Weiß nicht ob es hier schon gepostet wurde, altes Interview mit einem Teil der M.I.C. Crew:
Zitat:
MF Doom is a classic character in the world of independent hiphop. He started his career as Zev Love-X, part of the group KMD, active in the early nineties. KMD were never very big but got some attention last year when their provocative album "Black Bastards" finally was released, sadly several years after the group broke up. Zev Love-X disappeared when KMD disbanded after his brother, the group member Subroc, died in a car accident. And it wasn't til several years later he managed to shake his writer's block and started releasing new material. A number of singles appeared on Bobbito's label Fondle 'em followed by the album "Operation Doomsday", now under the name MF Doom.
Godzilla is a giant radioactive lizard created in the japanese movie company Toho's studios in 1954. Forget about the lousy Hollywood remake and check one of the 24 japanese movies with Godzilla in the lead instead (each one is based on the idea that he destroys big cities and fight strange opponents). The genre of monster movies is called "Kaiju" in japanese - it means something like "strange creatures" - and is a very weird mix of disaster, horror and kid's movies with bad special effects.
Godzilla and Rodan vs Mecha-Godzilla "So, what do these two have in common?" the intelligent reader asks. For anyone who has been listening carefully to "Operation Doomsday" and last year's "No snakes alive" it's not strange at all. In the mess of samples from cheesy eighties soul and cartoons you can recognize sampled lines from a bunch of monster movies. MF Doom's crew who show their skills on the album have all taken their names from Kaiju monsters, and together they call themselves The Monster Islands Czars – from the island in the movie "Destroy all monsters" where all the world's giant monsters are kept prisoners. And Doom calls himself King Ghidra when operating as one of the czars.
It's not surprising that Doom is a Godzilla fan. His fascination with culture aimed at eleven-year-olds is no secret. Few other rappers brag about their huge collections of comic books and sample the soundtrack from Scooby Doo. The name Doom comes from Marvel Comics bad guy Dr Doom, who usually faces off against Spiderman and The Fantastic Four - and from that Doom's other nickname, "The super villian" (of course MF means "metalface" - Dr Doom wears a metal mask). So it's only natural that his new alias is King Ghidra, after the super villain of Kaiju and Godzilla's toughest oppenent. King Ghidra (aka Ghidorah) - "the space monster" - is a golden three-headed beast and the meanest thing you can find a japanese monter movie.
King Ghidra The rest of the Monster Island Czars are no worse than Doom. His closest companion, MF Grimm, has taken the name Jet Jaguar from a battle robot in the movie "Godzilla vs Megalon". In the crew we also find speed rapper Megalon (some kind of underwater creature, also from "Godzilla vs Megalon"), Rodan (a flying creature that first appeared in the movie with the same name in 1956, and has fought with and against Godzilla a number of times) and other monster alter egos like Kong and Gigan.
Of course, it's nothing new in the world of hiphop to steal a mythology from B-movies, but you've got to admit that references to Godzilla is way cooler and weirder than sampling kung-fu and gangster movies. And just like with Wu-Tang the cartoon world is mixed up with traditional hiphop subjects. The track "Greenbacks" is both about money and the green backs of the monsters. "Monster Island Czars" spells M.I.C - the mic, and to twist things even further their upcoming album is called "The Next 1099 Yeas", where 1099 is MIC in roman numerals.
Since I'm into huge japanese monsters as well I wanted to talk Kaiju with MF Doom. Easier said than done, but I managed to get a bunch of questions thru to the MIC members King Ghidra (MF Doom), Megalon, Rodan and X-Ray. Rodan writes in his email that he hopes we'll find the answers both entertaining and enlightening. Indeed.
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What's the history of the Monster Island Czars?
X-Ray : Me and Doom known each other from the KMD days. I was a dj for a cat named Sugar Bear and we lived in the same town.
Rodan : Jet Jaguar was the one who had the idea that we should all team up against "the Beast" - aka Godzilla. We all got long history together.
What's so fascinating about the Godzila movies?
Rodan : The nostalgic element for me. Those was some of the first shit's I can remember watching when I was young. That shit could make your day, catching a Godzilla flick on the old Channel 5 out here in NY on a Saturday afternoon. Wasn't nothing like watching giant monsters blow up and rip apart a city when you was little.
King Ghidra : Actually, the movies were based on my existence. I am King Ghidra.
X-Ray : We're each a lot like the characters from the films, we all got a little monster in us.
Megalon : : Fuck the movies, motherfucker. The fascinating thing about this shit is us!
Is Monster Island an analogy for Manhattan?
X-Ray : Somewhat. It means a lot of shit.
Rodan : That sounds about right.
King Ghidra : Manhattan Island
Megalon : Monster Island City - Manhattan
I thought I recognized the sample in "No snakes alive" - is it from the Ghidorah soundtrack?
King Ghira : Nope.
X-Ray : No, I think it's James Brown.
Rodan : Actually, it was from a monster movie, but not that one.
Is that track a hint to how the Monster Island Czar album will sound?
Megalon : Hell no.
X-Ray : Our LP is gonna have alot off styles. That's just one of them.
Rodan : A hint in so far as originality. You not gonna find our shit sounding like the next dudes or being some shit just to satisfy a trend. Our material is deeply rooted in the hip hop asthetic - you know scratching, heavy oppressive basslines, rugged drums, infra red dot precise lyrics. So each joint will have it's own flavor, but always maintain the central theme which is raw "MINY" (Monster Island New York) unadulterated street hip hop . There' a few hollow shells like "Poizon Winds" and "What ya'll wanna do" banging around the web and Napster so that's a sample to let dudes know the nuclear blast is coming .
My favorite movies are "Destroy all monsters" and "Godzilla vs Space Godzilla". Which ones are yours?
Ghidra : Destroy all Monsters – classic, Godzilla vs Space Godzilla – the bomb!
Rodan : Any movie with Rodan, Megalon, Kamackeris, Kong, Ghidra, Jet Jaguar, Seesar or Gigan in it is a banger. Word life.
X-Ray : They was all ill.
Megalon : The only thing I watch is my back
Hollywoods Godzilla. How much did it suck?
X-Ray : I never seen it but im sure it was wack.
Rodan : "My name was Rodan before the wack Godzilla blockbuster / My name was Rodan before the stellar dust collected into the first star cluster".
What about Gamera - good or bad?
X-Ray : Good.
Rodan : Depends on which Gamera you talking about
King Ghidra : Gamera?
Megalon : He was my man. He was an ill cat. He used to spit metal from behind his ears. But then those MINY streets got to him and trapped him up.
Yep, nothing more to add there. The Monster Island Czar's album "The next 1099 years" will be out anytime on Metalface Records, and MF Dooms solo album as King Ghidra is also in the pipeline - and will be distributed in Europe by Big Dada. Subverse gives us reissues of the KMD albums and "Operation Doomsday" and check favorite label Brick who are about to release solo efforts from both Megalon and Rodan.
/ Per
Fat Bankroll recommends monster movies:
* Gojira (1954)
The original and possibly the only Godzilla movie that can be considered serious. A nuclear explosion awakens Godzilla outside the coast of Japan and soon he starts spreading terror in Tokyo. The movie is filled with the fifties fear of what nuclear power could cause, and the attacks on Japan can been seen as a symbol for the USA.
* Godzilla vs Mechagodzilla (1974)
Nice monster movie that captures the most typical things in the genre. Aliens build a mechanical copy of Godzilla, Mecha-Godzilla, that starts causing trouble. Godzilla has to team up with the furry god Seesar to have a chance at kicking his ass.
* Destroy all monsters (1968)
An absolute classic and the biggest monster feast there is. Evil aliens take control of the world's kaiju and give them orders to destroy all important capitols. We get to see all our favorites in action, and the final scene where Godzilla & co gang up on Ghidorah is great.
* Godzilla vs Spacegodzilla (1994)
There are really three series of Godzilla movies, one from 1954-1974, one from 1984-1995 and the last one from 1999 and on. "Godzilla vs Spacegodzilla" is the best movie in the second series. Bad guy Spacegodzilla, who looks like regular Godzilla but with crystals growing out of his back, shows up from space and reaks havoc. Godzilla, Rodan and Baby Godzilla have to step up to save Tokyo.
* Gamera (1965?)
The series of Gamera movies is a clear Godzilla ripoff, with a giant turtle in the lead. Gamera flies with jet power and is nice to kids. The first movie in the series is the only one that's actually possible to watch, the rest are painful kids movies that are all too long and all have the same plot.
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