PRiNE, Jason

InstruMENTAL Hip Hop. "The music behind the lyrics in your head."

Music has always amazed him. Whether it was listening to "The Beatles Sunday Brunch" on his little transistor radio as a kid. Or hearing Tar Baby's "One Day I'll Marry a Human" on his walkman just yesterday, PRiNE, Jason has always admired the craftsmanship of a good songeven if he had no idea what a break was at the age of 7. It wasn't until his last year of high school that he realized that he could make music. At first it was just a hobby. Sampling whatever was on hand at home with his 8 bit soundcard, using rudimentary sequencing software to put the samples together. But after a while, it became an obsession. He would spend several hours every night working on the music. Different styles and techniques were emerging from his sessions at his computer terminal. He learned the ins and outs of each style through trial and error and by listening to other peoples' music. But that wasn't enough. By his second year of Film School, he realized that he wanted to get serious about the music. He'd been working on his style for a couple of years and realized that he needed to break away from everything and create his own musical world. He left school, got a full-time job and saved up enough cash so that he'd be able to take a year off from everything and work strictly on the music. That one year stretched into two and during that time Jason realized that this musical world he created for himself would last for more than the few years that he initially expected. He's not going for any passing fad - he's a production machine with a rabbit in every one of his hats. PRiNE's Perspective on his music: "I call it Instru-MENTAL Hip Hop...cause that's what it is. You can compare me to whatever other artist you want, but I have my own distinct sound. And of course, it's about refinement. I mean, I'm not going to just sit here and say that I know people will want my tracks cause they are the shit. People are going to want my music because it's good, but also because of the attitude and respect I treat the listener with. You make music for yourself and then hope an audience likes it. But that doesn't mean you are going to make something that's going to alienate them. You have to make something that has a basis in what people know, but with a new direction or with new methods that people haven't heard before." His music is a combination of drum machine, keyboard, sampling his own "homemade" recordings, and some sampling of vinyl. "I don't sample vinyl for breaks or the perfect symphony loop. I do it to create something that I couldn't normally do with my machines. For example, if I needed a realistic sounding horn section, I wouldn't go to my records and pull off some amazing loop. I'd find several sounds from multiple recordings and blend them together to make a loop...It's about taking something that's out there and turning it into something totally realistic, yet unrecognizable; something in an entirely new context. An entirely new entity." In between paying the bills, PRiNE, Jason is working with Tar Media Productions of New Brunswick, Canada. They have just released his premier EP, Desh Pardesh, with massive online distribution and Canadian distribution via Fusion III as of September 28, 1999. According to Adrian Brathwaite, President and Senior A/R at Tar Media, "This well crafted production features seven complete mixes of the best InstruMENTALl Hip Hop since DJ Shadow's, Endtroducing." The CD has been enjoying consistent underground radio play via Planete Indie (Belgium), KASU (Arizona), CITR (Vancouver), KKSM (USA), WLFR (USA), WEFT (USA), KKUP 91.5 FM (Cupertino, California, USA), CFOU 89.1 FM - Le Vestibule (Trois-Rivieres-Ouest, Quebec, Canada) and on "Back To The Universe" (Russia). PRiNE also currently has his track "I, Only I" on Abstraktions, a compilation put out by Abstrakt Reality Records of Los Angeles, California. PRiNE's track has gained some air play on Planete Indie (Belgium) and recently earned him a shout out for the track in September/October issue of URB. PRiNE, Jason is currently working on his full length release for Tar Media, with an expected release date in Spring of 2000. In the mean time, PRiNE is preparing himself to play live throughout California between the end of October and the beginning of November. These shows will all be in association with The eClecTic - an up and coming MC from Atlanta. PRiNE's show is a combination of live re-mixing and freestyle hip hop - with an added pinch of live instrumentation when feasible. And if that's not enough, PRiNE, Jason is working on a collaborative Experimental Drum'n'Bass project with another local Toronto artist for release by the middle of 2000...plus then there's the Drum'n'Bass compilation for Tar Media...the underground Hip Hop documentary...the "televesion - drug of a nation" not so far off from fiction manuscript...and several other projects that have to be kept under wraps for reasons that they are way too good to be ripped off by some major conglomerate, just to be put out in a watered down version in under 2 weeks.

Yes. Mini California tour with the people at www.savehiphop.com at the end of November/beginning of December.

DJ Shadow, Cold Cut, The Herbaliser, 60s and 70s muzak, Hip Hop beats, and my inner MC.

Computer, Yamaha CS1x, Zoom RhythmTrak 234, Roland SP-808, Behringer Virtualizer, 30 year old turntable.

Check out www.jason.prine.com for all my info. And www.savehiphop.com for info on the second coming...Plus www.tarmedia.com to pick up a copy of my debut EP, "Desh Pardesh".