Mantronix
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| Mantronix | ||
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| Background information | ||
| Origin |  New York City, NY, USA |
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| Genre(s) | Old school hip hop Electro R&B New jack swing House |
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| Years active | 1984–1991 | |
| Label(s) | Sleeping Bag Records Capitol |
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| Former members | ||
| Kurtis Mantronik (1984-1991) MC Tee (1984-1988) Bryce "Luvah" Wilson (1990-1991) D.J. D (1990) Jade Trini (1991) |
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| Notable instrument(s) | ||
| Synthesizer Two turntables and a microphone Drum machine Vocoder |
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Mantronix was an innovative and influential 1980s old school hip-hop and electro funk music group founded by DJ Kurtis Mantronik (Kurtis el Khaleel), and rapper MC Tee (Touré Embden). Mantronix underwent several genre (and line-up) changes during its 7-year existence (1984–1991), from old school hip hop to electro funk to house music, but the group is primarily remembered for its original, heavily synthesized blend of old school hip-hop and electro funk.
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[edit] History
[edit] Early years – 1984-1988
In 1984, while working as the in-store DJ for Downtown Records in Manhattan, Kurtis Mantronik, an Jamaican-Canadian émigré, met MC Tee, a Haitian-born, Flatbush, Brooklyn-based rapper (and regular record store customer).[1][2] The duo soon made a demo, "Fresh Is The Word," and eventually signed with William Socolov's Sleeping Bag Records.
[edit] Mantronix: The Album
Mantronix's debut single, "Fresh Is The Word," was a club hit in 1985, reaching #16 on Billboard Magazine's Hot Dance Singles Sales chart, and was featured on Mantronix: The Album which was released the same year.
Mantronix's efforts on Mantronix: The Album and its effect on early hip hop and electronic music is perhaps best summed up by music critic Omar Willey's observation in 2000:
| “ | Featuring "Fresh Is the Word" and the new tracks "Bassline" and "Electro Mega-Mix," Mantronix defined the new sound of electro-funk. Mantronik used a polyrhythmic style, similar to West African log drumming, but instead of acoustic drums, the rhythm would be carried by the combination of electronic drums, synthesizer, vocoder and/or synthesized voice over a bass line completely played on the synth. No samples of James Brown here. This was truly electronic music: spare, funky and immensely danceable, an homage and simultaneous extension of old-school hip hop's electronic template that had started with "Planet Rock" in 1982. The feeling of Afrika Bambaataa, Grandmaster Flash, Kraftwerk and Neu all combined in Mantronik's music. It was a neat tie between old-school and new jack, and Mantronix had the field to themselves.[3] | ” |
[edit] Music Madness
Mantronix's second album, Music Madness, was released in 1986. While MC Tee's rhyming style on the album continued in the traditional b-boy fashion of the times, Mantronik's club-oriented production and mixing in Music Madness tended to attract more electronic dance music and electro funk aficionados than hardcore hip-hop fans.[4] During this period, while Mantronix was signed to Sleeping Bag Records, Mantronik was employed by the label in their A&R Department, while also producing other artists and groups, including Just-Ice, T La Rock, KRS-One, Nocera, and Joyce Sims.
[edit] In Full Effect
Mantronix signed with Capitol Records in 1987, in what was one of the first 7-figure deals for a hip-hop group, and released In Full Effect in 1988, which was the first album to be mastered from DAT instead of reel-to-reel tape. In Full Effect continued in and expanded on the hip-hop/electro funk/dance music vein of its predecessor, eventually reaching #18 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, Mantronix's highest showing for an album.[5] In Full Effect marked the last Mantronix album with rapper MC Tee, who left the group to enlist in the United States Air Force.
[edit] Later era - 1989-1991
[edit] This Should Move Ya
Following the departure of MC Tee, rapper Bryce "Luvah" Wilson, and Mantronik's cousin, D.J. D, joined Mantronix for 1990's This Should Move Ya. Mantronik met Wilson, a fellow Sleeping Bag Records label mate, while doing production for Wilson's aborted solo project.[6]
The album spawned two top-10 hits on the British singles chart, "Got To Have Your Love" at #4, and "Take Your Time (featuring vocalist Wondress)" at #10. In the United States, the album reached #61 on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart.[7]
In a 1991 interview, Kurtis Mantronik commented on the commercial success of "Got To Have Your Love":
| “ | When I did "Got To Have Your Love", I did it for a reason. I did it because I wanted to get a song on the radio.[6] | ” |
[edit] The Incredible Sound Machine
Mantronix's final release, with vocalist Jade Trini replacing D.J. D, was The Incredible Sound Machine in 1991.[8] The Incredible Sound Machine, which tended to favor R&B, new jack swing, and dance music over hip hop, was considered both a critical and commercial disappointment.[8] Shortly after a European tour and promotion related to the release of The Incredible Sound Machine, the group disbanded, and Mantronik left the music industry altogether for seven years.[1]
Kurtis Mantronik resurfaced in Europe in the late 1990s, producing house and techno music artists, and remains an active force in pop-oriented electronic music to this day.[1]
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
| Album cover | Album information |
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Mantronix: The Album
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Music Madness
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In Full Effect
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This Should Move Ya
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The Incredible Sound Machine
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[edit] Compilation albums
| Album cover | Album information |
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The Best of Mantronix 1985-1999
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That's My Beat
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Remixed & Rare
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The Ultra Selection
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[edit] Trivia
- "Needle To The Groove" from Mantronix's The Album was sampled by Beck in the single "Where It's At" from the 1996 album, Odelay ("we've got two turntables and a microphone...")
- "Fresh Is The Word" from Mantronix's The Album was sampled by the Beastie Boys in the single "Jimmy James" from the 1992 album, Check Your Head ("for all the Blacks, Puerto Ricans, and the White people too...")
- Grammy-nominated neo soul singer/songwriter Angie Stone co-wrote seven of the eleven tracks that appeared on Mantronix's final album, 1991s The Incredible Sound Machine.
[edit] References
- ^ a b c When Recorded Hip-hop was in its Infancy, One Man was Responsible for Really Pushing the Sonic Envelope. It's Been Far from Plain Sailing Since, But the Mantronix Legacy will Run Forever. cheebadesign.com (original article printed in Hip Hop Connection Magazine) (2002-07). Retrieved on October 17, 2006.
- ^ Chin, Brian (1986). Mantronix Makes Inroads In British Pop - But Black Duo Still Waiting For A U.S. Hit. cheebadesign.com (original article printed in Billboard Magazine). Retrieved on November 16, 2006.
- ^ Willey, Omar. Do You Like...Mantronix?. cheebadesign.com. Retrieved on March 30, 2007.
- ^ Henderson, Alex. All Music Guide Music Madness Review. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on October 18, 2006.
- ^ Wynn, Ron. All Music Guide In Full Effect Review. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on October 18, 2006.
- ^ a b Jones, Phillip. Messin' With Mantronix. cheebadesign.com. Retrieved on March 30, 2007.
- ^ Wynn, Ron. All Music Guide This Should Move Ya Review. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on October 18, 2006.
- ^ a b Henderson, Alex. All Music Guide The Incredible Sound Machine Review. AllMusic.com. Retrieved on October 18, 2006.
[edit] External links
| Mantronix |
| Founding Members |
|---|
| Kurtis Mantronik | MC Tee |
| Former Members |
| Kurtis Mantronik (1984-1991) | MC Tee (1984-1988) | Bryce Luvah (1990-1991) | D.J. D (1990) | Jade Trini (1991) |
| Albums |
| Mantronix: The Album (1985) | Music Madness (1986) | In Full Effect (1988) | This Should Move Ya (1990) | The Incredible Sound Machine (1991) |
| Mantronix related artists |
| Angie Stone | Wondress |
