Big bass, atmospheric soundscapes, and high-level raps are the three main components that define hip-hop trio EAST AV3. Over the last year, they have dropped singles like ‘Riding Through The Fire’ and ‘Le Labo’ and these factors have only become more apparent. They became Triple J’s Unearthed Feature Act in September 2019 and played on the main stage at the Listen In festival. Not bad for three Adelaide dudes making music in their room, hey?
With Nic Flare on the beats, and Kane Trop3z and YOURPAPASENSEI on the bars, EAST AV3 formed in high school and built their foundation by moving in together on East Avenue in Adelaide. It became a hub for creativity, with moshpit-ready anthems blossoming out of bedroom sessions. The experience they established throughout that era can be heard in their recently released debut EP RUGRAT$, and their new single ‘rose + sashimi’. The big bass, atmospheric soundscapes, and high energy raps are at peak levels, with no ceiling in sight.
To learn more, we hit up the guys to chat new music, their song making process, and how they went from joint-living to living out their joints.
Hey fellas. Congrats on the EP RUGRAT$ and your new single ‘rose + sashimi’. How are you guys feeling?
The experience of putting out a body of work is extremely rewarding. To then follow up with a fresh single to keep the momentum flowing feels like a nice bonus, especially making the release the full experience with the music video and new merch.
‘rose + sashimi’ came pretty quick after you guys released this EP. What made you guys want to keep the music coming so quickly?
We had a video in mind and an aesthetic we wanted to portray. We also had a lot of time on our hands to put our energy into this release without live performance. The video provides some sort of performance for people to digest until we can get back on that stage!
Where did the influence of the title of ‘rose + sashimi’ come from?
The title is a line in the first verse of the song. The song tells the story of our experience from making music at the East Avenue house to then getting a taste of industry life and some of the boujee perks that come with it. ‘rosé + sashimi’ seemed to sum up those perks in the simplest way.
RUGRAT$ feels like an EP designed for the live experience. How have you guys adjusted putting out your first body of work, in a climate where it’s hard to tour or play shows?
With no live experience, we decided it was a good idea to create a moment that hopefully rides out until we can get back into live shows. We feel like making the video for ‘rose + sashimi’ was important in creating that feeling.
The title track is one of the first tracks you guys wrote together but had mastered over time. How do you think that song represents the growth of EAST AV3 since your formation?
It shaped the sound of the music we’ve since made, and the future music to come. It shows our growth from experimenting at the East Avenue house to locking down and deciding that this is the path we want to take.
One of my favourites on the project is ‘TURBO’. The production is crazy and you guys kill it. What was the process behind making that track?
It’s our favourite as well! ‘TURBO’ was produced while we were in Sydney experiencing life as “musicians” for the first time. We went for meetings, writing, and managed to fit in some leisure as well. We were in turbo mode, and the song is an expression of that time, which we miss and cherish so much now.
The beats all across your music are super varied. You seem to cover genres like trap, west-coast rap, and almost even EDM at times. What’s the mindset when approaching making an EAST AV3 beat? And who do you consider your influences in that realm?
We’ve all got pretty broad music tastes, so while rap is the center of our music we love experimenting with different sounds and trying different things! It comes down to whatever we’re feeling at the time and the vibe we’re making when we’re together. Something even as simple as the weather can influence where we take it.
There’s also a heavy emphasis on the raps throughout the music. It almost feels like you’re trying to out rap each other in a frenzy-filled friendly competition. What is it about lyricism is it that drives you guys to go so hard?
The beats are usually a good indication of how hard the lyrics will be. A lot of the time we write separately, which makes recording exciting because you don’t know what each other are going to do on the beat. Having two lyricists in the group helps ensure that the verses are as hard as possible. There are also times where it’s more collaborative and we intentionally bounce flows and rhymes schemes off each other, which can be equally as rewarding.
The group’s name comes from the street that you guys lived on. How do you think moving in together helped enhance the music you create?
Our chemistry stems from living on East Avenue, as that is where we made a lot of memories of being youths and experimenting with our sound. We have so much to write about just based on this fact. We are so efficient in the studio now due to this repetition and common creative direction.
Adelaide feels like a super underrated place in the Australian hip-hop scene right now. There are guys like Kirby, Claz, DyspOra, and of course you fellas killing it. What is it about Adelaide that you think makes its hip-hop scene different?
I think there’s a lot of underrated talent coming out of this city right now. Adelaide is such a small city, and it means the scene doesn’t quite have the reach of Sydney or Melbourne. But it just means we need to be extra cohesive and proactive in building and expanding.
Who are some other Adelaide artists we should check out?
We recently met the girls from Teenage Joans. They’re a dynamic duo that contrasts each other super well. Super talented and lovely people. They recently won the Triple J Unearthed High competition that’s growing in recognition, which is a great thing for the Australian music scene in general. We don’t want to just create a scene for hip hop, but all genres of music and artistic expression. You mentioned artists like Claz, Kirby, and DyspOra as well. There are so many artists in Adelaide that are going to blow up.
Where are the go-to spots in Adelaide? Best food on Hindley Street? What bar do you hit on Rundle Street? Give us the scoop!
Get Sliced on Hindley for some yummy pizza, and Roxies Bar for some yummy beers!
Lastly fellas, what’s next for EAST AV3?
We are always working on new music, and still, have the beauty and burden of all the time in the world in our hands. We are also developing new merch which you can check out here, and we are developing our live show for when we are back and ready to turn up once again.
Follow EAST AV3 here for more and check out ‘rosé + sashimi’ below.