Gorillaz-Unofficial (![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small} gorillaz_news) wrote,@ 2007-08-08 17:28:00 |
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Kano speaks of admiration for Gorillaz
UK rap artist Kano (info on wikipedia here) has spoken of his admiration for Gorillaz in a new interview.
Kano says: "I was a big fan of Damon's, especially that first Gorillaz album. I came up in the garage scene and they did a lot of garage remixes of 'Clint Eastwood', so I kind of followed that from there and when the second album came out I was like "Woah", I was so into that. When I met the man and we got speaking I hadn't even realised he'd lived where I come from, that's why he's really reggae influenced and why I could identify with a lot of the stuff on the second Gorillaz album, and I think that's what really attracted me to working with him.".
Read the full interview (including more of his comments on working with Damon Albarn on the track 'Feel Free') on the site Soundgenerator.com here. Download the Damon and Kano collaboration 'Feel Free' from Kano's forthcoming album 'London Town' here (hosted on rapidshare) or watch a performance of the track live on Youtube here.
Aug 08 2007 11:43 BST
INTERVIEW - Kano takes on 'London Town'
We talk to the rapper about his new abum and his time in the studio with Kate Nash, Craig David, Vybz Cartel and Damon Albarn
By: News Desk
Fresh from the studio and ready to unleash London Town on the public, Sound Generator's Matt Sheret chatted to Kano about the new album and how he came about working with Damon Albarn, Vybz Cartel, Craig David and Kate Nash on his second record.
How are you doing man?
It's all going ok, It's picking up man, it's picking up.
How are things looking for you now, what's coming up?
The single's coming out at the end of August 'This Is the Girl' on 27th), and the album comes out early September.
Are you excited about it?
Yeah, well, I don't get excited about too many things, but I'm kind of excited about the album. I've been working on it for about a year and a bit now, so I want to just get that out there and see people react to it.
Have you gone in a different direction with this album?
Yeah, it's different from the last one. The whole mindset that I was in, even the people that I worked with - I worked with some people that i would really have worked with on the first one i.e. Damon and Vybs Cartel and stuff. It's kind of different, I pushed it out a bit.
The four main people that you work with on the record are Damon Albarn, Vybs Cartel, Craig David and Kate Nash, and it definitely seems that the time with Albarn and Vybs was big for you creatively, tell us a bit about what that was like like in the studio.
I definitely think that's how it felt too. I'm a big Vybs Cartel fan, he's been the best dancehall artists for about three years now: there hasn't been a time I've been to Jamaica in that long when he hasn't had the biggest song out there, you know? I listen to Vybs a lot. There's a lot of people out there in different genes I respect, but there's a few people out there I think "I could do something with you. You could come into my world" and I know he could spit on a 140 beat and he always had that quick flow about him. So when we did the track it wasn't really about me jumping into a dancehall world to try and make a dancehall track. The track is probably the most grime influenced track on the album and it's him jumping into my world, and that's what makes the collaboration so great for me and so special for me, so that was what was behind that and I think it turned out really well.
The Damon one, again, I was a big fan of Damon's, especially that first Gorillaz album. I came up in the garage scene and they did a lot of garage remixes of 'Clint Eastwood', so I kind of followed that from there and when the second album came out I was like "Woah", I was so into that. When I met the man and we got speaking I hadn't even realised he'd lived where I come from, that's why he's really reggae influenced and why I could identify with a lot of the stuff on the second Gorillaz album, and I think that's what really attracted me to working with him. When we got in the studio he was so cool...I didn't even realise how big he was in terms of records sold. You would never know if you met him he was so cool, he's just all about the music, such a creative guy. He taught me a lot too, not by sitting me down and speaking to me but just by watching him. I think it was good because it was probably a track that I would never have done, and vice versa. I think the two of us coming together was an interesting collaboration musically for me and it's one of my favourite songs on the album. It's very motivational, and uplifting and deep, and hard at the same time but melodic... it's just a whole mix of grime, reggae, that alternative stuff he'd do with Gorillaz. There's one bit where he plays the piano and it's just nuts man, I love it.
Then I suppose there's the flipside of that. Kate Nash, who seems to be everywhere right now (she's on ITV in the background as the interview takes place)... was there something intuitive about choosing her?
It was basically her voice. I had already written the hook and I had a style in mind, that new style that's coming about that sounds very English, sounds very London. A lot of singers out there tend to sound American, but I wanted that real London thing. I wanted someone Lily Allen-ish, but not Lily Allen. Then I found Kate Nash on MySpace and heard a couple of tunes and saw a performance of there of 'Merry Happy' I thought her voice was good, I liked the voice too, but the voice was what i was looking for. I asked her to come down and sing and she gave the track exactly what it needed.
Then Craig David it's been a while since anyone's really heard from him. Was that part of why you wanted to work with him?
It wasn't you know. Working with Craig a lot of people have asked me why, you know, what made you put him in mind? But the guy I work with a lot - Fraiser - he's worked with Craig a lot, have been for years, and they're actually good friends. We crossed paths a lot at birthday parties or in the studio or wherever and we'd always be like "Let's do something together man", but we never got round to it. Then one time I think we just came to the studio at the same time and we just made a track, we made a beat and I was impressed with him because you have an idea in your head about singers and how they work but he approached the track like an MC, just picked the mic up and started freestyling, doing melodies and instantly coming up with the words. It was great to work with him because we could bounce off of each other and it wasn't "Wait two weeks to book that session singer in" you know? It was just instant. The track was made so quickly and working with him came about so naturally, it was cool man.
UK rap artist Kano (info on wikipedia here) has spoken of his admiration for Gorillaz in a new interview.
Kano says: "I was a big fan of Damon's, especially that first Gorillaz album. I came up in the garage scene and they did a lot of garage remixes of 'Clint Eastwood', so I kind of followed that from there and when the second album came out I was like "Woah", I was so into that. When I met the man and we got speaking I hadn't even realised he'd lived where I come from, that's why he's really reggae influenced and why I could identify with a lot of the stuff on the second Gorillaz album, and I think that's what really attracted me to working with him.".
Read the full interview (including more of his comments on working with Damon Albarn on the track 'Feel Free') on the site Soundgenerator.com here. Download the Damon and Kano collaboration 'Feel Free' from Kano's forthcoming album 'London Town' here (hosted on rapidshare) or watch a performance of the track live on Youtube here.
Aug 08 2007 11:43 BST
INTERVIEW - Kano takes on 'London Town'
We talk to the rapper about his new abum and his time in the studio with Kate Nash, Craig David, Vybz Cartel and Damon Albarn
By: News Desk
Fresh from the studio and ready to unleash London Town on the public, Sound Generator's Matt Sheret chatted to Kano about the new album and how he came about working with Damon Albarn, Vybz Cartel, Craig David and Kate Nash on his second record.
How are you doing man?
It's all going ok, It's picking up man, it's picking up.
How are things looking for you now, what's coming up?
The single's coming out at the end of August 'This Is the Girl' on 27th), and the album comes out early September.
Are you excited about it?
Yeah, well, I don't get excited about too many things, but I'm kind of excited about the album. I've been working on it for about a year and a bit now, so I want to just get that out there and see people react to it.
Have you gone in a different direction with this album?
Yeah, it's different from the last one. The whole mindset that I was in, even the people that I worked with - I worked with some people that i would really have worked with on the first one i.e. Damon and Vybs Cartel and stuff. It's kind of different, I pushed it out a bit.
The four main people that you work with on the record are Damon Albarn, Vybs Cartel, Craig David and Kate Nash, and it definitely seems that the time with Albarn and Vybs was big for you creatively, tell us a bit about what that was like like in the studio.
I definitely think that's how it felt too. I'm a big Vybs Cartel fan, he's been the best dancehall artists for about three years now: there hasn't been a time I've been to Jamaica in that long when he hasn't had the biggest song out there, you know? I listen to Vybs a lot. There's a lot of people out there in different genes I respect, but there's a few people out there I think "I could do something with you. You could come into my world" and I know he could spit on a 140 beat and he always had that quick flow about him. So when we did the track it wasn't really about me jumping into a dancehall world to try and make a dancehall track. The track is probably the most grime influenced track on the album and it's him jumping into my world, and that's what makes the collaboration so great for me and so special for me, so that was what was behind that and I think it turned out really well.
The Damon one, again, I was a big fan of Damon's, especially that first Gorillaz album. I came up in the garage scene and they did a lot of garage remixes of 'Clint Eastwood', so I kind of followed that from there and when the second album came out I was like "Woah", I was so into that. When I met the man and we got speaking I hadn't even realised he'd lived where I come from, that's why he's really reggae influenced and why I could identify with a lot of the stuff on the second Gorillaz album, and I think that's what really attracted me to working with him. When we got in the studio he was so cool...I didn't even realise how big he was in terms of records sold. You would never know if you met him he was so cool, he's just all about the music, such a creative guy. He taught me a lot too, not by sitting me down and speaking to me but just by watching him. I think it was good because it was probably a track that I would never have done, and vice versa. I think the two of us coming together was an interesting collaboration musically for me and it's one of my favourite songs on the album. It's very motivational, and uplifting and deep, and hard at the same time but melodic... it's just a whole mix of grime, reggae, that alternative stuff he'd do with Gorillaz. There's one bit where he plays the piano and it's just nuts man, I love it.
Then I suppose there's the flipside of that. Kate Nash, who seems to be everywhere right now (she's on ITV in the background as the interview takes place)... was there something intuitive about choosing her?
It was basically her voice. I had already written the hook and I had a style in mind, that new style that's coming about that sounds very English, sounds very London. A lot of singers out there tend to sound American, but I wanted that real London thing. I wanted someone Lily Allen-ish, but not Lily Allen. Then I found Kate Nash on MySpace and heard a couple of tunes and saw a performance of there of 'Merry Happy' I thought her voice was good, I liked the voice too, but the voice was what i was looking for. I asked her to come down and sing and she gave the track exactly what it needed.
Then Craig David it's been a while since anyone's really heard from him. Was that part of why you wanted to work with him?
It wasn't you know. Working with Craig a lot of people have asked me why, you know, what made you put him in mind? But the guy I work with a lot - Fraiser - he's worked with Craig a lot, have been for years, and they're actually good friends. We crossed paths a lot at birthday parties or in the studio or wherever and we'd always be like "Let's do something together man", but we never got round to it. Then one time I think we just came to the studio at the same time and we just made a track, we made a beat and I was impressed with him because you have an idea in your head about singers and how they work but he approached the track like an MC, just picked the mic up and started freestyling, doing melodies and instantly coming up with the words. It was great to work with him because we could bounce off of each other and it wasn't "Wait two weeks to book that session singer in" you know? It was just instant. The track was made so quickly and working with him came about so naturally, it was cool man.
