There may be a day when the music genre becomes a device of the past. Used as a marketing tool, retailers, critics and musicians themselves find it harder to categorize artists and easier to mix them up. The Hood Internet, on the other hand, have gone their own way, mashing up some of the most unlikely singles into something new.
Two friends originally from Chicago, Aaron Brink and Steve Reidell were just a couple of guys experimenting with juxtaposing the most different of songs. Upon crafting their own tunes out of polar opposites like Lil’ Kim and MGMT or Snoop Dogg and Architecture in Helsinki, neither expected they’d be playing shows across the country in cities like Chicago and L.A., let alone at some major music festivals like the Monolith Music Festival in Morrison, Colo.
The Hood work their magic by computer and usually communicate ideas back and forth to each other through e-mail since Brink works in Michigan (as a karate instructor) and Reidell lives in Chicago working in graphic design. This week, buzz got a chance to talk to the duo about legal issues, their time at Pygmalion and Okkervil River.
buzz: So how is a mash-up made?
Aaron: We just use our computers. It’s pretty easy; they’re portable so we can take them anywhere. Usually what we do is we’ll find an a cappella version of a song, the vocal track, and we’ll cut out parts of another song and take the instrumental part and put them together.
buzz: Do you have to have permission to use artists’ songs, and have you ever had any problems when you use songs?
Aaron: We don’t ask for permission; I think we would run into problems if we were selling the songs. In reality, on the Internet, there’s so much stuff posted I think [we’re] the least of their problems.
buzz: How did you guys like Pygmalion, and how will this show be different?
Aaron: We listened to the band before us, Black Mountain, and we liked them a lot.
Steve: The last [time] we played was actually pretty awesome. People were crowd surfing, and it was a total blast. [This time] we have so much to draw from [that] our set list is always changing — we’ll definitely have some different stuff than the last time … and some tunes to dance to.
buzz: Who are some of you favorite artists right now, personal favorites or to work with?
Aaron: Okkervil River
Steve: I got the new Kanye West record, and I wasn’t sure about it at first, but I’m a huge fan now. I’m really enjoying that a lot. I really like the Flying Lotus record and the self-titled record by a band called The Women.
Visit http://www.thehoodinternet.com to download their work for free, then see them live at Canopy on Saturday, and leave them suggestions on great places to eat here in the CU after the show (Dos Reales?).
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