Pale Soul /Headlock Muzak

I recently had the opportunity to speak with Pale Soul of Oldominion regarding his new album, “No One Gets Out Alive.” He has been gracious enough to provide this massive interview, as well as making 2 tracks from his new album available for FREE download here… “Blade Runner” and “Hand That Feeds Ya” (feat. Onry Ozzborn). Please enjoy the interview, and download the tracks (download link is at the bottom of the interview)

Thank you,

Wolfe of VFR

1. You just released your 2nd album “No One Gets Out Alive.” Congrats! I really like it. It’s definitely a different vibe than “Fear Is The Mind Killer.” How would you say you have progressed as an artist since FITMK’s release back in 2003?

"Thank you, yeah the new record is a bit off the beaten path of FITMK. I suppose the best way to explain it would be, FITMK was my first solo release, and as a co-founder of Oldominion, I focused on emceeing, lyrics and cadence as well as producing the album. I produced every track of FITMK so it was a delicate balancing act to pull of both of those aspects without one being weaker than the other. As for the new record, No One Gets Out Alive, it's been 6 years since the last release and I have grown a lot musically in that time. With this record I attempted to showcase my production skills more than anything. I still tried to keep the lyrical edge and savvy but really put most of my energy into the music side of things. I also stepped out the box and took a big risk vocally on NOGOA by exploring more melodic riffs and hooks. I think the overall outcome of the record was a success although I believe the hard core FITMK fans may wish there were more heavy tracks on it. Every song on NOGOA is from my heart and the concepts are real true to life scenarios from my life experience, word up!

2. Speaking of 2003… You’ve been seemingly incommunicado for the last 6 years. What have you been up to? I thought I read something about Hawaii somewhere…

" I moved around a lot over the last 6 years. I went out to Austin TX in 2003, right before FITMK dropped, and ended up living there for a couple years. I got a gig playing keys and MPC in a hip hop/blues/r&b band with Austin Legend Dwaine D-Madness, and Michael Cesar. We played every Sunday at a joint called Ludwigs on 4th & Colorado. I learned so much about playing live music and my skills as a keyboardist were improving due to playing every week with guys that rocked their instruments like it was breathing. It was a trip for real. I eventually moved back to the North West and ended up MIA for a couple years helping out my Family and kinda left music for a spell. I finally moved back to Portland in 2007 and by then had a few songs I was playing with concept wise but didn't have any equipment anymore. I lost all my gear at one point due to bad personal management and getting Jacked by my "So called" Manager. I started working in my boys studios and eventually made enough money to start building a new studio. When I finally had what I needed for producing and recording again, I hit the ground running and immediately began working on NOGOA. What you read about Hawaii was a tour we just did this summer in June. We hit Oahu and Maui. We linked up with DJ Bone at the U of H and did a radio show and played at a joint called "The Loft" in China Town. Out in Maui we played The SheepDawg Festival sharing the stage with Stevie Culture, Onry Ozzborn, Lukas Nelson, Ukla the Moc and so many talented artist from all over the world. It was amazing and a once in a lifetime experience.

3. The last track of your new album (“Off The Deep End”) has more of a jazz/blues feel to it. I think this just goes to show your diversity as an artist. Have you considered doing any more jazzy/blues related material? I’m sure this track is reminiscent of your time in Austin with Dwayne D-Madness & Michael Cesar.

" Off the deep end" was a song I made right after I moved back to Portland in 2007. I played all of the music in the song live except for the drum line, that was programmed. It was definitely me pushing my own envelope musically and I made the vocals distorted and spacey because I'm not really a true singer. As a producer, sometimes you don't have access to vocalists at the time you're making a piece of music you really wanna finish, so, if I think I can pull it off, I'll just try and sing it myself. Sometimes it comes out dope, sometimes I just have to wait until I get a vocalist in the studio. Luckily for "Off the deep end" I was able to manage by myself and create something abstract and interesting to listen to. Probably wont make a whole lot of those type of song for ME per-say, but I'm always down to create that blues type feeling music any day.

4. Speaking of Austin, TX, I know Smoke lived there for a while as well. Did you two cross paths while you were down there? Also, I know that’s where vocalist Yadira Brown is from. She did backing vocals on “Brotherly Love” from FITMK. Any chance of working with her again?

" Funny you should meation Smoke and Austin TX. Smoke had actually linked up with Austin Veteran Emcee D.O.S. back in 2001 I believe, and the two of them stayed with me the summer of 2002. I ended up producing D.O.S.'s Album "Monters Ball" that summer and as a result D.O.S. and I became good friends through the experience. Interestingly enough, when I decided to go down to Austin, Smoke was on his way back to the North West so we just missed eachother in the scheem of things. I did however kick it with Yadira Brown when I was out there. We didn't get a chance to do more work after her feature on FITMK because she eventually moved out to California. I would definitley work with her again, Yadira is a very talented singer. I lost her contact info so, Yadira if you happen to read this...hit me up!

5. I noticed that your new album has a distinctive reggae feel to it. This is definitely a departure from your previous work. I have heard both positive and negative reactions to this style. I personally like it – it sounds unique, and unlike anything on the hip-hop market right now. What influenced this change? What are your thoughts here?

"I've always loved Reggae music. I connected with reggae music because of it's positiveness more than anything. The heavy bass lines and vocal cadences of Reggae hit the sweet spot to my ear. If you listen to artists like Sizzla, Busy Signal, and Demarco, they have a solid dance-hall sound and the "Chant" rap they spit is so much more technical and vivid than most emcees I hear now a days. The "Roots" sound of Reggae is like gospel music to me. I love the fact that you can speak on God, faith and richeousness in reggae music along with the everyday stuggle of life without it sounding as if you're a "God rapper" or a "Christian rapper". It seems like as soon as you meantion God or your faith in Hip Hop music you're automaticly tagged as a Christian rapper. That's always bugged me about the Hip Hop community. As I began working with more and more artist as a producer, I worked with many many different styles and genres. Reggae simply grew on my heart and I started developing my own approach to the style, and applied it to my own sound. I realize not everyone is gonna feel the reggae stuff I do, but I'm a musician first and I just write songs as they come to me. I've done all sorts of different styles of songs, Rock, Funk, R&B, Country, House, Reggae-tone, you name it, I've done it.

6. You recently launched your new website (and music label) Headlock Muzak (www.headlockmuzak.com), and signed artists Zelly Rock, Sick Aura, and LsDub (AKA Phrum L’sWhere). Congrats on your launch! What can we expect to see this year? Is it hard managing your own label & artists? What problems have you encountered?

" Headlock Muzak Began as my production company and expanded to a "kwazi" Label through the artists I was producing sticking close to my ability to produce their sound the way they always invisioned it to be. I never really intended on being a "Record Label" it just sort of happened. Most of the artist I work with have a history of working with other producers that just couldn't manufacture the pro industry sound or pull out of the artist what the tracks were lacking. I guess being a true fan of music enables me to get inside the artist head and remove my own ego in the creation process. I stay current with the music that is being released in the industry and try my best to keep my artists at the same calliber as the hottest artist out there. This year is almost over, but in 2010 you can expect a few different releases from our camp. Zelly Rock(PDX) is almost finished with his "Roots" LP which is a fenominal record based in the classic reggae roots sound. Sheena G (PDX) will be releasing a "Latin Dance-Hall" record with hot hot tracks that will appeal to the club hoppers and the Hispanic community. Young Tae a.k.a. XTAC (PDX) will be releasing a classic hip hop LP that will encompass his classic street savvy lyrics with a brand new twist on west coast beats. Along with the solo projects, I'll be releasing a "Headlock Muzak Showcase" LP that will feature songs from the whole Headlock Family. As far as managing the label, I'm basicly learning as I go. I've spent a lot of time getting the business side of things lagit and covering all of our asses *chuckles*. The website has been a blessing of it's own though. It has definitly enabled us to provide the music and merchandice to the public without having to get physical distrobution for everyone. So far the only problems I've encountered are keeping things in stock, and getting all of the content up on the site in a user friendly manor. Things are moving fairly smoothly so far for the most part though.

7. Oldominion fans will recognize L’sWhere from the track “Serenade To Silence” from Oldominion’s “One” album. Now he’s back with a new album on Headlock Muzak, “Creative Writing.” Can you tell us more about L’sWhere (AKA LsDub)? How you came to know and work with him, and more about his new album?

" I met LsDUB back in 1995 through Onry actually. He's been a member of the crew since the crew was born really. L had the first recording device Oldominion ever made songs with. It was a Sony (4) Track Mini Disk Recorder. After we all began making music together L and I connected and started attempting to create our own sound. With as many members as Oldominion has in it, the outcome of different styles and approaches to the music are vast. L has always had a unique style of Hip Hop music. We've done songs together whenever we got the chance over the years, but when I moved back to Washington this year, I was able to give L a little more help by launching Headlockmuzak.com and provide a means to get these records out to the public. I'm producing his new LP as well and my goal is to create a memorable record for him that can compliment LsDUB's story telling and authentic word play. I think folks will genuinely feel the new project and get a refreshing perspective of an Oldominion member they haven't heard from in a while.

8. Also, LsDub has 2 new releases in the wings… “Free 4 All” and “Two-Thousand Something ‘Til Whenever.” What can you tell us about these upcoming releases?

" Cop em and soak it up!"

9. You also released “Oldominion – Classic Joints vol. 1,” which is a compilation of great Oldominion tracks, some dating back to the Knightingale/Oraclez Creed era. Are you planning on releasing a vol. 2?

" Most definitely. I'll have a Vol. 2 ready in no time. I have most of all the 97-2002 era stuff and I am going through all those joints to grab the classics and make them available to the public once more. "

10. Back in 2007, Sleep (of Oldominion) put out an album with Zelly Rock called “Combination Locked.” Now that Zelly is on your label, and seeing your new reggae flair, have you considered putting out an album with him? If not, what about collabo tracks?

" Yeah the Combination Lock LP is a classic NW release fa sho. I've been working with Zelly really closely for about 10 years now. Zelly and I had the privilage of working with Spice 1 on the "NTA - Spice 1 & Bad Boy" LP. I produced most of that record and Zelly did a few of the classic songs on the album with Spice and Bad Boy, definitly one for the Books. As far as Colabs with Zelly, we've worked on a few ideas and concepts but our own projects seem to take presidents over the oportunity to make a colab. I forsee a few Zelly/Pale Soul tracks in the future for sure though no doubt. I think Zelly Rock is a unique artist and a benifit to the NW hip hop & Reggae community as a whole. He's a veteran artist that has been in the game longer than most cats have been making tunes. He is an annual featured performer at most all of the Reggae festivals around the greater NW and smashes the stage every time he steps upon it. I take great pride in any project I work with Zelly on.

11. I noticed that your title track, “No One Gets Out Alive,” was featured on Oldominion’s album “Make Happy” back in 2008. Has your new album been in the works for a long time?

" I put the "No one gets out alive" title track on "Make Happy" to promote the new record. I just wanted to slip a little of the new sound into the OD scheem of things and see how people would react to it. It was a good balance of the "classic" Pale Soul sound with the new approach I was creating. Plus it was the best produced song I had at the time Zeb (Zebulon Dak) was accepting entries for the new Oldominion record.

12. On track 4 of your new album (“Bad Medicine”), you use the lyrics: “The last 10 years the rap game has changed up, whole lot of stars, but the bar ain’t been raised up.” You use the same line in “Up To Me” from Oldominion’s “Make Happy”album (which is probably my favorite track on that album). Any reason why? I think the lyrics are fantastic (and relevant), but I was just curious…

" I wrote the "Bad Medicine" song first, and when I was writing for the Oldominion joint, to be honest the line just fit. I feel really strongly about the fact so many Hip Hop artists are at "Super-Star" status that have no business being there at all. It gets under my skin because I look up to the Kings of the artform like Nas, O.C., Ras Kass, Casual, Saafir, Rakim, ASOP Rock, you know guys that paint vivid pictures and scenes when you hear them spit. Now a days you get " Look what I got!" and "I'm so pimp" type lyrics that the mass audience isn't going to relate to. TV and Radio are owned by corporate monsters that sell the people garbage to make a quick buck. So the line," The last 10 years the Rap game has changed up. Whole lot of stars but the bar ain't been raised up." is a quick 2 liner punch to express my unhappiness with the present state of commercialized Hip Hop and it's prophets. Hip Hop is world wide now but the world is being fed the "McDonalds" version instead of "Momma's home cooked meal" so to speak.

13. Your lyrics are poignant and real. It’s refreshing to hear about things from real life rather than hearing rappers talking about retarded being gangsters and stuff. What is your take on this. You can tell you put a lot of heart and soul into this album, and the lyrics are very introspective.

" Thanks. I truly think the key to being a successful writer is to simply relate to your audience. If people can't relate to what you're saying then they won't really connect to the message you want to convey. Sadly enough, Commercial club music is far more successful than most "Abstract" Underground music because it's easy for the general audience to "relate" to that atmosphere while the beats are geared with tricky ear candy and ride at a BPM(beats per minute) that's easy to dance to. The formula works and has since the creation of Top 40. With "Underground" Genres, artists tend to take the music to a deeper level and experiment with lyrics, melodies, and beats to showcase their ability to take the listener on a journey. Some artists are successful at capturing a fan base without mainstream assistance by touring their ass off and connecting with people all over the world while perfecting their craft. Others come close but never quite get off the ground. I guess the trick would be to find a balance between unique syle and relatability. It's a trial and failure persuit regardless.

14. Also, in the track “Up To Me,” you mention flipping the van in Boseman. The van flipping accident was also mentioned in Grayskul’s track “Close Call” from the “Name In Vain” album. Can you tell me a little more about this experience and how it has changed your life?

" The "Van flipping experience" was a miracle in it's self. It's a miracle the 7 of us are alive. We were on a tour that went through Montana and on the morning we crashed, I was driving at around 9AM on icy roads. We were about 7 miles outside of Boseman Montana when I began to hear a strange noise coming from the rear passenger side wheel. Everyone in the van, 7 crew members including Sleep, JFK, Bishop I and Karim, were all asleep when the ordeal began. The noise at first sounded like a bad barring but became louder and louder. By this time a couple passengers were slightly waking up but by then it was too late. The noise went from being extremely loud to silent (After the accident we found out that the rear passenger side wheel had broke loose and flew off of the van completely). I realized there was a major problem going on so I attempted to steer the van over to the shoulder but as I turned the wheel barely a quarter turn the rear of the van started to slide. I tried to counter the slide by turning the opposite way but any slight movement was making the trajectory worse. I decided it was gonna be best to just let the van do it's own natural thing because the roads were covered in ice and hitting the brakes was not an option as far as I was concerned because that would only make the van spin out of control. By now most everyone was awake and wondering what the hell was going on. The moment I knew there was nothing I could do to control the van any longer, I told the passengers to "get ready Y'all!" Then the van then did a 180 degree turn and was rolling in reverse across the 4 lane freeway towards the middle median. We all looked to see where we were headed and noticed a chain link fence approaching from the rear. As the van slid off the freeway onto the shoulder at about 45-50MPH, The rotor, where the wheel used to be, grabbed into the dirt and rocks and poped the van up in a right angled wheely as the van proceeded to roll over onto the roof and slid backwards for approximately 100 yards until the chain link fence we had captured stopped us. I remember being upside down watching the windshield get sucked out of the front of the van when we tipped over. Sleep was underneath other people in the van and remarked he could feel the rocks under us sliding across the roof of the van because he was pinned to it. Bishop had sprung up out of his seat and was wagon-wheeling himself as the van rolled over. When the van finally came to a halt, I unhooked my seat belt and fell down to the ceiling and began calling out everyone's name. I wasn't getting a lot of responses so I looked around for an exit and realized all of the doors were crushed shut. I crawled on my hands and knees to the vans side sliding door, cocked my arm back and smashed through the glass of the window open handed. I then crawled out of the van through the smashed sliding door window and started pulling everyone out calling out there names to see if everyone was ok. Slowly all of the passengers exited the wreckage and amazinly enough, everyone was ok for the most part. Sleep had some bruised ribs, Karim was knocked unconscious but came to after we stopped, we all had some cuts and bruises but basically we were fine. I am convinced that the hand of God was over us and protected us through the whole ordeal. As we all were making sure everyone was alive and ok, a Gentleman by the name of Keith had pulled over to see if we were alright. Keith said, "If you all would have seen what I saw from behind you, you'd have thought for sure everyone in that van is dead." Keith went on to say he watched the wheel fly off of the van and witnessed the entire accident. He assumed there were only 2 people in the van, not 7. Eventually the Police and ambulance arrived, but after they asked us if we were ok, they just left. They never offered even a band aid, didn't check anyone for neck or back injuries, or trauma. Funny huh? True story. Even though we flipped the van and had a brush with death, we made our way to Boseman and still performed not one, but two shows that day/night. To top off the whole experience, the promoter who was supposed to be taking care of us, Jacked us for some merchandise out of our Hotel room that night. He snuck into Karim's room and took a box of CD's and some T-Shirts. We caught up with him the next day and let him know if he didn't return the Merch, we were gonna show up to his Mothers house and one way or the other get what belongs to us. He didn't like that plan very much so he returned our merch by dropping it at the restaurant by our hotel. That day, we also went to see the wrecked van at the tow yard. The roof was crushed all the way down to the door handles. It looked like it'd been through a car crusher. We ended up renting a Chevy Tahoe and drove home that night. Needless to say it was a long scary drive home. I don't think anyone was able to sleep the whole way. I took me at least a year to be able to ride in a vehicle without having flashbacks or sweaty palms. I know it was similar for the rest of the passengers. All in all it definitely was a life changing experience. I just thank The Almighty we made it out alive and no one was crippled, maimed or permanently damaged. Thank you Father!

15. Can you describe your faith and how it impact your music/life?

" My faith is very sacred to me. I've been to many many different churches through out my life, some good, some not so good. I had a desire to find God at a young age. I was 12 yrs old when I began seeking The Creator out. I eventually came to the conclusion that my personal relationship with The Almighty had nothing to do with any specific denomination. I believe everyone's relationship with God is unique. For me, I have no doubt whatsoever that Yahushua (Jesus) sacrificed himself to take on all the sins of mankind past present and future so that we may have eternal life through him and the blood of Christ cleanses us of our wretched sin. With that said, I also believe There are many many pieces to this puzzle called "Faith". I don't recognize the term "Religion" because all that means is to do something religiously. With that definition, going pee, or eating, or anything you do repetitiously is a religion. For hundreds of years Science and Theology have battled it out claiming they have the answer to what or whom God the creator is. In my opinion, It's gonna take Science, Theology and active faith as a team to solve the enigma of God entirely. It's like a band in a way. You can't have a complete song with just a bass, or just drums. You need guitar, bass, drums, piano, and vocals to complete the entire piece of music. You can create a melody, or write lyrics with just one aspect, but in order to see the entire picture, you must orchestrate all aspects of the answer by uniting as a team. I apply my faith into my music but with great care and respect of other people's point of view. I would never in my life want to offend or step on someones out-look of what they believe because again, I truly think it is unique for everyone. I try not to pass judgment on anyone for believing differently than I do, rather I try and see things from their perspective and learn from it. I'm rambling.....

16. What is your favorite track on “No One Gets Out Alive”? Why?

" I would say over-all, Blade Runner is still my favorite track on the album. I love the beat to it. I actually tried modeling the track musically after Scarface's sound. I don't know if you ever copped the "The world is yours" LP from Scarface back in the 90's but that album really impacted me production wise. Mike Dean is a sick Genius! If you take my vocals off the Blade Runner track and put Scarface on it, it would fit perfectly! I also adore the "Hand that feeds ya" track featuring my brother at arms, Onry Ozzborn. It's a hard hitting song that originally, for me, was an outlash to a few cats that screwed me over and STILL OWE ME MONEY! You know who you are! LOL!

17. I noticed that you used Autotune on the first track (and several other tracks) of your new album. That seems to be a growing fad in hip-hop lately. Why did you choose Autotune? I think the track sounds good, but are you worried about getting classified as cliché for using the Autotune?

"Ahh the blessid and cursed Autotuner. I really try not to worry about what anyone has to say about the choices of production techniques I use. To be honest, I think the Auto tuner is a valuable tool that has been exploited by commercialism and the "Hyphee" category. I like the texture of sound the autotuner produces and I wanted to use it in a way no one else had. I applied it to genuine Hip Hop and subject matter that was NOT on some "At the bar tryna freak a bitch" type shit. I really felt that if I used it in a manor that was geared towards making the "underground" Hip Hop feel I had different, and spit real lyrics with it, that it might be appealing to other listeners who liked the way the Autotuner sounded, but didn't really feel the subject matter certain artist used it for. Plus Autotuner is huge in Dance-hall music and the way the reggae cats use the autotuner is out of this world to me. I think any "fad" will get scrutenized if it's exploited enough. I'm just the type of guy that when I hear a sound that appeals to me, I'm like, "I can do that. lemme flip that a whole new way!"

18. Do you know if “Make Happy” will ever get officially pressed? I got my copy from Zeb (Zebulon Dak) via the SHW forum. I think there were probably only about 100 made. It would be great to get this album topside.

" Make Happy is like one of those prototype cars that you see in a magazine and you're like, "Damn that car is fresh!" but unfortunately wont be available to the public til 2020, Haha! Nah, Make Happy never got off the ground because like most of us Oldominion dudes, Zeb alone didn't have the financial backing to get it manufactured and distributed on a mass scale. I know that Oldominion definitely wants that record available to the fans and I'm positive it will be in the near future. We have a few tricks up our sleeves that are about to stun every Oldominion fan in the world. *Wink wink*

19. You used to be a member of Oraclez Creed back in the day with Onry Ozzborn and Sleep. What can you tell us about Oraclez Creed and the merger into Oldominion? Will any of the old Oraclez Creed tracks ever see the light of day?

"Oraclez Creed linked up with Frontline (Snafu Nyqwil Destro) from Portland and slowly began accumulating more and more connections with artists from around the country. The once small unit eventually became what is now Oldominion which was given it's name by our deceased brother and member Reuben aka Rochester AP. Oraclez Creed Never really got a fair shake due to our manager at the time not knowing how to put us where we needed to be and the bitter feelings of everyone by the end of that chapter. I would love to see another Oraclez Creed project come to life. As far as the old songs seeing the light of day, it's hard to say. Not impossible though.

20. Any plans for new collaborations with Oldominion members? It was good to see fellow Oldominion members Syndel and Onry Ozzborn featured on your new album. Any news of a new Oldominion album in the works?

"I am currently producing LsDUB's new record and I'll be on a couple tracks of that LP. Every OD member is so busy right now it's tough to lock one down to do a song witcha, unless your Onry Ozzborn and just tell cats "Do it!" LOL! "Just playin' Onry!" As far as a new Oldominion album..............I'm not supposed to talk about it. That's the most I can say.

21. In track 13 from NOGOA, “It Ain’t Over,” you use the lyrics: “My man said hold on for dear life as we’re building wings on the way down, it’s all right.” This is clearly a (awesome and cleverly hidden) shout out to Onry and JFK’s new respective albums. Can you tell us any more about those?

" All I can say is I'm waiting to get those myself! I can't wait either!"

22. Are there any other artists you’re looking to sign or feature?

" I'm really just trying to get the records I have on deck out first, but there are a couple artists I'm looking at to work with. Freestyle Master out of Glasgow Scottland and I recently worked together on a few tracks and he is definitely someone I am interested in. I have a few candidates that you may see in the future but I don't wanna let the cat out of the bag yet. Just keep your eyes peeled!

23. What was your favorite part of making the new record? How long did it take?

" I think my favorite part of making the new record was trying so many different styles and experimenting with the development of a new sound. I started making NOGOA at the end of 2006, so it took what, damn near 3 years to make. I changed the track listing many times before the final cut. As a matter of fact, right up until the last day I switched out a song called "Die by the gun" for "It ain't over". I guess a true artist is never happy, but you eventually have to make a final decision.

24. You are known as a legendary producer. Did you produce your new album? If not, who assisted?

" I don't know about "Legendary" but thank you for saying so. I produced every track on the new record except "Marmalade". The beat for marmalade was made by my man Relox a.k.a. Pistol Pit from a crew called "Cash Converterz" out of France. The man is a sick sick producer and I respect him and his whole crew without a doubt. It's probably why it takes me so long to produce a complete project, because I am so picky when it comes to the music. I'll go back and work on a track on and off for a week or two sometimes until I have pushed the envelope as far as I can. I want to make sure I've exhausted every possibility before I say it's done. Plus I play 95% of the music I produce. Keys, Guitar, Drum programming, Bass, and all the trimmings. I hardly sample anything.

25. How would you describe the creative process of making (producing) beats and writing lyrics?

" They are both different processes at least for me. I can sit and make Beats and produce music all day with ease. Writing lyrics and coming up with concepts for songs is a more focused approach to music for me. Half the time, if I'm making a beat that I know I'm gonna keep for myself, I'm thinking of the feel and concept as I'm making the music to it, and start writing lyrics towards the end of finishing the beat. I always leave my beats at 80-90% finished so that whatever is written to it conceptually, can be complimented by adding melodic details to fit the feel of the song. Like, after myself or an artist write the song lyrically and record to it, I then go back and add strings, piano, bass or some cool instrument to accompany the melodic tone of the chorus and bridges. That way it sounds like a complete work of art, and not a vocalist singing or rapping over a beat they copped from some beat monkey. Everyone has their own style and process though. I don't believe there is a wrong way to create as long as the finished product is dope!

26. Who are some other artists that really influenced you? Why/How?

" There are so many Artist over the coarse my lifetime that have influenced me musically. If we're talking "Hip Hop" then I would say my biggest influences would be; UTFO, Nas, O.C., EPMD, Scarface, Mobb Deep, B.D.P., and 3rd Bass. Lyrically those artists always hit me the hardest. O.C. and Nas opened a whole new world to me as far as lyrical content and word-play. Production wise, I'd have to say my biggest influences are; Organized Noise, Dr. Dre., Easy Mo B, J.D., Sir Jinx, DJ Muggz, Rick Reuben, Teddy Riley, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, and Quincey Jones. All of whom are production monsters. True Legends! Each has a distinct style and have all influenced most beat jockeys out there, at least the ones my age.

27. Do you have any advice for artists creating their own music?

" Be true to yourself above all things. Listen to your peers for advice, because they exist in your environment and will give you immediate feedback, but realize the only person that truely knows what you are reaching for is you. Don't be afraid to ask for help. If you can't play piano but your homie can, get that dude on the keys because it's about what makes the track the best, not always about who gets the credit for playing it. Besides, a good "Producer" uses everything in his arsenal to get the job done regardless of who's the star. When you begin to remove your ego from producing records, you will see the the difference of quality and your ability to create outstanding product. Learn as much as you can on your own and strive to be "self-contained". The less you need to reach out for assistance in the whole writing, producing and recording process the better. Work on your Live show. That's where everything is gonna count the most. If you make dope songs but you can't perform them live, or your stage presents is weak, your career may end up being a lot shorter than you anticipated. All my OD mates look for that the most in an artist. If you can't carry yourself on stage, I'll prolly be at the bar not listening to you.

28. You know how Apple and iTunes showcase "celebrity playlists"? What would be on your playlist? Think of it as your ultimate mixtape. I think Brad B said it best: “You can tell a lot about a person by their personal music taste.”

" Haha, your gonna put me on the spot huh? I listen to a lot of diff music actually. I'm the type of cat that plays something out til it's dead if I like it. If you were to get in my car and play what was in the deck, you'd prolly hear a mixtape I made with artist such as; Busy Signal, Demarco, Greyskul, Tarrus Riley, Jadakiss, Sade, Dave Hollister, Oldominion, and maybe a lil Blink 182 because the wife is an "Uber" Blink fan. I would say honestly Busy Signal is my favorite artist out right now. Hands down.

29. Lastly, is there anything you want to add? Any message you want to get across to the fans? Any parting shots?

" I would just say to the Pale Soul fans out there to always expext the unexpected from me. I think life is too short to just do one style of music. If you have the ability to explore other avenues of music, why wouldn't you? It's all in the approach I believe. I'm a genuine cat that has never once lied or fronted on a song. Everything I spit is real and true to myself as well as the Game. I love and respect Hip Hop music too much to front or act like I have all the answers. I'm just a dude tryna make my mark on history like my predecessors before me. Maybe I'll be a success, maybe I'll fail. The only thing I know for sure is I'mma die trying. God bless every single man woman and child on the planet Earth! Yer boy...Pale Sou!

30. Thank you for doing this interview. It’s a great opportunity for people to see what you’ve been up to for the past 6 years and give them a perspective into your new album and record label. Also, thank you for letting us post these 2 tracks from your new album.

" No Sweat. Thank you too Nate for the interview and letting me get the chance to tell everybody what's up with me and the squad. God bless all of you! - Vinyl Fluid Records

SXSW 2009: Pale Soul ***

Sounds like: Lyrical hip-hop with exceptionally hooky hooks, tight rhymes, and a comic-book superhero persona: “Why does everybody wanna be a gangster? Why don’t anybody wanna be a savior? Fuck it, I’ll do it.”

Looks like: Stocky white dude, fedora down low, mic up high.

Highlights: “I am the hip-hop, Kurt Cobain was the rock’n’roll”,

In a line: Great sound if you're down with saving the world - UGO Music Blog

Description:
Pale Soul Fear is the Mind Killer.... Tragically was never fully released and has only been avaialable online or from Pale himself. You know his work with Sleep, The Chicharones, Onry, Grayskul as well as many other artists.

Fear is the Mind Killer is considered by many as one of the best Oldominion releases ever. Limited quantities left! Don't sleep...
- Superhappywax.com