What’s good people!

This is the first of my Polyblogs series, I will basically be debriefing y’all on the thought process behind the work for each EP, responses to the responses and other tidbits that you might find noteworthy.

Firstly, I just wanted to say thank you for the TREMENDOUS amount of positive feedback I’ve received from y’all since the release of Glutton. 8 years between records might as well be two-eternities sandwiched together these days, and the fact that y’all came through to show your support (ie. spreading the word, tweeting/sharing/linking, pre-ordering) for the kid after all this time - means the world to me. Especially seeing how your refined your understanding of my work has become over the years - the way you break it down - it’s truly a blessing and I love y’all for it.

Granted, what I’m doing is an insane idea - no one’s ever done this before, and it was a big gamble to split the album into 4 parts and deliver them the way I’m doing - different styles, etc. I was bound to piss off some people in the process - but that’s the price for change.

Releasing Glutton first, of all the EPs, was a conscious decision I made with the consequences in plain view laid out head of me. Yes, this was going to throw some people off - ESPECIALLY the stereotypical “hip hop head” (And people from Australia for some reason haha) - those that haven’t been following my music consistently over the years. People that have only heard me on “Love Ain’t” or “Peruvian Coke”. They haven’t heard “Bring It”. They haven’t heard “Fast”. They haven’t heard “Punk”. Hell, there’s 2 drum & bass songs on efamm’s HFYS. My point is… I’ve ALWAYS incorporated electronic music into my work. Cause I love it.

I mean, look… the hip hop audience has an extremely hard time dealing with the idea of change. I’ve been dealing with that kind of resistance since Day 1. Considering that the press has never understood me - it’s little wonder that the sheep don’t either. So, any broadsided negativity was expected.

A QUICK STORY
Before I released Archetype, I had to choose the first single. My gut told me - “Porcelain” & “Pervert”. It was the perfect combo for an A/B side. I showed the album to folks I respect on the scene, etc and was basically told to go with the most straight-forward hip hop cuts on the album “Politics” & “Disappointed”. That single came and went without much fanfare, (Although Fubz’s amazing photography lives on) , but my original gut call - “Porcelain” & “Pervert” have since gone on to be my biggest solo songs - without question.

The lesson here? Trust my gut.

GENRE IS DEAD
Fuck Genre. Forreal. It’s dead. Has been. Genre-specific music is paint by numbers to me at this point. This is the approach I have to all my music. Hell, from Peter Anthony Red to Tonedeff to my past projects (KGK, etc)... I love music too much to stick to any one style. But my native language is hip hop - so it all gets filtered through that when I produce Tonedeff work. The only difference is… I’m mainly rhyming on it.

In that regard - I’m extremely proud of Glutton - on the pure basis that, frankly, no Emcee has ever tackled EDM intelligently the way that I have on Glutton. People generally write dance music off as just this thing you get fucked up and try to get laid to. Which is like saying “Rap music is only for smoking weed and pissing people off soccer moms with your subwoofers in the suburbs”. It goes both ways. It’s the verbal diarrhea of small-minded folks trying to stuff things into neat little boxes, because they don’t understand them.

As a long-time student of all electronic music - (I basically was listening to Kraftwerk at the same time I was listening to Sugar Hill Gang) - I did my best to present a smattering of the genuine articles - not bullshit or “wannabe” versions of the real shit. Dubstep, like any other genre, can be limiting and repetitive - but I feel like we broke open a wall with the title track. NumberNin6 did the goddamn thing and he took what I did vocally to another level with his production work. Of all the songs, this is a watershed moment - the usage of the proverbial DROP in a dramatically logical way - it makes absolute sense within the song and it’s the farthest thing from gratuitous.

To further drive home the point, a song like “Centerfold” is not an ATTEMPT at a dance record - it IS a dance record. Chew Fu has been spinning the instrumental for a month before this even dropped and it was lighting up the dancefloor every time. This is AUTHENTIC club music produced by a world-renowned club producer, DJ & Remixer (If he’s good enough for Rihanna & Lady Gaga - he’s good enough for Tonedeff).

Dinosaurs seem to have the biggest problem with this song, because House is so prevalent on the radio right now - so be it. I can’t help but dance to this song when I hear it, still. And I’m ON it. haha The responses I find most humorous to this particular track is that I’m trying to “go commercial” - which is hilarious in the sole fact that I have the promotional budget of your local Churro vendor. If by some miracle my music ended up on commercial radio, it certainly wasn’t because I was trying to. Cause I sure as fuck can’t afford to. haha They seem to overlook the nifty photography metaphors I laced throughout it.

“Filthy” is literally me at my rock-bottom of sexual excess. This isn’t a joke record - although it might be seen as that by some. I’ve been hiding this song for years - nervous about what people would think of me for the content - until my closest friends encouraged me to just put it out. Fuck it. At this point? I don’t have a filter - this song is proof. Although, the easy-acceptance of this song says more about the mental health of my audience than it does about me. haha Sick fucks - A2M Porn is far too prevalent these days. Not that I’m complaining anymore.

The last verse on “Never” is the most personal verse on the record. I’ve learned from my songwriting idols to bare my soul, scars and all, in my music. It makes for the best material. I love the juxtaposition of bouncy dance music with somber content. It’s an extremely tricky line to walk, but when you can pull it off - it becomes far more subversive that way. And this track is the epitome of that approach on Glutton.

“Sunrise has been on the backburner since 2009 when I debuted it with a live string-quartet at the 2009 QN5 Megashow. I was waiting for the right time to release it.. and when I brainstormed the idea for Polymer… I knew immediately it was going to be the last song - the light - on the darkest of the EPs. Musically, I’ve ALWAYS wanted to flip this style of beat as an homage to the Late-80’s freestyle I grew up with in Miami. 808’s, galloping high-hats, dramatic synth-strings - check. (I’ll be delving into the influences to tracks like this later). But this time, I added a little glitch-break in the middle to underscore the rhyming. The chord change at the end really solidifies this joint for me. And it really sets up what’s to come.

IN CLOSING
Overall, I’m tired of sugar-coating things for people or censoring my output based off what I feel the response will be. If folks can’t appreciate what I’m doing on a musical level with ALL of my work - literally disregarding GENRE and all it’s tropes entirely - then it’s not worth trying to explain. Because either you get it, or you don’t.

Those of you who are here…the true baby blue Auralarians....GET IT. Y’all understand that I’m not making music to fit in, or to trend-hop, or to be cool or get attention - I’m doing this as an honestly genuine self-expression. Consequences be damned. And I mean that from the bottom of my heart.

Fortunately for me, y’all have my back and spread the word. Thank you again for letting me be me. Just wait till you see what I do on EP’s 2-4.

I’m back, motherfuckers.
- Tonedeff