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Nubreed interview: Choosing Breakbeats over Breakups

Author: Natalie Martyn
Friday, March 10, 2006
Amidst nasty (and unfounded) rumours of breaking up, Nubreed are back and keeping it most real with their latest tasty endeavour - the Y4K Compilation Series CD through Distinctive Records. With the promise of a diverse mix of broken beats from the early Y4K CD's, Nubreed have been hibernating in studios collaborating with the likes of Tipper and Si Begg to bring us the sound we all love. Boasting a history of 7 years together and tipped by Phil K to be "one of the biggest electronic music acts in the world", Nubreed have earned every inch of their elite status in the world of Breaks and dance music as a whole.

And now to bring their music to the masses, Triple J Mix Up and Jam launch the Distinctive Y4K national tour starting in Melbourne on the 10th March and wrapping it up in Hobart on the 5th May.

I caught up with Jase who gave me all the gossip plus some good insights into where Nubreed are at, where breaks is headed and what their 30's has in store for them.


Lately I've heard a few rumours floating around that Nubreed are breaking up- Can you confirm whether this is true or not-
Hi......no we are not breaking up! There was a ruff transitional period after we parted with our manager in regards to plotting our next moves musically and organising tours ourselves though no-one was going solo or anything - hence the minimal output for the year....(laughs). I have spent the last year working on a solo hip hop compilation with the who's who of Australian hip hop while the Y4K mix just got released which may have fuelled the rumour mill but we were never splitting up. Just people stirring the pot or a cheap media plot!

Tell me about the Y4K project. It sounds like a covert operation!
It was basically Nubreeds take on the classic breaks series. We tried to evoke the feeling of the early CD's with a diverse mix of the broken beats.

Nubreed have mixed the latest of the Y4K compilations series through Distinctive Records. What was it like working on this project & with the people behind it-
Getting back into the studio to mix the whole record and add new Nubreed tunes was great because we hadn't been in the studio together for a while and clicked right back into place. Also having exclusive tracks by our mates Tipper and Si Begg was great.

How does Y4K differ from the first album, The Original- People can be a bit picky about their sounds and if a new album ventures too far from their comfort zone, it can sometimes backfire. Are you bringing in something completely new or sticking to a formula-
I think this is the Nubreed sound through the eyes 'n ears of our peers. It's a CD of artists and friends we like so hopefully listeners get the same vibe or feeling they get when they come to a Nubreed live show.

The single, One Day did extraordinarily well in Australia and the UK - are you expecting the same sort of response to any particular singles from this album-
This release is more dancefloor orientated but we hope people check for the latest Nubreed grimey breaks on the 12"s that just got released on Distinctive Records.

It's been a little while since we've seen Nubreed's face. I can only imagine you've been hibernating in studios and huddled around in meeting rooms. How does it feel to be launching an album and touring again- Do you have any anxieties about its success-
It's good to be touring again as we have added a few new tracks to the live set. Also we have a new collaboration with L.A Group Toksin which we consider to be stronger than One Day. Dan sings the lead so we will be dropping that live. It's always fun and interesting seeing the crowds reactions to new songs.

Breakbeat gained popularity in the U.K. through seminal tracks like The Phantom by Renegade Soundwave, Papua New Guinea by Future Sound Of London, and later Bombscare by 2 Bad Mice. Its come a long way since then and to some extent spawned the<
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