Kobra Kai
Genre:
Dance
Region:
Sydney, NSW
Sounds Like:
Dizzee Rascal, Roni Size/Reprazent, Shapeshifter
They squeeze a hell of a lot of members on stage, and just as many influences into their music. Kobra Kai are a 100% live drum n bass, jungle, grime and hip hop outfit with energy in bucketloads.
Interview: 17 September 2007
Kobra Kai are the winners of our Parklife NSW competition. More about this competition »
What can the Parklife crowd expect when you take to the stage?
A dirty mash-up of drum'n'bass, grime, jungle, breaks... laced with jazz, metal, dub and reggae. Our live sound is raw. No sequencing. The beats are bashed out on a live hybrid electronic/acoustic kit. Our bass is played out live on a hybrid bass-guitar/MIDI setup. Synths are tweaked and played on live controllers, while we run the drums and other sounds through 3 different laptops and various hardware/software filters. (Yes, our cabling is a freakin nightmare). Not to mention 3 mc's that have the tendancy to grab any crowd by the scruff of the neck..
Who are you most looking forward to seeing on the Parklife line-up this year?
Well this year's lineup is particularly huge .... u can bet we'll be on the floor for MIA's crunked-up, bass-shakin sound. She's one of the freshest artists out there right now. Shapeshifter are also a huge influence on us, being one of the most extraordinary live-acts out there. And I'm sure we wouldn't wanna miss DJ's Craze's off-the-hook turntablsim either ... but damn, the whole lineup is big.
You appear to have a lot of varying influences. Does that ever cause conflict within the band?
It sure does, but it's all part of the fun of working with diverse band members. Luckily, everyone in our crew is open-minded and willing to experiment with other members 'hypothesis' on making music. Being in a band like ours is not so much about getting what u want, but seeing what happens when we put our heads together.
How do you go about writing your songs?
Usually one of makes a start on a song or groove and then rest of the members add on to it. Sometimes we write in sequencing on laptops and transfer it to live. Sometimes we just jam out noise and see what comes out. Lately we've found it's great being able to apply both sequencing and live playing in the song-writing process, just to experiment with different angles.
What have you got planned for the future?
We have an album in the works that we're producing ourselves, and hope to give people a taste of a tune or two within a month. And a tour of Aus/NZ should follow. Stay tuned...
Australian music is...
In a very healthy state right now. Plenty of people here are open to new styles, like the 'live' dance music that we do. We've branched out from being a country of producing just rock acts. Punters these days can go out and see quality local acts from all genres. There's so much talent here in Oz.. not to mention our neighbours across the Tasman. NZ music is off the hook these days. Big Ups!