I Rap Real Good Sometimes

The Synthesis caught up with Slug, the MC of Midwestern emo-rap duo Atmosphere while the group was touring Europe, shortly before returning to US soil and meeting up with the Warped Tour. Now, how exactly does a self-deprecating, Midwestern rap group fit in with Warped Tour, a traveling extreme sports and music circus known for bringing the biggest names in diet punk and new school rock? In the following interview, Slug answers this question and displays his warped sense of humor.

Hey man, what is your impression of the Warped tour, having not yet played on it? Do you get any sort of vibe or premonition from it yet?
Pretty sure that we will be met with a fair amount of hate, but at the same time it'll be balanced with a good amount of support as well. I'll be somewhere in between catching hugs and ducking shoes. We were asked to be on the tour — that alone is an honor. Not so much because it means I'm a dope MC or anything, but because in my city, my music is recognized by the skate kids and now I'm on the skate kids tour.
I've never been a skateboarder. My kid likes to watch the end of the videotapes where everyone falls down. But a lot of the kids involved in skate culture (is that the right label?) are also big supporters of hip-hop culture. I will rap for anybody that'll listen, as long as they're listening.

With a track on the Punk O Rama 8 compilation and a spot on the Warped tour, it seems like there's a conscious effort to push your music into a new market and expose hip-hop to a predominantly punk and hard rock audience. I've read before how you say this mixing of crowds works in Minnesota, partially because of Minneapolis' geographic isolation, but will this crosspollination work in a national scene? How do you think it's gonna play out?
It's too late. This audience has been exposed to hip-hop…with mixed results. There will be no one there who doesn't already have a pre-conceived opinion about rap. At best, I hope to rock the fuck out of those that are already down, and maybe turn some who previously hated rap into new curious advocates. I really don't care who likes hip-hop, I care more about why you love it, or why you dislike it. I'm sure I’ll deal with some people on this tour who would rather I not be there, that doesn't phase me. My name is Slug. I rap. I rap real good sometimes. There is no play-out. I'm honored to be on a tour this size, with these bands even. Doesn't change what I do for a living. I rap. I rap real good sometimes.

What are the barriers that you face trying to expose underground hip-hop to a new audience?
That's not what I'm trying to do. A lot of these kids already know. There are no barriers to what I do. Hell, I'm lucky to have made it this far, based offa’ the fact that I still do what I do the same way I’ve been doing it. Whether I'm independent, rapping on four-track recordings and dubbing them for your little sister, or live at Wrigley field opening for Aerosmith…I rap (real good sometimes).

With the Warped tour, there seems to always be one hip-hop artist (Kool Keith, J5) represented. How do hip-hop and punk rock relate?
Plenty of similarities, but my favorite one is how both of them are cultures, much bigger and more important than the music that mainstream America seems to define them by.

What are you most looking forward to with the Warped Tour?
Dirty white women.

This being your first time on the tour, is there some weird, arcane initiation that they're going to put you through? Did you have to learn the Greek alphabet or some shit?
No.

What do you fear could happen to make this a bad experience? Do you have any reservations about playing the Warped Tour?
No. I even like rain.

How does your music fit into the mall-dweller culture? And extreme sports?
Not sure, but I hear that in Denmark, I'm huge amongst the kids that participate in the sport of extreme-mall-dwelling…

What do you hope to achieve from playing on the tour? What's in it for Atmosphere?
It sounds like a lot of fun. It will also give me the opportunity to see a butt load of new music and meet new people…try to talk kids out of voting for Bush in the next presidential election. I would love to be a doorway drug for kids to get into. If I can turn a few kids onto some Atmosphere, it might just be a few steps away from them getting into some heavier shit like Brother Ali, Sage Francis, Cannibal Ox…My road manager, Deejaybird, has been a big fan of the bands that play on this tour. He goes to the show every year for like the last 250 years. It woulda broke his heart if we had declined Warp’s offer.

Are you looking forward to performing for all sorts of 14-year-old girls?
Sure. If they can take something from what I have to say and relate to it, or apply it somehow, mission accomplished. I don't care how old a fan is. I will rap for anyone who listens. As long as they listen.

Hey Slug, thanks for your time.
Back at you.

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