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Molek FMInterview: Litterall – LapSap Goes Live
The LapSap boys are up to no good again and this time they’ve unleashed Litterall. This new project features Blink (aka 5ft), XU (aka Mr. Puah) and 3 other artists, with Sebastian Jurkowski on lighting, Fauzi “Efozy” Yusoff on visuals and Edwin Raj churning up the psychedelic ideas to make Literall the next best thing in Malaysia. They make their debut at this month’s Heineken Green Room with The Rapture at KL Live and we can’t wait to see what happens. We stole a moment with busy boys 5ft and Mr. Puah to find out how they’ve been doing.
Image Euseng Seto
Congrats on the launch of wearelapsap.com! How’s the response so far and what else can we expect?
The response has been great! Especially with spam! (Laughs.) I think it’s so much fresher now. Our Facebook group did us good, but it has its limitations. With the website, we can now post our favourite tracks, videos, random pictures of gigs and tours with a lot more ease and focus. We are currently developing materials to feature on the blog-it’ll not only be about us but also the regional and local scene. With our friends in Singapore, Jakarta, Taipei, Bangkok and even Tokyo, I think we’ll have some interesting posts. DJ charts and interviews will be a big part of the site as well as featuring one international DJ and one regional DJ each month.
So why the name Litterall?
It is literally a playoff from the word “literal”. It is what it is: spreading more rubbish to the people here, there and everywhere. The word actually came about as we were thinking of the concepts behind the visuals-wanting to literally create what we feel about a song to become imagery. For example, if ‘Sweet Dreams’ were the track, we would literally transform what we envisioned a sweet dream would be into images, fonts and colours. The whole concept has kinda shifted already now, but the name has stuck.
So did 2manydjs’ set at the last Heineken Green Room influence you to create this new project?
We already knew what 2manydjs were doing before Heineken Green Room, to be honest. They have always been role models to us to a certain extent, so watching them live definitely inspired us. This has been an ongoing project for a while. It was the difficulty of getting a great team together that held the process back. We’d like to thank Heineken Green Room for creating this platform for us and other acts to achieve what we all have in our heads.
So what can we expect from LapSap version 2?
I wouldn’t say it’s a LapSap 2, but a whole new approach with visuals in sync with the music and Sebastian Jurkowski playing with lights live. It’s more of a show than a DJ set per se, hence the reason we created a new name and identity. The music, I would say, has about 40% of content we don’t usually play at our club nights. I think people want a certain sound when they come to the club and party with us so at times when we go a little deeper or darker, they tend to feel uneasy. With the visual aids from the show, we can now explore this territory. We hope people will just come with an open mind and check the show out.
Who’s in charge of the visuals?
Fauzi Yusoff of Efozy (www.efozy.com) is the visual engineer for the whole show. We met him while he was VJing for us at a show at Zouk in January 2009 and we kept in contact through Facebook. He was one of the few in our heads that had the skills and the vibe to the music we play, and that, we felt, was key. Lots of designers out there can execute but to connect with the music as well, we’re not so sure. Film director Edwin Raj has also been helping out with the art direction as well.
How do you stay fresh musically?
Websites, blogs, Beatport, charts, friends from around the world and JUICE! Actually, what’s important is the gut feeling more than anything. If the song sounds good to you, play it and see if it works or not. If it doesn’t work the 1st time, it might work on the 2nd. It just all boils down to when you play it, really.
Blink, you have LapSap, Litterall and The G&B Show in your pocket. Do you prefer working in a duo?
Don’t forget I have AdBangers with Didjital aka Mr Nasty as well! This duo thing has been working well for me. Not that I don’t like DJing myself, but being someone who likes a wide spectrum of dance music and having different sidekicks, I am able to share to different audiences what I like as a DJ. I still perform as Blink on nights like House This!?, Save The Last Dance and event series like Freedom and Recharge, and so on…
XU, how different is it from being in Twilight Actiongirl and in LapSap/Litterall?
For me, TAG is more of a 2nd room vibe as the music goes well with the space. In LapSap, I get the opportunity to play festivals and places with a bigger sound system. That’s the main difference. As for music, I try my best to play as many different tunes as I can for both nights.
When LapSap was 1st introduced at Palate Palette, did you envision what you’d be doing now?
Not a single bit! We did it purely just for the fun of pushing music we like. Back then it was distorted, dirty and very noisy music. We just had all our friends that we thought would be interested in the music to come party with us. It was a very simple night out.
What do you most remember about that party?
Wow! Which ones? There were too many amazing moments. All the anniversaries were crazy! The TAG vs LapSap one was super special; that night summed up what epic is really all about. Ribut was stage-diving in Palate Palette-imagine that! I think there’s a video floating around the web if you dig deep. The picture of me kissing XU on the Daft Punk-looking helmet is classic and the infamous crew of Ethan (illKiDD), Aaron, Ming and gang dressing up was always a highlight at the parties.
Was it your idea to dress our Editor In Chief Muna Noor and Kulturpopup’s Matt Armitage in chipmunk costumes? Wait, what were they again?
Blink (Laughs) That was the most surprising thing ever! I asked XU if he had hired them and he said, “Don’t lie, you did right?” We went over to Palate Palette owner Su-Ann and asked if she did and she said no too! They just rocked the party and danced for a few hours without anyone knowing who they were. It was like a super “Wahhh!” when they were revealed. “It’s Muna and Matt mannnnnn…” Those were the exact words from my mouth!
What have been your most embarrassing moments as a DJ?
B It was the Fly FM anniversary last year at Central Park, 1 Utama. It damn well looked like a stage act, but it sure wasn’t. I ran to the stage halfway through the set and it was wet. *FFFFLLLLLUPPP* I slipped and luckily Phat Fabes was right in front of me, so I held on to his pants like he was the anchorman! I grabbed the mic straight after, hyped the song and went back on! Boomz! There were about 10,000 people there. If I had fallen, the stage was 12 feet above ground.
XU I don’t have any embarrassing moments I can think of, but one bad moment was when the cops came up to the console and told me to stop the music, and I just ignored them. “POLIS!!!!!!!!!” was the next shout.
And what has been your best gig?
As LapSap, I think we enjoy every gig of ours but the most memorable one was at Bukit Kiara for the UOX Play Finale. Click here to check out the video.
What do you envy of each other?
B Since we’re super-foodies, I’m jealous of the fact that XU doesn’t need to control his intake of intestines, roe and all that as he doesn’t have high cholesterol. Hmph!
X I have been waiting for many years of my life and I still haven’t gotten any facial hair. Totally not fair!
Do you 2 argue?
Every 3 hours of each day we argue; that makes it into our dreams and nightmares too. That’s how much love we have for each other.
How do you work together when you have a show? Do you discuss tracks to play beforehand or is there a secret code when you play?
We never ever plan our DJ sets. Entertaining the crowd wherever we go is our main priority, so the sets would differ. We also have this chemistry and this is an actual fact. Lots of times when I have an idea of what to play next and I tell him or vice versa, he’s already placed that exact song in the player. Freaky LapSap truth.
Who are the DJs in KL we should look out for?
HypeEmBeats and Jee Hoe who runs House This!? nights are fresh talents KL should look out for. And there’s the younger generation electro guys who have been doing good like Foulworks, We Are Mutants and Mixing In Action.
Can we expect more apparel from LapSap?
We have slowed down on our apparel at this point as our music production, website and Litterall have been taking a lot of our time. But our main focus for the t-shirt line will be creating the Mr. LapSap series, where there will be new characters every time. There will definitely be another one or 2 designs this year. Keep a lookout on wearelapsap.com for more updates on the merchandise.
Tell the readers what they can expect from Litterall at Heineken Green Room…
They should expect rubbish as smelly as their dirty neighbours.
Get ready to tear the roof off on Saturday, 31 July 2010 for Heineken Green Room at KL Live featuring The Rapture, DIM, Thecobrasnake, Tenderfist and AraByrd. Log on to www.greenroom.com.my for more details. Don’t forget to say hi to Blink and XU at www.wearelapsap.com too!