Melbourne crew Diafrix have been kicking around for a few years now, playing numerous festivals and support dates, and getting healthy community radio play for their own brand of polished hip hop. They first featured on Joelistics’ Temporary Reflection Visas project, which gave unreleased Footscray MCs a recording opportunity. Both MCs identify themselves as refugees, their backup vocalist Nadee is Haitian, and without being cynical they’re a Triple J wet dream – being “multicultural’, positive, dance floor friendly, and very accessible. This record is in a way revealing of the arts environment in Australia in that these guys have been particularly successful in picking up grants and accolades from organisations like Melbourne City Council, Multicultural Arts Victoria, Noise, and Triple J.
Diafrix’ formula could just see them blow up mainstream style – despite being “proudly independent’s they’re very smooth around the edges. Diverse cultural backgrounds and a multilingual touch, coupled with largely non-challenging lyrics and personas, plus a hyped live show, means they have difference working quietly in their favour without bothering anyone. They have taken pains to point out their obvious contextual relevance in their press material – but what does it mean when you press play on the record? According to the hype, “There’ no crate-dug samples here – it’s all 100% original funk, soul and reggae-infused hip hopâ€, with Ptero Stylus taking production credits. Unfortunately, the beats are all squeaky clean bouncy numbers with a west coast tinge, or bland dancehall attempts, more “competent’s than “original’, though Chasm flexes his Jamaican muscle with a well executed remix. The title track In The Place, is driven by string stabs, an accordion loop and a straight 4/4 beat, with a ragga chorus “In tha place tonight, we gonna rock it RI…I..I..IGHT, spit it so damn TI…I..I..IGHT.†One Love is a sickly sweet, smooth jazz referencing number about loving hip hop and keeping it real, in which they acknowledge who they’re emulating, “love my hip hop underground like Mos Def and Talibâ€. Gambian born, Senegal raised, Jali Buba Kuyateh makes a welcome appearance on Kanakasi, showing his skills on the 23 stringed Kora, backing what is probably the ep’ most heart felt lyrical moment.
These guys fit perfectly into a strain of globalised hip hop which has popped up in almost every country around the world: personal histories and musical influences boiled down into beats and rhymes. Its kind of… Nice, if you know what I mean. This EP is not a musical statement so much as a government sponsored hip hop recital… or perhaps it’s just straight up, unpretentious, positive hip hop and I’m an over analytical wanker. What I do know is that it’s very crowd pleasing, and probably best checked out live for a 100% good vibes effect.
