(UPDATE: Movement Festival has been cancelled since the publication of this article – full report here)
Jonathon Notley and Max MacKinnon – you’d know them as Bliss n Eso – met in the halls of Glenaeon Steiner School, in the cosy suburbs of Northern Sydney and bonded over a mutual interest in hip hop – at the time, barely a blip in the Australian industry. They would be among the first to change that.
Nasir bin Olu Dara Jones grew up in Brooklyn and dropped out of high school in the eighth grade, before shortening his name to Nas, and becoming one of the eminent names of modern music. His name is synonymous with golden-tongued narrations of life in the projects; the best of boom-bap rap.
At first glance, they seem to have little in common. But there are at least two things binding these unlikely partners together: firstly, they will both be performing at this year’s inaugural Movement Festival, as well as writing a track together, and more importantly, they’ve built their lives around hip hop.
The genre has come a long way since its New York birth over 30 years ago. Far from being a purely American experience, lyrical complexities dropped over shuddering beats can be heard these days from France to Senegal to Puerto Rico and, indeed, Australia, where Bliss n Eso are home grown stars.
No one understands the global nature of hip hop better than them – their list of former collaborators includes American Wu-Tang superstar RZA, the Connections Zulu Choir from South Africa, and a host of British guest rappers.
“Hip hop is worldwide, it has no nationality,” muses Bliss, “and that’s the most beautiful thing about it.”
“Anyone can collaborate as long as the music’s good. It’s about people who are all on the same page, it’s a beautiful thing.”
The rapper is calling while taking a break from preparing for a Call of Duty championship he’s got on later that night. It’s not just going to be the usual time-wasting video game experience however – recording artists will be playing challengers from all over Australia, and if they win, they can donate the money to a charity of their choice.
Bliss doesn’t have high hopes for winning against “Australia’s best nerds,” (Eso, on the other hand, claims to be the world’s best player) – but, for now, he’s talking about the ability of hip hop to cross borders.
It’s what he believes Movement – bringing together artists like the LA-via-Rural-NSW MC Iggy Azalea, the “real raw sound” of Joey Basa$$, and the Sydneysider sweetness of Spit Syndicate – is all about.
Bliss enthuses about Movement’s curator, Nas, who has also worked with the hip hop duo in light of the new hip hop event. “[He] has just illustrated that so perfectly and done it so gracefully, because he’s the one who reached out. It wasn’t us going like ‘oh, Nas, he’s a big act, we’ve got to get him on the record.’”
“I think it’s a really cool thing for him to be representing that,” he adds. “I’m sure there was a host of reasons (for Nas to curate the festival) when you get into it, but I’m sure that spreading Australian hip hop around the globe and doing something really dope is one of the major reasons.”
“I think that whole act sets the tone of what Movement is like, and what it’s representing,” he concludes.
It’s also what Bliss n Eso represent. Originally bearing the “tongue-twister” of a title Bliss n Esoterik Ism (Ism is their DJ), even the pseudonym they have chosen to use symbolises their deep respect for the binding powers of hip hop.
Unfortunately, there was another ‘Esoterik’ in the US already using the title, and then there was an added difficulty: “no one could say it.” But even in its shortened version, the idea behind the name remains.
“The concept of that is, we represent the bliss you get from the esoteric nature of hip hop,” explains the MC. “So, if you’re initiated, if you’re part of the culture and the scene, then you’ll get that.”
“Me and Eso, before we’d even met Ism, we had multiple names for our duo. I can’t even remember half of them. But basically, every kind of few months we’d change our names again. We’d get sick of it, we’d go ‘No, no, I don’t like that name anymore,’” he remembers, laughing.
They’ve come a long way since those indecisive days. Circus In The Sky, the follow-up to 2010’s chart-topper Running On Air, is due out “before the first half of the year,” and the excitement amongst Aussie hip hop fans is palpable.
Their albums so far have earned them some pretty enthusiastic admirers, with the mix of serious reflection and raucous humour striking a chord amongst listeners. The insanity of their lives shows probably aren’t hurting matters either. According to Bliss though, we haven’t heard anything yet.
“I really feel like we’re pushing ourselves more and evolving even further,” he says. “This is going to be our best record to date.”
The album’s first single, ‘House of Dreams’, was met with overwhelming support, and in terms of “overall highness in quality of the track,” Bliss says it’s an accurate sign of things to come. But sonically, he isn’t giving anything away.
“Our records are very diverse,” he asserts simply.
What is certain, however, is that the songs will carry the same optimistic, carpe diem vibe of their previous work; the thread running throughout all their lyrics that says ‘have fun, love your friends, love your family, and believe in yourself’ – but in more creative, less cheesy ways.
“The whole positive angle has been prevalent since the beginning with us,” he reflects.” We’ve always been all about positive thinking, going for what you want to do in life, that kind of jazz. That’s definitely resonated throughout so many of our songs.”
“It’s not always conscious, but it’s just a part of us,” Bliss concludes.
With artists like Bliss n Eso, hopefully the stereotype of rap music being associated with negative messages will begin to dissipate. One of their fans is more likely to be found sitting on a train, headphones in, listening to the soothing flow of ‘Reflections,’ than being arrested for armed robbery.
Just… don’t listen too closely to ‘Pigs in the Porn Trough.’
Circus In The Sky is out soon through Illusive. Bliss N Eso feature on the lineup for the inaugural Movement Festival, which kicks off in Sydney next Friday 26th April before heading to capital cities around the country. They also headline River Sessions 2013 in June. Dates and details below.
Movement Festival 2013 Dates & Tickets
Live Nation & Niche Productions present MOVEMENT
SYDNEY – HORDERN PAVILION – FRIDAY 26TH APRIL www.ticketek.com.au
MELBOURNE – FESTIVAL HALL – SATURDAY 27TH APRIL www.ticketmaster.com.au
BRISBANE – EATON HILLS HOTEL- SUNDAY 28TH APRIL www.ticketmaster.com.au
PERTH – METRO CITY – TUESDAY 30TH APRIL www.oztix.com.au www.ticketmaster.com.au
TICKETS ON SALE NOW
River Sessions 2013 Ticketing & Info
Saturday, June 29
Mackay Showgrounds
Tickets to the festival go on sale Thursday, March 28 at www.riversessions.com.au
