HAUS DIGITAL

Unseen and Deeflux are Louis (Unseen) and Nick (Deeflux) who have created a fantastic sound that blend styles of hip hop, reggae and grime. Their music possesses a real groove and their new album, 1984, released in June, deserves some serious attention.

1984 exemplifies how promising this duo really is; an album that draws a variety of different styles creating tracks that have a special vibe about them. The tracks journey through a variety of styles, venturing from mellow reggae-esque grooves to a much more aggressive lyrical spit accompanied with a heavy beat. They switch these styles constantly drawing together something really refreshing over the whole album, exploring atmospheres by being plunged into one sound then taken back to something that seems completely contrasting.

The album toys with various styles, placing stand out interludes at the end of certain tracks that seems to draw out each track as an individual, focusing further attention on what has passed and heightening anticipation on what is about to come. 1984 begins to sound as if it is an album of singles with each track taking a step in a different direction.  It’s an album that deserves a listen…

Unseen and Deeflux took the time to talk to Haus about their music.

How would you describe your own sound?
Deeflux – “An MC / Producer duo from the south of england who play a blend hip hop of styles”

What are the origins of Unseen and Deeflux?
Unseen – “We were introduced via Myspace through a mutual friend called Gadget who also runs our label Millennium Jazz Music, we didn’t actually meet each other until nearly a year after our first track.”

You’ve recently released the album ’1984′ was this the sound and style you had in mind, or was there elements of spontaneity that transformed the idea through the making process?
Unseen – “The album itself took a little over 18 months to create and in that time we probably completed about 20 or so tracks. I would say we developed, as any artist does over time but we basically just made music we love and at the end of the project went through all the tracks and choose the ones we felt were strongest in making a coherent album.”

A noticeable aspect of the album is the interludes that are placed at the end of certain tracks – tell us a bit about these.
Unseen – “This was something I did after all the tracks were chosen and put in order. I’ve never been a fan of albums that simply play track after track so wanted to create something that was more like a mix tape having each track lead into the next one.”

The lyrics are really unique, are they written after the beat with the track in mind?
Deeflux – “I tend to write to beats generally and I know quickly whether I can work with it. Louis had sent tons over time and I would hear a few in each batch which I would start writing too as soon as they came through. It’s a mixed process in that some of the time I have a clear idea of something I want to write about and others I just see what comes to mind. When I was writing for 1984 I was also working on another project “Natural Selection” and I think that helped me to keep focused.”

When writing the lyrics how does that process take place – are they relevant to personal experience or their own stories?
Deeflux – “Certainly some tracks i write would be chalked down to things i’ve seen or experienced but, I also like telling stories so on a track like steam I got this vibe from the beat of being sat in a dusty, smoke filled bar and just kinda of made up a story off the back of that. The album is fairly mixed in its themes along with the sounds Louis put down as a backdrop.”

The album seems to be placed between aggressive beats vs mellow. This subsequently creates a contrast of atmosphere on different tracks. Is this something that you were aware of creating?
Deeflux – “From a writing perspective I was always thinking about the atmosphere of the track. These dynamic changes allowed for completely different styles to be laid down cohesively as Louis sounds hold it all together.”

How are the tracks built up? What does the process consist of?
Unseen – “Over lots of time firstly, but during that time Dee would send me cd’s with the vocals and he’d come up and visit is well so we could sit down and see where we were at with album. Deeflux made a point of us meeting up to ensure we got on as friends, I mean if we’d released album then met for the first time and hated each other it would have been a bit weird to say the least.”

There are several people who feature upon the album – how do decide the people who you want to feature?
Deeflux – “I always wanted to do a track with Dr Syntax as he was someone I had listened too for some time and definitely one of my favourite people in the UK scene. Louis I think spoke to Genesis Elijah over Myspace or Facebook and they had decided to do one track which then turned into two and Genesis was responsible for the concept and hook to the single “I Know”. I never thought of trying to work with Genesis as our styles are very different but in the end i think it turned out pretty nice. Gadget also appeared on that track and runs the label Millennium Jazz Music which 1984 is released through.”

For our latest issue the theme is ‘Dreams and Nightmares’ do you feel this is applicable to your music in any way?
Deeflux – “Maybe the contrast of atmospheres as you said there’s some really dreamy vibes and then some terror thrown in for good measure to keep everyone on their toes.”

deeflux.bandcamp.com