De Tropix - The Skyward EP (art)
Yesterday LargeUp premiered the newest release from De Tropix--one of my personal favorite groups, ever. The Skyward EP is something of a comeback project for the group, who first made a splash about 5 years ago, partly off the hype Tropix vocalist and musical dynamo Cherry B had generated as M.I.A.'s dancer/choreographer/backup singer/muse--a major influence, in fact, on what became Maya Arulpragasam's unique sound. But after a series of brilliant one-offs created with MC and producer Damon "Instinct" Bowen, De Tropix went quiet. In an exclusive interview published today, LargeUp editor Jesse Serwer gets the story of the duo's breakup--and the make-up which resulted in the more sophisticated sound of The Skyward EP. Get a taste below, then hit the links to stream the new EP and read the full interview.
LargeUp: You took a several years’ hiatus from this project-how come? What were some of the things you were doing in the meantime?Damon Bowen: We never intended to have such a long break, but there was a lot going on. I became a dad, Cherry was building her house in the Caribbean and touring with M.I.A. Me and Cherry didn’t speak for over a year and, at one point, I was ready to find a replacement or scrap the project altogether, but after a long talk and an airing of views, we managed to stay friends and get back to the music. In fact, I think we’re stronger now than we ever have been. n that two years, Cherry was doing some shows with M.I.A and even managed to record the hook for her single “XXXO” and “Teqkilla,” which was a great look for her. I started a record label, A2B Records, with a business partner, putting out music we liked and thought people needed to be aware of. I also had a single out called “Lingerie” [and recorded] with Alabama3 frontman Larry Love on a project which will hopefully be coming out soon, started working on some development projects, the first being a female vocalist and songwriter called Jodie Deanna. I’ve also put out a few underground African house mixtapes. I’m loving the vibe of that stuff right now.
