Me: Kathy, the engine is overheating,
the breaks won't work, we're spinning out of control and heading
straight for the river!
Kathy: oh and also we just ran out of
vodka...
Me: If we don't make it back to the
Hordern Pavilion in time Hillary Duff will take the stage and ruin
hip hop forever. We have to get back and stop her!
Kathy: what the fuck?
Me: I know it's crazy.
Kathy: If only we had a way out of this
mess that was simple yet sounded scientific enough that no one would
question our authority on it.
Together: Reverse the polarity!!
(Far away shot of a car exploding as it
spins off a bridge. Two girls walk slowly towards the camera wearing
blue sparkly spandex [superhero outfits] while fireworks go off
behind them as the car hits the river. The taller one sips from a
bottle.)
cue music: “Slider”
Me: well I didn't know that would
happen. Good thing for those eject buttons.
Kathy: Good thing for more vodka
Together: Cheers!
Kathy: now what?
Me: train?
Reverse Polarities: shaking up our ear
holes and turning nonsense into magic since 2005
Also, making train rides less boring.
Although the name may make it sound
like a bunch of scientific mumbo jumbo, what Reverse Polarities
actually says is a lot more real than 99.99% of anything you've ever
heard on the radio. Their philosophy is simple, do the opposite of
what everyone else is doing. Flip the game over on it's head and
just deliver the raw truth. They want to uncover the political
issues, give the facts, and focus on life as they know it here in
Australia. In essence just make their mark by challenging everyone
and changing how they think.
 |
| Mute and Mikoen at Oxford Arts Factory |
You could say that Reverse Polarities
as a hip hop group, grew out of the western suburbs of Sydney. It
started off simply as couple of guys getting together for drinks, who
recorded poetry onto tape using half a headphone as a mic. Back in
the early 90's decent recording equipment was scarce, at least for a
group of youngsters. Rappers, Mikoen and Mute MC, who met at school
way the hell out in the middle of no where (ie western suburbs of
Sydney) may have originally worked on raps together out of boredom
back in their school days, but the work that they put into it back then has really paid off.
The two of them didn't officially form
the group until much later, choosing to work on several other hip hop
related projects. It wasn't until Mute moved to Newtown in 2005 that
things started to kick into gear for RP. Mute met beat maker Kit
Complete and the two became inseparable, working with another friend
Ludz on beats and rhymes, building their skills. Their youngest
member, Psmurf was still finishing school at the time they had their
first official gig at the Cat and Fiddle, which packed out the place.
Hip hop in Australia was only just starting to get some credibility
at that time thanks to groups like Hilltop Hoods, Muph and Plutonic,
and Bliss n Eso. Reverse Polarities was proud to represent where
they were from with all they had, focusing on issues relative to life
in Australia, rather than trying to mimic American emcees.
Although the group has juggled around
and swapped members in and out since it's inception, it is known now
for its four permanent members: Mute MC, Mikoen, and Psmurf as
rappers and Kit Complete on the beats. They rep the inner west and
the western suburbs of Sydney and have been active in one form or
another since 2005, minus a two year hiatus between 2009 and 2011.
Watching Reverse Polarities perform
now, it's obvious that they all really respect and appreciate each
other. And although your attention might first be drawn to the
barefoot one bouncing around with the expressive face, you will soon
see that there is no front-man to this group. Each member equally
takes his turn in the spot light. They are all supportive of
each other without the pretension of having to “be something” or
project a certain image. I feel like when I see an RP set it's four
artists coming together and just relaxing into themselves and letting
each other do their own thing but with the backing that they need to
help one another other shine. Everyone takes their turn in the spot light,
they cover each other's mistakes and play to each other's strengths.
So where does Reverse Polarities end
and Daily Meds begin? The whole thing can be a bit of head spin to
figure out. Some members are shared between groups, and of course
other members make “guest” appearances on each other's tracks.
The beats and production are done differently in the two, with Roleo
in Daily Meds and Kit Complete on Reverse Polarities. Daily Meds
came into being at the time when RP was on hiatus.
Since they share members anyway, a
Reverse Polarities and Daily Meds supergroup sounds like a terrific
idea, but the reality of it is there are so many different projects
going on simultaneously, it would be hard to coordinate, although
they always have and will continue to swap members around like spit
at a make out party... that's fam right there.
RP LIVE:
The way I look at it is Reverse
Polarities gave them a taste, let them find the way onto the scene,
and helped them define and develop who they are as artists, so that
then when Daily Meds came along, they weren't starting from scratch
anymore. They had a recipe that worked and this time there wouldn't
be any burnt batches of brownies. Daily Meds was serious business
and they have exploded onto the scene in the last few years and
become a raging success with fans all over the country. RP now has
taken a back step to this, but with the group back together and going
strong again, what I see it as, is an outlet for the boys to relax
again. They don't have to prove anything to anyone, and they are
humbled by being reminded of where they have come from. It's a treat
for old and new fans alike to see the comfortableness and refreshing
attitude that comes out of a Reverse Polarities show. And this is no
soft la-de-da party music either, it's in your face and tackling
political issues head on, something that this scene needs
desperately.
 |
| Drank, dance, rap... |
It will be a busy year for RP as a
group as well as all the members individually. You can look forward
to an official Reverse Polarities album this year released through
Big Village. Also Psmurf will be dropping his solo release VERY
soon. Mick's mixtape will be out to offend young and old come April. Mute
is working on a little something special with Daily Meds DJ, Roleo.
But that's not all, he's also got a project called Mute Oblivion with
a release in the near future. Kit Complete won't be outdone either,
with his second solo release coming out this year as well.
Despite so many other projects
happening, the RP group is back in full force. Their latest video
project, “Invasion Day,” released in time for Australia Day this
year perfectly demonstrates the hard political stance on an issue
that's still very sensitive in Australian society. And true to their
name they will flip the situation on its head. They won't just give
you the watered down version of events, they aren't just some white
kids from the suburbs rapping about how they hate their parents. They
will serve you up the real issues in a way that won't be ignored, and
you can make up your own mind but at least the facts are all there to
be digested.
Check out the clip below:
“Reverse Polarities, you wouldn't
want to challenge these emcee's mentalities...”
Peace out people, stay cool.
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