We are disco doom Revenge

Talking about grimeyrepublik all you do to present to all french audience(why,when and how).

Grimey Republik launched in the first week of January 2011 by myself and John/Cue\Publik.  I live in Tucson, AZ and he lives in Seattle, WA, so we do all of our communication online.  I handle content, submissions and GrimeTime TV while John/Cue\Public is the tech admin.  He makes sure the site stays looking clean, stays online and a bunch of other stuff I can't explain or don't understand!  If it weren't for him, Grimey Republik would not be possible.   Originally we were only known locally here in Tucson, Arizona and sporadically through out the United States.  Eventually after more work and exposure we broke into the international network.  This was definitely a goal from the beginning, to gain a following worldwide.  If I remember correctly, our first international traffic was coming from Eastern European countries such as Russia, Romania and Georgia.  I'm not sure exactly when or how we garnered recognition in the country of France.  It was definitely exciting though! I would definitely like to continue to build within the underground and independent scene in France.  Hopefully I'll receive some submissions soon!  I don't speak or understand French but I still enjoy the flows of French rappers, the cadences are interesting to me.  I would also like to hear more French producers, I've only heard Zöen and Jostereo.

What is your vision of indie hip hop. 

My vision of indie hip-hop...a worldwide culture that thrives and survives on it's own.  Indie hip-hop doesn't need bright lights, big stages or corporate sponsorships.  It is an art form that doesn't need a huge budget and a marketing scheme to be something amazing.  Indie hip-hop is kept alive by its participants and supporters.  Both grimey republik and we are disco doom REVENGE are examples of that.  As long are there are artists creating music there will be a support  network.

Can talk about occupy US movement(do you listen the Occupy international Compilation?). 

Hmm, what to say about the Occupy Movement?  I didn't really participate, I went to Occupy Tucson on the beginning day to see what it was all about and hopefully learn something new.  I compiled some footage, you can view it here: http://grimeyrepublik.org/index/?p=1126  I personally am kind of torn on the Occupy Movement.  I think it is great that our country has a large amount of individuals passionate enough to be out there peacefully protesting and coming together trying to make something positive happen.  On the other hand, I'm not sure how effective it is.  It seems like our government is going to do whatever they please regardless of what we as a nation of people want.  Its quite unfortunate that our country is in the condition that it is, but that's what the greed of a few people can do.  I have not heard the entire Occupy International Compilation, but I did watch the trailer on Youtube.  I think its great that Jonah Th' Mole/We are disco doom REVENGE put all that together.  There were some very powerful images in the video.

Present me 5 hip hop band more important for you..

Its hard to narrow it down to just 5 so I'll choose 5 groups I've been listening to recently. These are in no specific order.

Swim Team - I'm a big fan of a lot of the music coming from the Project Blowed Collective in L.A.   Swim Team is a collective of very talented mc's that all have unique styles.  These guys are the new generation of an amazing rap tradition. They are all well versed in clever/witty wordplay and strong in the art of freestyling.

Los Feo Faces - Another collective of great talent.  Excellent production, great rhymes, lyrics and song structure.  These guys put in work, give them a listen.  Check out their Hater's Camp mixtape.

Guerrillah Spit - Two of my favorite emcees ever.  Riddlore and Pterradacto put together one of my favorite albums of the year. (Yes, I'm confident saying that this early in the year.)  These are the two most proficient emcees I know.  Impeccable style and delivery.  Find their new album See the Storm Comin (The Monkey Wrench Theory) on iTunes, its amazing!

Dark Time Sunshine - Onry Ozzborn of Greyskul and producer Alex Zavala make excellent music together, it just works wonderfully. Zavala's production blew me away as soon as I heard it.  Its so unique and intricate, there's so much going on in his beats you don't even notice everything in one listen.  Its a perfect soundscape for Onry  to do his thing.

E.Super - A group of talented producers and emcees.  Check them out on Hellfyre Club's Prometheus mixtape and E.super Remix the World.

What is your vision of hip hop in France…

Well, the closest contact I've had to the hip-hop scene in France would be first hand recollections of shows that my friend MC HOMELESS did while he was on tour there.  He described the shows as "amazing."  The only French artist I'm familiar with would have to be Zöen, who produced MC HOMELESS' album 27.   I also like Jostereo's production.  Other than that I don't know too much about French hip-hop.  I have some research to do!

"After one picture of a LEGO street painting was posted on Reddit, the Internet took over, making it a sensation online. Created for the Sarasota Chalk Festival in Florida, this amazing mashup of Legos and Terracotta warriors is magnificent in every sense of the word.

After our first post about it, we dug deep, getting ahold of the creators, artist group Planet Streetpainting, to learn more. Founder and Director Peter Westerink told us that it took a team of four artists - Leon Keer (design and art production), Peter Westerink (himself), Remko van Schaik, Ruben Poncia - five and a half days to complete it. "We started on Tuesday morning November 1st and finished on Sunday November 6th in the afternoon," Westerink says.

What exactly went into creating it? "There were some challenges, starting with translating our first design to a gridded blueprint with the exact right distortions," Westerink told us. "Our next challenge was to copy the blueprint to the pavement, again in the exact right proportions, only 100 times bigger (30 x 40 feet)! Last, but not least, we had to make sure we would finish in time, while answering the questions of the thousands of people that came by daily to see our piece."

Planet Streetpainting was kind enough to send us these making-of images so that we could get a sense of how it all came together. Notice that at certain angles, the piece looks completely distorted and almost completely unrecognizable." Alice

Link about planet street painting

 

An artist known for weaving compelling personal narratives with his sparse, beautiful production style, soso has become a fixture of the avant-garde hip hop/art rap movement. An artist, writer and beatsmith from Saskatoon, Canada, his music is unapologetic and decidedly home-made

Mat Dubé has always been a heady and headstrong individual.

Mathieu Dubé is a multi-disciplinary artist from Ottawa, Canada, whose artwork has appeared in solo and group exhibits throughout the Capital over the past 10 years.  His work includes bronze, plaster and found-object sculptures, mixed media paintings and ink sketches.  His most recent project was a street art exhibit entitled “Inner Chatter”.  The show was composed of 3 large-sized drawings commissioned by the Downtown Rideau BIA and exhibited at the Underpass at the corner of Rideau and Sussex.  

A common theme in Mathieu’s art is the power of the subconscious to control our actions, and our tendency to ignore important issues in order to preserve our level of personal comfort.

Mathieu was self-taught since early childhood up until he entered a specialized arts program at “De La Salle” High School.  He then spent a year at the Ottawa School of Arts studying perspective and human anatomy in preparation for Algonquin College where he received a diploma in Classical Animation Drawing.  After only a year of working for animation studios, he decided to pursue a career as an independent artist.  Since then, Mathieu has worked for theatre companies designing masks and costumes, for the Canadian military sculpting commemorative plaques and as a graphic designer for the Independent Filmmakers Co-operative.  In 2008, he completed an outdoor bronze sculpture of the Parliament buildings commissioned by the National Capital Commission which is on permanent display in front of the Canadian Museum of Civilization.        

Mat Dubé also enjoys eating, sleeping, and doing various things interconnected to stuff.

Whether composing an eclectic mix of electro-acoustic sounds in his now-defunct musical duo called StrayOtic or illustrating a personal urban angst from under his Dubium street art persona, Dubé wields a creative repertoire that is at once untamed and carefully considered.

There’s more of that paradox in evidence in his coming solo fine art show Head Space to be mounted by the Council for the Arts in Ottawa (CAO) from June 10 to July 11 in the Micaela Fitch Room at Arts Court.

Most works in this collection of drawings, paintings, and sculptures offer the male figure as an embodiment of modern chaos manifested with architectural and other forms sprouting from mutating skulls atop mostly emancipated bodies.

Heady stuff, indeed.

“The perpetual flow of thought that takes place within the realms of consciousness has the power to dictate our feelings, behaviors—even to shape our physical self,” explains the artist.

Not surprisingly, the shaped selves in the artworks are quite bizarre. Dubé’s contemplative figures seem like a strange blend of outer space alien, African god, and junkie denizen of the urban ghetto.

The figures also seem somewhat lost in thought; Dubé says as much in his artist statement: “The many questions, fears and insecurities that once lay lurking are given life through strange and distorted beings, the dwellers of Head Space.”

 

Pondering the future direction of street art with renaissance man Mat Dubé
By Fateema Sayani

The subversive paste-up on the side of a ByWard Market building is classic Shepard Fairey — except that the man himself didn’t actually install it. The famed “Obey” vandal/artist, whose work came to prominenceduring the 2008 U.S. presidential election campaign, deployed his peeps to install the 9-by-15-metre piece outside Nrml, a clothing store at Rideau and Waller streets, in March.

Something about the process — a kind of arm’s-length revolt — had the air of industrialization. Rather than slapping his art on the side of the building under cover of darkness, Fairey — or, rather, his team of two installers — was efficient, precise, and compatible with daylight — qualities not always associated with those who create piquant social commentary.

But times they are ever changing and so are the thoughts and processes behind the ideas. As such, the Fairey piece marked a shift for some in the Ottawa community. If you hear this noise — kkkkrrarrraacck — you can recognize it as the sound of pendulums swinging.

Street art doesn’t have a long history unless you want to trace its origins back to hieroglyphics. It’s generally considered a forum for modern malaise, expressed in photo-based or text works that call into question urban habits, political leanings, and cultural instincts. Some of it is eyes-glazed-over bad, some of it is made-ya-think good, and some of it is purely eye candy, free of metaphor and deep analysis.

Mat Dubé's work can be seen in various locations throughout the city.

“With much of my work, people expect weightier social commentary,” Fairey told the Chicago Sun-Timesin April, “but I don’t want to do that 100 percent of the time. I think it’s healthy to have some escapism as long as you maintain an awareness of the right balance.”

The street artist must consider other balances, as well. Do you “sell out” and create a marketing company catering to Levis and Pepsi the way Fairey did? Do you create socially conscious works inside Toronto community-housing projects while, at the same time, taking commissions for Vespa scooters the way Toronto-via-Ottawa street artist Dan “Fauxreel” Bergeron did? Do you apprise yourself of the rules around graffiti in the City of Ottawa and then flout them anyway the way — wait, should I say his name? Uh, bylaw officer, um, sir, are you reading?

“Sure, I’ll embrace my inner criminal,” Mat Dubé, 34, jokes when asked if he’d have his name and photos associated with this column. Dubé is struggling with direction right now: he’s at an exciting and confusing place in his artistic career but isn’t sure where to head next. Dubé is a sculpture artist when not working at Arts Court or playing in his techno-punk band, StrayOtic.

His recent sculpture works have a creepy feel to them. They look as though they’re made with designer Play-Doh that’s moulded into demons from your subconscious. Once completed, they remind me of what a Gremlin looked like when it got wet. Dubé has begun photographing these ghastly sculptures and — using industrial carpet tape — creating stickers from the images. He posts those stickers around town on power boxes and walls and other spots that are subtle enough to escape mass detection but noticeable enough to anyone not looking at their mobile while walking down the street. He marks his creations with his handle, Dubium.

Mat Dubé photographs his demonic-looking sculptures and creates stickers from the images. He then posts the stickers around town, marked with his handle, Dubium. Photos courtesy of Mat Dubé.

“In many ways, doing street art is more interesting than putting stuff in galleries,” Dubé says. “There is an interaction with other street artists. Someone else goes and puts a sticker next to mine or adds a hairdo on your guy. I find that interesting.”

Street art is free from any formal curation, and you can’t sell it unless you take it to a gallery. Otherwise, it doesn’t pay. Dubé wants to figure out how to monetize his craft while maintaining some artistic control. He also doesn’t want to get arrested. Too much to ask? Maybe not. The Fairey installation at Rideau and Waller — the first by the artist on Canadian soil — was okayed by city council and funded by grants.

It’s the language of the corporation that’s coming to street art: partnerships. Approach the building owners of bars, clubs, and stores, and install something that’s agreed upon. Your work is out there, and so you have the same end result: good art exposed — and sanctioned. It has Dubé thinking about exploring that avenue. Does anyone have a side of a building to spare?

 

Read “Sound Seekers,” Fateema Sayani’s weekly dispatch on the music scene, at www.ottawamagazine.com.