BRICTOP

Artist Information

Biography

Unique, versatile, passionate, raw . . . just a few words that describe this phenomenal group. Brictop is spoken word, acoustic guitar, and rock inspired vocals infused with a touch of hip-hop. A sound so unique that it demands to be heard, and once heard, it cannot be ignored. Brictop has created something that stands alone, and the world of music will have to create another genre to accommodate their sound, because nothing like it exists. You cant put them into a box. Brictop brings together two different countries, two different races, two different cultures. They are the future of music, and their unique sound provides something for everyone. Straight from New York FDs edgy, aggressive, spoken word style collides with Spud and Innys laid back New Zealand style and explodes creating something unexpected. This is thinking mans music. You wont find gimmicks . . . you will find truth and passion. With songs like If I Wuz God, an anti-war ballad to Lets Talk a song that deals with the impersonal age that we live in today, Brictop hits you from all directions with a mind-blowing attack on all of your senses. We Aint The Same is an album that must be heard from a group that demands your attention. Three individuals, each with their own unique sound, vision, ideologies, and philosophies of life, coming together from different parts of the world using the universal language of music to create something that isnt easily described. It must be heard and experienced.

Instrumentation

FD: Spoken word
Spud Talhoa: Lead vocals
Innys: Guitars

Discography

No Problems Only Solutions

Official Website

http://www.myspace.com/brictop3

Audio

Video

Photo Gallery

Press

• Black and White and Red Down [+ Show ]
  

  Black and White and Red Down Under Pittsburgh brings blacks and whites together for music – even i...Black and White and Red Down Under
  Pittsburgh brings blacks and whites together for music – even if the whites are from New Zealand.
  
  
  Spud and Inny first noticed FD because he was the only black guy playing Pittsburgh rugby. FD noticed Spud and Inny because they were the only guys wearing black-and-red-striped jumpsuits.
  
  “It was like being back in New York,” says FD, who lives in Hazelwood but was born in Brooklyn. “They were, like, in hip-hop outfits, red and black – like jumpers, almost like pajamas.”
  
  Three years ago, FD took me around the segregated neighborhoods of Pittsburgh’s East End. He talked about them as if they were a foreign country, though I was born in a mostly white neighborhood next door. He wanted to show me the black man’s city. FD stood for Frederick Douglass in 2001, never mind his real name. Back then, he was all about the “conditions,” specifically the conditions of slavery, reflected in modern black life. “The condition of us, it’s almost beyond repair,” he said as we rode through the Hill and elsewhere. “We are the children of slaves. … I can’t believe we are still here. It almost chokes me up every time I think about it. Ninety-five percent of my people are born in poverty; 90 percent die in poverty. In this city you’re not going to find one middle-class black neighborhood. Hope is gone.
  
  “The only outlet people have is hip hop,” he said. “It’s the true American art form.”
  
  For all the talk of race relations, I know FD felt misunderstood by me in the end. What I did not know was that he had already hooked up with Spud and Inny to make a hip-hop-hybrid album that blends players from different worlds.
  
  
  
  FD had followed his son to a youth program for the Pittsburgh Harlequins Football Club. “I never knew much about rugby,” he says. “Not only was I intrigued, I said I can do this.” Then he followed them up to Boston for a tournament in April 2001, when he was playing in the Harlequins’ equivalent of junior varsity.
  
  
  
  Spud and Inny were – better. They’re native New Zealanders who have been playing rugby since they were kids; Spud still plays with the club’s A team. But that isn’t what made FD notice.
  
  Those red-and-black-striped suits were a promotional giveaway for a New Zealand concoction called DB Draft. “If you bought a case of beer, they’d give you a suit for free,” says Spud. How good was the beer? “The suit was well worth it.”
  
  The pair wore the suits on the embankments at Canterbury Crusaders stadium, the cheap seats where they cheered for their hometown squad. They’re the Kiwi equivalent of the Jerome Bettis bus-through-the-head hat, but with a purpose: to protect your nice clothes from the other fans, the “people pissing in front of you,” says Spud. “It gets a little disgusting but it’s a good time.”
  
  
  
  The good time for FD, Spud and Inny continued on the bus ride back from the tournament. They both discovered the other had a homegrown CD of music to trade. By Christmas they had made their first of five CDs as Brictop. They’re playing the Hard Rock Café at Station Square on Nov. 30.
  
  In Brictop, FD (Fuck Dat on the group’s first CD, now Frederico Demolish) is still talking – and flowing – about the racial divide. “I’m not talking about going to the club, dancing, shaking your ass … Cristal,” he says. “I’m a black man in America, going through the struggle. If you spend a lot of time in the struggle, it’s a bitter life.”
  
  Spud says he understands that: “His movement is pushing his people. We’ll all have to help each other. He showed me what he wants to do, the wrongs here and how the situation works. My movement? Just to live and enjoy your life. Every day can be your last.”
  
  There you go – the difference between black and white in America, especially if the white guys are a couple of New Zealanders.
  
  Brictop’s albums have the requisite songs full of boasts and bullets, but there are no less than two celebrations of FD’s wife on their first album. Inny’s Neil-Youngish acoustic guitar, Spud’s almost didgeridoo-drone, FD’s mostly soft-spoken rhymes – they are the conversation FD and I weren’t able to have.
  
  “Over here you don’t see a lot of black guys and white guys together doing music,” says Spud. “Which is a shame. The country has a long way to come.”
  
  That, I think, we know.
  
  Writer: MARTY LEVINE

• The World Is My Stage [+ Show ]
  

  BRICTOP With a sound that mixes live acoustic musicians with hip-hop/rap elements, Brictop is t...BRICTOP
  
  With a sound that mixes live acoustic
  musicians with hip-hop/rap elements,
  Brictop is the latest in a revolution of integrating
  musical styles. Vocalist F.D.’s
  quick and aggressive rhymes determine
  the mood of The World Is My Stage, one
  that lashes out against injustice and inequality
  with such lyrics as “No disrespect /
  but I changed my name just to throw
  back / in the faces of masters who owned
  slaves,” found on track four, “Man 2 Man.”
  The entire album is a melodic mixture of
  acoustic guitars, programmed drums, tenacious
  raps and rock vocals comparable
  to Everlast. Singer Spud Taihoa holds
  back a bit on most of the songs, allowing
  F.D. to work the mic with force. With sixteen
  songs, the disc easily passes an
  hour in length, though the songs go
  quickly so you have to keep up. Two
  standout tracks are “Feel My Soul 2 Nite”
  and “Boomerang.” Overall, The World Is
  My Stage is a solid performance.

• Notes of Love [+ Show ]
  

  I like the mood of this song and the perfomance... puts me in the frame of mind to relate it to Cold...I like the mood of this song and the perfomance... puts me in the frame of mind to relate it to Coldplay... the vocalist is refreshing and daring... the words are deep lots to think about while this picture is painted... the arrangement is done so well that it leaves me wanting to hear more... the production is done very well... the originality of this song is good... the players are very accomidating and complementary to the singer and the song... like the guitar and the melody to this song is very catchy to me... timing is a little long but it seems like before you know it its over... you have got a good song here and I will add this to my favs...
  - skinrabbitts from New Martinsville, West Virginia on 17Oct2006

• Soulful Groove [+ Show ]
  

  The first thing that becomes obvious is that the vocalist has a great texture to his voice. This fit...The first thing that becomes obvious is that the vocalist has a great texture to his voice. This fits the groove of the song quite well.
  
  The 'wah' effect on the guitar is very interesting. I think the backing 'hey ho's' at 1:48 were a good decision. The distorted guitar and the bass licks on the choruses are pretty interesting although I would have liked something a little more elaborate from the bass.
  
  Overall, this is a very moody and groovy track that reminded me of 'The The' it it's soulful elements and quasi-spoken word. There's not much you can improve with this song and I think that it will come down to people either loving it or hating it.
  - Freecloud from Ottawa, Canada on 18Nov2006

• Lets Talk [+ Show ]
  

  Let's talk about your tune. The hi-hat intro sounded like I was right in the room with the kit. The ...Let's talk about your tune. The hi-hat intro sounded like I was right in the room with the kit. The guitars simplicity was something that weaved into my subconscious without me recognizing it's sinister plan. The repetitive chorus could have been extremely annoying but you pulled it off with your relaxed vocals coaxing the listener to accept your invitation into the music. Your verses were well accented with the dueling vocals. The lyrics are well intentioned and showed more depth than many of the songs in this genre. I was very close to bailing on this review because of my reluctance to comment on what I consider RAP (my review was for an Alternative Rock pair). Although this song could fit nicely into a number of different distribution channels, I 'm feeling like it's a great soundtrack fit. Perhaps a Snowboard Film? Fix the bad edit at 3:45
  - TheMaladies from Hailey, Idaho on 26Nov2006
  

Setlist

We have over two hours of orginal songs
We play Acoustic, Rock and Hip Hop shows
we bring in all types of people!

Basic Requirements

Calendar