INTERVIEW: BBXO — Music Musings & Such

INTERVIEW:

BBXO

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BASED over in Berlin…

I have been chatting to BBXO about the scene there and why the city has a pulse like nothing else. Krisz and Musa discuss their track, Hard Road to Travel, and what arrives next for them; how they came together and started making music; whether there will be gigs approaching – they talk about artists and sounds that inspire them.

The guys look at their favourite memories and what they hope to achieve this year; Musa reacts to being compared to The Streets; they talk to me about getting kudos from the likes of Kate Tempest – a fascinating window into a close and electric duo.

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Hi, guys. How are you? How has your week been?

Krisz: Great. Working on a new track/editing our new video for Firestorm.

Musa: Good, thanks. A lot colder and wetter than the one Krisz has had; he has been working in Cancun while I have been stuck in Berlin. But I’m not bitter...honest.

For those new to your music; can you introduce yourselves, please?

Krisz: We call the music we are doing ‘Future Blues’: a blend of poetry, spoken word; Rap, Soul; Dancehall, Trap; Grime and Pop.

Musa: I write and perform (most of) the lyrics, with help on the choruses from Krisz and a couple of other excellent writers. I’m also a journalist writing about politics, society and football - and that comes through in many of my lyrics (we haven’t done a song about football yet, though). Krisz; he makes the beats.

How did you come to form BBXO? Musa. Did you know about Krisz Kreuzer from the Brixtonboogie movement?

I actually got to know his work through listening to a range of projects on his site and I remember thinking: ‘Damn; this guy can produce anything’. He could make any range of sounds and that’s what I first found most appealing about his work - the open-mindedness of his work. To me, that’s a true artist.

I believe Berlin is where the meeting happened? How long were you in Berlin before BBXO sprung to life? What is the ethos and philosophy you both carry?

I had been in Berlin about a year-and-a-half by then and, so, I think I had adjusted to life in Germany and, more particularly, to the city. At the risk of sounding cheesy - I can almost imagine my friends beginning to tease me when they read this - I would say that my ethos is: make the boldest and most passionate work you can and, somehow, just keep going; because your best work and your best moments are still ahead of you…

What is Berlin like to record and work in? How important is the city and its people?

It’s an incredible city.

Berlin isn’t like New York or Shanghai: those cities are immediately overwhelming. Berlin creeps up on you. It goes from slow and sleepy to full-on hedonism in a split-second. That’s what makes Berlin unique, I think: it has a change in tempo unlike anywhere else. That’s great for an artist, because it means you have both the peacefulness in which to create and the endless nights into which you can escape.

Berliners are a tough people - and proudly so. But, if you can get past their initial wariness; you’ll find them to be among the most loyal and open-hearted people you’ve ever met. That’s if you meet the nice ones. Haha.

Hard Road to Travel is your new release. Can you reveal the story behind the song?

Musa: The song is about two things, really. First; it’s about persevering through struggle, which is something to which we can all relate. Secondly; it’s the story of my family, who fled Uganda in the 1970s and 1980s when the country was in a state of conflict. It’s a song that might seem topical now, with the exodus of refugees from places like Syria and Myanmar; but, in truth and tragically, the story of refugees is as old as time - so, the song tries to put that journey in a positive light.

Is there going to be more material later in the year? What are you guys working on?

Krisz: First; we are aiming to get our E.P. done and released by end of May, with an album ready at end of this year. Secondly; we will work with a live promoter to play live.

Continuing writing and producing more tracks.

Musa: Right now, I am working on the lyrics for two new songs, which are both about half-done, and thinking of ideas for a couple of others. Looking at the world at the moment, we are not exactly short of topics.

Kate Tempest and Ed Sheeran are among the artists who have shown love for Musa and BBXO. What is it like having that sort of kudos and backing?!

It means a huge amount because the respect of your fellow artists is something really special.

We actually came through the poetry and music scenes at a similar time and, even then, the work they were doing was astonishing. I have seen Ed perform a cappella and without a mic to Madison Square Garden - and his voice travelled all the way to the back of the arena. I have seen Kate reduce huge crowds to a state of silent awe with the power of her words.

For people like that to tell you that you are on the right track is very affirming.

Which artists did you both grow up listening to? How early did music arrive in your lives?

Krisz: I grew up with Blues, Reggae and Dub; Hip-Hop and Electro. To name a few from all genres:

- Blues artists like John Lee Hooker, the Chess artists like Muddy Waters or Howlin` Wolf.

- Reggae: Roots artists from Studio One; Burning Spear, Lee Perry and, of course, Bob Marley.

- Dancehall: Shabba Ranks, Capleton; Bounty Killer and Super Cat.

- Hip-Hop artists from the beginning like Curtis Blow or Grandmaster Flash; EPMD, Eric B. & Rakim; Beastie Boys, Common; Jay-Z, Kanye West and Kendrick Lamar,

Musa: Confession...when Prince died, I burst into tears and then I realised why: because my aunt had played Sign O’ the Times whenever I was at her house out of her incredible Bang and Olufsen sound-system (this was in the early-to-mid-eighties and she still has it, in great condition). Then, I got into Young MC, Positive K; Tracy Chapman and Arrested Development in my early-teens; then, it was Wu-Tang, Curtis Mayfield; Nirvana, U2; Outkast, The Fugees; Jay-Z, Biggie; Lauryn Hill, Daft Punk and The Roots; along with some Eminem (eek, given some of the stuff he said) and, from my early-twenties onwards; I have been listening to everything. I mean…everything...

Björk, Bloc Party; Metronomy, The Kooks; The Strokes, Arctic Monkeys; Seu Jorge, Janis Joplin; Mount Kimbie, Martyn; NoLay, Kendrick Lamar; JME, Flying Lotus; Aretha Franklin, Daedelus; Janelle Monáe; Ryuichi Sakamoto; Eska, Tawiah; Skrillex, Herbie Hancock...I mean, I could go on for hours…I love music; all of it.

PHOTO CREDIT: Eduardo Mattos

Musa. You have been compared to the likes of The Streets. The world needs a street-poet like that! Do you think there is a big gap in the market for poets who can reflect the needs of the people – and articulate the sounds of the streets?!

Ha, well; it’s to know people think there’s a need for more poets: we often divide opinion. (Maybe that’s our job.) I think that poets, whoever they are - be that Salena Godden or Kendrick Lamar, Inua Ellams; Saul Williams, Bridget Minamore or Awate - have a particular skill, if they are good enough: they can distil a range of emotions into just a few words.

I think that has tremendous power - just look at the amazing advocacy that young people are doing for Black Lives Matter and after the Parkland shootings. I think there is always, always room for people like that - and I want to make my own contribution to social progress too. I would love to be able to look back and say: “We captured the mood for some people, and we did it in an uplifting way”.

What do you hope to achieve in 2018?

Krisz: To reach a good coverage of people who like what we are doing; to play more live. I’m looking forward to collaborating with an artist we'd like to work with.

Musa: To do some incredible gigs in different parts of Europe, to have people write to us and say that we made work that moved them and inspired them.

Have you each got a favourite memory from your time in music – the one that sticks in the mind?

Krisz: A mind-blowing event was the Love Parade in Berlin beginning of the ‘90s when 500k people were dancing in the streets to Electro and Techno music. This music was new at that time.

Musa: Playing a gig at CAMP in 2011, with a previous group of mine. We performed a song called Love Against Homophobia at a time when the Ugandan government was being especially hateful towards gay people - and the response to the tune when we finished it was amazing. We sent the live recording to John Kennedy, who was guest-hosting Mary Anne Hobbs’ show that week and he played it and made it his tune of the day.

What advice would you give to new artists coming through?

Krisz: You mean, us? (Smiles). Ok - just kidding. I would say just do what you want. No boundaries. Doesn’t matter what people might say and think. Give a f**k. Just do it.

Musa: What Krisz said, a thousand times…

IN THIS PHOTO: Otis Mensah

Are there any new artists you recommend we check out?

Musa: Otis Mensah. Imagine a rapper who is half-Speech from Arrested Development, half-Homeboy Sandman and that’s Otis.

Krisz: Neo-Classical pianist by the name of Gunnarsson.

Do you both get much time to chill away from music? How do you unwind?

We do get away from music doing other things. If not doing our own music, we produce music for ads and films.

Chilling away from music with football/travelling/being in nature/enjoying good food.

Musa: Ha. I’m pretty much the same as Krisz: watching football, making my way slowly through the restaurants in Berlin; travelling through Europe (Lisbon and Brussels were great recently and, Copenhagen, we have unfinished business).

Finally, and for being good sports; you can each choose a song and I’ll play it here (not any of your music - I will do that).

Krisz: Young Fathers - In My View