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Mr. Trials.
 As the hip-hop scene in Australia continues to develop and grow, regional sounds are beginning to emerge.For example, a lot of the acts coming out of Sydney fuse hip-hop with other styles like rock, soul and funk and Perth seems to have an often diverse scene that encourages experimentation. Melbourne has the most traditional scene in many ways as well as one of the strongest , but Adelaide's sound is also a very traditional one; strong funky tracks filled with soul samples and punchlines.
It's a style that really brings out the fun in hip-hop and the most successful exponents to date have been the Hilltop Hoods, but in many ways their success has obscured what is a very healthy scene here in Adelaide. The drunken fun and sample-based sound is something that the Funkoars have been pushing for a while, and member Mr. Trials expresses some dismay at recent legal developments that have hampered the creativity of productions.
"Dudes have stopped sampling because of sampling laws. I let a lot of shit slide..." As for any repercussions, he's not too worried citing the Oars upcoming album as an example: there are a few samples that he hasn't even bothered trying to clear because "we're not gonna sell 20,000. If we do sell 20,000, I'll deal with it then; now they can sue me for my MPC and hoody 'cause that's all I got."
Trials agrees that there's no doubt that our city's scene is indelibly linked with the 'Hoods, but argues that there's nothing wrong with that. "I mean, they've done everything that's expected of them. They've done more than what's expected of them."
Plus, their success has automatically created opportunities for other acts, as demonstrated when I ask Trials about his favourite gig. Without pausing to think for an instant, he replies "that Thebby show that the 'Hoods did last year."
I should hardly be surprised that I don't have to wait for an answer: this guy was, after all, the SA winner of last year's MC Battle for Supremacy, and when I interviewed him, he was preparing to judge this year's as well, an opportunity that he jumped at. "I said to them, 'if you're gonna offer me the same drink card as last year, I'll definitely be there.'"
I'm not interviewing him about the battle, though: he's got a new solo release out with the launch coming up soon. Released only on vinyl, it's a project that's lucky to be released at all; while the Oars have been signed to Obese for about a year now, Trials tells me, "I'm not even signed as a solo artist, but because Pegz [at Obese] likes that shit and he knew that I had it sitting there, he just thought he'd throw it out anyway."
While you might not think that artists like the Oars would be a high priority for Australia's flagship hip-hop label, throughout the interview I never hear a bad word said about them. At the end of the day, "they look after us really, really fucking well. Like, we've cost them more money so far than we've made 'em."
What money the boys do make would come from the distribution of their first release, 'Who's Your Step Daddy' (in this reviewer's top 5 for 2003), but they have a follow up in the works that will hopefully come out towards the end of this year. While '...Step Daddy' was a fairly short album, Trials promises that the new release will be "a proper full-length... this time it's solid tracks, like 15 tracks or something like that."
When I ask him how he manages to find time for both projects, I find out that there's even more on the plate. "I'm producing my mate Vents' [Vents Uno] album as well and I'm doing a little bit of work with this dude Robbie Balboa from Queensland who is real, real sick, man." Could this MC Battle for Supremacy finalist be the mystery Queensland guest at the album launch? We'll just have to find out on the night. 'For The Ladies' is only being pressed onto vinyl because it's for "just all the underground and DJ type of dudes, that's why we put the intros on as well," but with performances by acts like Staen One, Adroit Effusive and Hospice Crew as well as a rare live appearance by the Funkoars and Pressure hosting you can expect to see a fair share of Adelaide's hip-hop cognoscenti there for what promises to be a night of rare entertainment.
Alexis Buxton-Collins
 | Mr Trials launches 'For The Ladies' at Jive on Sun 12 June. |
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