I haven’t gotten my copy yet of the new Atmosphere album,
When Life Gives You Lemons, You
Paint That Shit Gold.
The new album sounds like the noise of spreading frosting with a
knife and chewing on a rubber band.
Well, that sounds awful.
And there you have it. I can’t imagine you being surprised.
So what do you write with—pen and notebook, a laptop,
what?
About three years ago, when I was making You Can’t Imagine [How Much Fun We’re Having], was the first time I was
integrating my laptop into my writing. As stupid as this might sound, I
listened to the record again recently and realized all the stuff I
wrote on the laptop sounded more concise—there was more focus to
the songs. So I got rid of the notebook. It’s affected my writing; it’s
more formal, and I kind of like the results. There’s only two dudes
that I’ve ever discussed that with. I wonder why that shit doesn’t get
talked about—Aesop Rock don’t talk about how he writes. One of
[the dudes] is P.O.S.; the other dude is Blueprint. I tease him because
he writes on his Sidekick. This dude really tours a lot, so sitting in
his van, the Sidekick is really convenient; it’s like having a notebook
in your pocket. It’s practical.
Would you be on any social-networking websites if you
weren’t using them to actively promote your music?
Absolutely not. In fact, I’m kind of scared of the whole idea. Once
in a while some dude will say something outrageous enough that I’ll
click on [his profile], and there’ll be 15 different photo albums with
100 photos each. And he’s not even rapping! It’s where we’re going to,
where people are commodifying themselves without even having something
to commodify.
You co-own Rhymesayers Entertainment. What is the hardest
part about running a record label?
You’re asking me? That shit’s easy for me. I just rap. I don’t do
shit. If you were to ask [RSE’s other owners] how much time I spend in
the office, they’d laugh at you. I figured out early on that marketing
was not my strong suit. For the good of our movement, my energy is
better spent on creative shit rather than on phones or laptops staring
at Excel spreadsheets. If I’m spending time doing that, it’s not as
good for Rhymesayers as if I just keep the music flowing. When I stop
rapping, I have strengths to offer, but right now it would be
mismanagement of time if I went at it like that. Everybody in the
office is in full agreeance with me—all I do when I’m there is
crack stupid jokes.
Why should we care about the new Atmosphere album? What
makes it better than, say, Vampire Weekend?
I highly doubt it’s better than the new Vampire Weekend. My goal is
to continue not to disappoint the people who have offered us support in
the past. I don’t care if you like me better than Gnarls Barkley or
Vampire Weekend; I’m trying to ensure that I make that family stay
together for as long as I can. I’m 36 this year; I’m over the whole
concept of blowing up and being a buzz band. Things are moving good and
I’d like to focus on how to maintain that. It’s not what the
distribution company wants to hear, but that’s how I entered my
relationship with them. Personally, I don’t care about making a record
everybody gives five stars, or all the bloggers say is great, or isn’t
great. All I care about is the core audience is challenged, as well as
not disappointing them.
Atmosphere is you rapping and Ant producing. What is Ant’s
favorite story about Slug?
I’d think that when I got alopecia and all my hair fell out, Ant was
proud of the fact that I was like, “So what? It’s like having a hernia,
still gotta move.” I think he thought my vanity was going to get the
best of me and I was going to go hide in my house for a few months.
That’s kind of a corny answer, but it’s the only one I could think of
off the top of [speaking very deliberately] my dome piece.
You’re playing with a live band now, right?
Half and half. I don’t have a drummer or bass player anymore. Ant
will be spinning drum tracks and I’ve got a vocalist, a keyboardist,
and a guitar player. We muted some of the samples to give them some
chances to play. I saw Mike Patton do it with Peeping Tom, and it was
pretty fresh, but I didn’t want to do it exactly how he did it.
What is the difference between Slug and Sean
Daley?
Nowadays there’s no more difference. In the past, Slug was more
confident and Sean was more reclusive. Slug was the one who showed up
at [Minneapolis bar] the CC Club and flirted with you, and Sean would
wake up and say, “I can’t believe you like me.” But Slug toned down and
Sean grew up and I see what happened: I used Sean as common sense to
keep Slug in the pocket because he’s too fucking long. He’s the same
dude; I’ve got to quit manipulating them to get where I’m going.
They’re both gonna run for mayor eventually. 
Atmosphere play Tues May 13, Showbox Sodo, 8 pm, $20, all ages.
With Abstract Rude and DJ Rare Groove.