Morganics: Back To Bass-ics.

Morganics plays Ric’s Café on Thursday and the Ritz Ballroom (463 Adelaide St City) on Saturday

Ex Metabass and Breath member Morganics has been re-inventing himself since the groups parting of ways, and is coming to Brisbane this week to give us all a taste of his new Invisible Forces album.

So why did Metabass & Breath finish?

“Basically Baba decided to stay in New York (he's from there) after our second US tour in 98 and that put a different spin on things. Then when we got back to Sydney I didn't feel as if the local industry was giving us enough support, we couldn't afford to go back to the states where we always got our best reaction, so I decided to finish on a good note rather than just milking it out because we could. After I quit, Rory our drummer quit, there was only one of the original members left, Elf Tranzporter, they changed the name to MetaBass and after a few months they decided it was best to let it go and move onto other projects.”

How do you feel Metabass contributed to the growing Oz hip-hop scene?

“Well we obviously came after people like Brethren and Def Wish Cast in the Sydney scene but I think we brought another type of energy. Back then most hip-hop gigs were only attended by guys in tracksuits and there weren't many women in the crowd. I remember Baba had to step off stage and break up a fight during one of our shows in Brisbane. MetaBass got to the states too and helped with the awareness of the Australian scene. We did The Big Day Out and things like that, we had a live band, we performed to a lot of people who hadn't seen local Hip Hop before.”

You've spent quite some time recently working with aboriginal communities. What have you learnt, and how has it changed your attitude to music?

“I've learnt heaps and it's been a fun, challenging and profound education as a white fella in Australia. After working so much in the music industry with MetaBass, just the business side of music it's been great to get out to young people all around Australia, to spend time out of Sydney, to listen and see what's going on around the place. I get really inspired by places like the Northern Territory and there are so many awesome bands up there that should get more attention like the Letterstick band and stuff, some great reggae stuff.”

“Doing community work is a great way of reminding yourself of why you got into music in the first place, it keeps your feet on the ground, it's a good counter balance to all the boring work that an independent artist has to do of promoting themselves all the time. It's good that Triple J are playing that track Down River that I did with those young fellas in Wilcannia, I'll be selling that CD along with my solo vinyl and CD at the gig too.”