Souls Of Mischief Announce One-Off New Zealand Show

Seminal hip hop group Souls of Mischief have announced one New Zealand show off the back of an Australian tour in November. The Oakland act has been a staple of many record collections since they dropped influential album 93 'til Infinity (in 1993, obviously). The group's most recent effort, There Is Only Now, saw them return to their sonic roots and build up an album with a very 90s vibe tracked using all live instruments instead of samples. Here's the details for their upcoming Auckland show...

Souls of Mischief
Wednesday 5th November, Kings Arms Tavern, Auckland

Here's the title track from latest album There Is Only Now featuring Snoop Dog...

PRESS RELEASE:

Legendary hip-hop group Souls of Mischief are finally hitting New Zealand! We couldn’t let them reach Australia and not bring them over to Auckland.

ONE NZ SHOW ONLY – AUCKLAND
5 November
King's Arms

Local support to be announced soon!

Limited $29 (+bf) earlybirds and $39 (+bf) GA tickets available from www.iticket.co.nz from 9am Monday 6 October

Starting with their landmark debut ’93 ‘til Infinity, Oakland’s Souls of Mischief has blazed the trail for hip hop’s evolution. Members Tajai, A-Plus, Phesto, and Opio have left their mark sonically, lyrically, and stylistically on Kanye West, Just Blaze, Big Sean, Big K.R.I.T., P. Diddy, Vampire Weekend, John Mayer, and many more who have cited them as cultural icons and influencers.

They stand with the hip hop greats... working, touring and performing alongside legends. The new album: “There Is Only Now” sees the Souls of Mischief crew members trading bars with a cast of hip-hop and soul luminaries. Narrated by A Tribe Called Quest member Ali Shaheed Muhammed–as DJ for fictional local Oakland radio station K-NOW–the album’s story unfolds under his all-seeing eye. Busta Rhymes makes an appearance as the story’s villain, Womack, on “Womack’s Lament,” while William Hart of the legendary vocal soul group, The Delfonics, lends his buttery falsetto to the contemplative “Another Side of You.” Snoop Dogg drops knowledge on the situation between Stoney and Womack with an ice cold verse on the title track “There Is Only Now,” and Scarub from Living Legends goes in on “Stone Cold.”

In There is Only Now, Souls of Mischief and Adrian Younge have created a hip-hop album like no other. Recorded solely on 2″ analogue tape, using only acoustic live instrumentation played mostly by Adrian himself, and recorded together as a group in one room, the project boasts incredible dedication, discipline, and skill sets that few others in the modern day can match. Adrian employed no computers, no drum sampling, and everything was recorded in one take. The result of a special moment for all involved, There Is Only Now proves that after two decades in the rap game hip-hop’s Fab Four remains committed to the expansion of their legacy as hip-hop innovators and pioneers.

Souls is also credited as having pioneered the independent label movement when they started Hieroglyphic Imperium Records in 1997 following their departure with JIVE Records, creating the infrastructure blueprint for other successful independent hip-hop labels. Co-founders of the Hiero label also include Emcees Del Tha Funky Homosapien, Casual, Pep Love, and producer Domino. Souls’ also forged hip-hop’s relationship with the skate, surf, and snowboard communities after iconic skate brands included their music in their VHS videotapes in the mid-90’s. The group’s creative output and legacy as a whole continues to thrive, and they show no sign of stopping. In 2013, Souls celebrated the 20 year anniversary of ’93 til Infinity, with a documentary film, a 50-city “Still Infinity Tour,” and released a joint 20th anniversary limited edition tee shirt capsule collection with Ecko Unlimited.