Independent hip-hop act Rhythmicru were in town last week for the release of their new album, Super Toke MixTape Vol. 1. The six-piece Toronto outfit played Jello Bar Wednesday and held a listening party at Lounge Eleven Friday with Montreal’s Island City Monsters (ICM), who were launching their own record, Legendary Gatherings.
D-Ray, Rhythmicru’s in-house producer, was excited that they would be able to put on a brief performance at the album launch, because they wanted to give the audience a taste of their live show. Simultaneously, he was quick to state that this is event is, above all, a party and “a celebration of the release of these two great albums. My expectation is a good party.”
And a party it was. Riding off the wave of their Toronto album launch in December, Rhythmicru, who are Snowy Owl, Charlie Green, Bath, Cale Sampson, Harps Bizarre and D-Ray, joined their friends from ICM for a few explosive songs.
The night could be considered an introduction to Heads Connect, a collaboration between the two crews that encompasses a series of shows “built around that whole process of swapping ideas, exchanging information, just representing each other in our various cities,” says Memo of ICM.
The idea is to help out independent artists in the underground hip hop community. “So when we go to Toronto, we got a crowd because they got a crowd and when they come here, it just helps because it actually brings people to you instead of you going out [and playing for] an empty room and the bar people,” Memo explains.
D-Ray agrees that network-building is essential. He says that “[what] we’re trying to get going in any city is that if they can sort of do a Heads Connect thing, then they can get our connects and we can get their connects and there can be a bridge between the cities. That way, no matter where you go you have [a wide variety of people to work with].”
This theme of bringing together like-minded artists is not unique to Rhythmicru’s latest album, although Super Toke did allow them to work with more people than the norm. And getting to work with their buddies was particularly great for D-Ray. “It’s cool when you can release something that you’re really proud of and doing shows and doing songs with all your friends. It’s very satisfying.”
Lyrically, Rhythmicru don’t consider themselves a socio-political crew, although they can’t avoid what’s going on around them either. “We draw from everyday experiences and I don’t think anybody living in the world [didn’t know what] kind of situation was going on – it was impossible to ignore [the war on Iraq],” D-Ray says.
“The thing is just not to filter out anything,” D-Ray says. However, you also have to think about what you’re saying and be willing to stand by it. “Don’t go around saying stuff that you don’t mean,” D-Ray continues.
As for their performances, Rhythmicru tries to incorporate as many artistic dimensions as possible to their shows. An art project started by Snowy Owl and Charlie Green is often brought along to inspire creativity among fans.
“It’s important that we get that in a show. You know, [when] rap shows become monotonous, you need stuff in there to actually add to the surrounding itself, to let the people interact with what you’re doing. It changes the whole atmosphere, the whole mood and even the whole perspective of what they’re expecting,” Snowy Owl explains.
And with tour plans, a record label and more in the works, Rhythmicru are sure to have many friends along the way.
For more information: www.rhythmicru.ca
www.islandcitymonsters.com
