbane Hotel at the end of this month. I slung him the questions, and he slung me the answers. Read on …

I spoke to Tom Ray a few issues ago regarding Homebrew, which was being held at the Trout. How has that changed now? Where is it being held?
Homebrew has had a few different homes, from Mint, to the Trout and most recently at the Loft; it doesn’t seem to have any sort of home venue (excuse the pun). Just to straighten it out, this event is separate to Homebrew (which has been a monthly hip-hop night showcasing mainly local acts, as well as being host to a series of open MC battles). Tom and I are joining forces, along with Tasflow and SAUCE, to put together this coming event, which will be similar to the format of Homebrew, but on a slightly larger scale, being that we have two mainland acts on the bill (Dan the Underdog and McDee), an invitational battle, and we’re also celebrating the first birthday of www.tasflow.com – an online Tasmanian hip-hop community/forum.

What gave you the idea to team up with Full Strength productions for this event?
Tom and myself have been shooting ideas back and forth for a while. I’ve performed at a few Homebrew’s, and we’ve both been interested in starting some regular all-ages events (which we are still working on for future events, but won’t be the case for this event, unfortunately) aside from Homebrew, since there’s been a huge amount of interest from kids under eighteen, demanding more underage shows. But recently I had a call from Dan the Underdog, from the Northern Territory, who was interested in doing a show in Hobart, which gave us the idea to start focusing also on giving support to the underground acts that want some exposure in Tasmania, but who might be too much of a financial liability for other promoters to bother with. This way we get some prime, underground national acts involved, as well as showcase a collection of Tassie’s best hip-hop acts.

Who have you got to perform at this gig? How and why did you select them?
Aside from Dan & Dee, we also have local acts EPC, mdusu&dameza, and Oratoric & Paddles. Apart from the fact that these acts have proven themselves to be solid performers in the past, they are also seem to be the ones coming out with fresh new material constantly, and pushing harder to get their stuff out there than anyone else.

Will you be performing?
Tom and I will mainly just be hosting the evening, but who knows? We might warm the crowd up with something special – you’ll have to wait and see!

What kind of vibe are you expecting? A similar atmosphere to Homebrew?
This event is to be held at the Brisbane Hotel on Brisbane Street, Hobart, which use to be “Ye Olde Commadore”. The venue is being run by some cool people and has been revamped with a new stage and new sound system. It’s tough to tell what kind of vibe we’ll get, but gauging by the acts and the crowds Homebrew has had, it’s set to be pretty damn hyped.

How do potential performers get in touch with you?
Feel free to email us at info@altrueistic.com – don’t forget to include some tracks and your details. A Myspace address always helps.

Out of curiousity, whatever happened to Altrueism? I can’t remember the last time you three played together.
Azrael and Ethics had other commitments which, unfortunately for the group, lead them to move to Melbourne, but we still catch up for a beer and a yak whenever we can, and we all hold out hope that Altrueism will reform in the future, however near or distant that may be.

With event titles like “Homebrew” and considering so many MCs have called certain tracks “beer songs” in interviews, I’ve got to ask – do Tassie MCs drink anything else?
[Laughs] I can safely say that at least 90% of hip-hop heads in Tassie either drink Cascade Lager or Boags Draught, and as I’ve heard from many-a-venue-owner, “those rap kids drink more than any other bloody crowd I’ve seen”. Honestly, whenever an MC asks to “put your beer in the air” at a Tassie hip-hop show, all you see is a sea of brown and green.

Lastly, I’m not putting them down, but why does almost every Australian MC seem to have a shaved-or-very-near-to-it head? To what extent would you say that it’s the Oz hip-hop uniform?
Perhaps simply because it’s comfortable or fashionable, but most likely because the type of MC that has made a name for himself (hence being noticed by yourself) has been around for a while – and is almost, if not over, thirty. Do the math! [Laughs]

Tasflow’s 1st Birthday Bash will be held at the Brisbane Hotel, Hobart on the 31st of August

www.tasflow.com