Ten years on from the release of his multi-Platinum selling second album, Falling & Flying, Aussie hip-hop icon 360 is looking back on the record that made him a household name.
Cast your mind back to 2011 for a sec. If you had your finger on the pulse of the Aussie music industry, the chances are good that you might have heard of 360. By the start of 2011, he was one album deep into his career, with single ‘Just Got Started’ getting a spin on triple j. But by the end of the year, he was a veritable music sensation.
Releasing his album Falling & Flying in September of that year, the record pulled some massive numbers. Not only did it peak at #4 on the Aussie charts, but it went 2xPlatinum, spawned six charting singles, and saw the track ‘Boys Like You’ hit #3 on the singles chart; eventually becoming the fourth highest-selling Australian single of 2012.
Needless to say, it was a watershed moment for Aussie hip-hop, and for an artist like 360 who, just one year earlier, had had a brush with mortality following a a serious Go-Karting accident. But ultimately, it was a document of determination and resilience, and one that would see 360 become one of Aussie hip-hop’s most vital voices.
Now, ten years on, Falling & Flying is rightly recognised as a classic of the genre, and after his recent return to the musical landscape, 360 is giving it the celebration it deserves with a massive tenth anniversary reissue.
The anniversary edition sees the album released as a limited edition re-pressing of the original vinyl, plus a completely remastered digital release with additional bonus tracks, remastered instrumentals, and two previously unheard demos from the Falling & Flying sessions in 2010. In short, it’s an Aussie hip-hop lover’s dream.
“It’s so surreal looking back,” says Matt Colwell (better known to us all as 360). “I went through so many internal battles making that album.
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“I was getting heavily into melodic songwriting; taking on a lot of pop, indie and electro influences. Coming from the background that I did musically, I thought it wouldn’t be accepted by the hip-hop world; that people would turn on me. In the end I thought, ‘I can’t do what I think people want me to do. I need to do what I feel.’ So I went for it.”
To celebrate the reissue though, 360 has taken a trip down memory lane, taking us track by track through the album that made him a household name.
Check out 360’s ‘Just Got Started’:
360 talks us through Falling & Flying
‘The Take Off’
At the time, that was one of my favourite beats on the album. It reminded me of the French duo Justice. This felt like a really good intro to the album. I think it shows that this is going to be a bit of a different vibe. It says, “This is not your typical hip-hop album”.
‘I’m OK’
That beat and the chorus, I absolutely love. That’s one of the songs that I can listen to now and appreciate without cringing too much about my rapping! I feel like I improve with each album and looking back, I get super critical of how I deliver. I guess just keep evolving. It’s not a bad thing to look back and know exactly what shaped you.
‘Just Got Started’
I could never have done this album without Styalz. Styalz is an absolute genius. You know, he can make any type of sound. Any genre you want to implement into the music, he can do it. And Pez, he’s been so active in my life for so long. This was such a collaborative effort, this album.
Check out 360’s ‘Throw It Away’:
‘Throw It Away‘
We couldn’t get Johnny Farnham but that was a good thing because Josh Pyke killed it! That’s about just going for your dreams. It was a very reach-for-the-stars kind of album. You only live once kind of vibes.
‘Child’
We got a little choir in the studio, which was really epic. That song took a long time to create and I can’t believe how much that connected with so many people. To this day, the amount of people that hit me up about that track is crazy. I say some personal stuff in there so it’s always going to be hard. But at the end at the end of the day, people appreciate it.
‘Boys Like You’
All personal experience. And Gossling! For her to come in and do that chorus was… you feel like you’re gifted from the heavens. She came in and she blessed it.
Check out 360’s ‘Boys Like You’:
‘Killer’
That was a bit of an anthem, a bit of a heavy kind of electro joint. That’s one of my favourite songs to perform live, to this day. It just goes off.
‘Falling & Flying’
Darker, definitely. That’s actually one of my favourites off the album. It wasn’t a single or anything but I like it. I don’t cringe at my vocals! We really did go to town with that, getting a string sections in the studio and really making it a huge production.
‘Run Alone’
That’s the most positive, happy joint out of all the songs. That’s the best one to perform. That is the anthem, to either open a set or close a set. It always works. Which is weird because I almost passed on that song. I thought it might be a little bit too poppy. That was one of my internal battles at the time. I was always wrestling with that demon. I’m glad I ran with it.
Check out 360’s ‘Run Alone’:
‘Hammer Head’
This is one of those raps that are sort of taking the piss, just playful, kind of very crude at the same time, and they’re just to be taken with a grain of salt. But it is a bit dark when you look back, considering how bad the addiction and mental illness path actually went. That song was left-of-centre, for sure.
‘Meant To Do’
That’s a song that was made near the end of the album, and almost didn’t make it. I had those lyrics written and I really wanted to use them but there was there was no music for it. Styalz started playing those chords, I started singing that melody and I knew we had something.
‘Miracle In A Costume’
Anything in life that might knock you down a few pegs can also be positive in the end. It’s never all bad. No matter what, there’s always some sort of positive that can come from a negative situation.
‘Hope You Don’t Mind’
That was easily the most personal song that I’d done. It was very genuine at the time. If you watch the video, you can see how skinny I am. It was just a very, very dark period of my life and that song reflected it perfectly.
The 10th anniversary edition of 360’s Falling & Flying is out now.
