Easybass ( formerly named Urban Poets )

The URBAN POETS “Phat Sax” and “Soup”. They have since gained new members and reformed themselves into the crew EASYBASS. They then released a crude 4-track tape in 94 which contained a hint of what was to come in the shape of 1995s “Space Program” tape. Much more impressive and proof that 4-track recorded tapes can sound good when mastered.

A trio I admired from afar, Urban Poets, were about to expand into a ground breaking collective called Easy Bass. The crew consisted of IllPickl, JU, a young DJ Leeroy Brown, a baby Sleeping Monk & a well-skilled kid named Simple.

Easy Bass released a tape called ‘Space Programme’ in ’96. Man, it was as fresh as an immigrant just getting off the boat. High quality beats, rhymes and cuts. The whole package. You’d be hard pressed trying to find a copy of it, though. It had a limited press, but damn if you find yourself one… pass me a dub! – Hau

R.I.P. IllPikle
R.I.P. Apex
– Monk?

Easy Bass boasted their roots in Urban Poets and grew to some degree around the Lounge Room with various members meeting there. Why do people talk about Easy Bass so much? Well, they were known for being devastating freestylers. They offered a different style in sound and content to a lot of what was happening, being a bit more mellow and pensive. They released a handful of tracks on tapes such as “Space Program” (1995). It was just fun hip hop.

It seems amazing to think by today’s standards that Easy Bass sold several hundred cassettes through a handful of outlets in the mid-90s. They have been dubbed and sent to friends the nation over, much in the same way that Koolism’s first few cassettes – “Juss a Brown Fella” and “Bedroom Shit” – were. Everybody dubbed tapes for each other because more often than not the tapes would sell out due both to demand and small print runs. Groups like Fathom, Trey with DJ Bonez, Def Wish Cast and 046 released cassettes that were snapped up. Almost everybody owned a dual-tape stereo instead of today’s CD burners, computers and MP3 players. Bring back tape culture. - Mark Pollard