In 2005 the hip-hop/roots collective known as Basscamp was formed with the sole intent of creating phat danceable beats that still had the feel of rootsier styles – conscious hip-hop and roots music.

Enlisting the help of renowned MCs KP and Switch, as well as the soulful flavour of Matiu Te Huki and many other guest vocalists, producer Paul Bimler (aka Confucius) created an album in 2005 entitled Southern Face which captured this vibe with a New Zealand flavour, complete with Afro’d High Country farmer pitching his tent by a highland lake. The songs are a mix of New Zealand underground hip-hop, heavyweight dub, guitar-strumming roots and Pacific soul.

Also guesting on that album was the well-known and talented DJ Stickyfingaz, one of NZs premier turntablists. Not too long after Southern Face was released, Sticky took over DJing duties in the band (as well as stepping into a co-production role) allowing Paul to take on guitar duties, and thus a unique live combination was born; DJ’d beats, live guitar and percussion (courtesy of Kurt ‘Partido’ Dyer), and three (or more) MCs holding it down onstage.

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AFTER THE RAIN is Basscamp..s new album for 2009 (hitting the stores on 22^nd September), reflects this more – the live show. Where Southern Face was largely an album developed in the studio, the tracks on After The Rain have grown out of live jamming and have been honed to groove perfection based on what goes down best in the dancehall.

Next to the fabulous voice of Disco Diva Claudja Barry on 'Weekends' sampled from her 1978 track 'Give It Up', After The Rain brings in the talents of MCs JDubs and Aeries, as well as several other talented singers from across New Zealand. As on the first album, Californian born NZ reggae artist David Levi makes an appearance on the heavy dub track “What Belong to Caesar”, upping the albums reggae quotient.

The balance of styles is still the same – you could say that hip-hop is the dominant flavour, although the brand of hip-hop on offer here leans more toward the shell-toed, block party era of of the genre than to the gangsta styles prevalent at the moment.

A healthy dose of reggae balances out this style - several members of the band are involved in some sort of reggae or dub side project , and this is reflected not only in the reggae tracks on offer here, but also in the hip-hop tracks, which are solidly rooted in a heavy bass groove.

"BASSCAMP IN YA BASS AMP ..."