French hip-hop producer Ugly Mac Beer, with over 20 years of experience in the industry, returns to his youthful passions and ventures into synth-punk production for the first time with his new album titled ‘Broken Ill’. Three decades later, he brings to fruition an album he has dreamed of making since the age of 16, adopting a “Rick Rubin style” in its creation and production.
“Broken Ill” transcends the boundaries of a typical album. It features a UK sound that seamlessly blends post-punk, electro-punk, darkwave, new wave, while still maintaining its roots in US hip-hop, with a significant touch of rap rock.
Mac Beer’s influences are clearly heard throughout the album, ranging from the Beastie Boys to The Cure, and including Kraftwerk and Sleaford Mods.
In terms of collaborations, Ugly Mac Beer has enlisted a diverse array of rappers from various backgrounds. Among them is the iconic Princess Superstar, a prominent figure in the 90s underground scene, whose hit track “Perfect”, released two decades ago, unexpectedly resurged on TikTok, sparking excitement and eventually securing a place on the 2024 Billboard Charts. It even underwent a remix by David Guetta himself.
Additionally, Mac Beer has teamed up with French rapper signed to Kitsuné, Mynameisleonidas, who has contributed to a significant portion of the album. Other collaborators include the singer from the French punk band Frustration and Mac Beer’s longtime collaborator and friend, The Real Fake MC a.k.a OP18.
With “Broken Ill”, Ugly Mac Beer, hip-hop beatmaker par excellence, surprises and delivers a solid rap rock album with a pervasive UK influence, inviting listeners into his ever-evolving, creative, and audacious universe.
Can you give us the background to the record?
I have always produced concept albums and this one is quite personal, I made an album that I would have dreamed of listening to when I was 16 years old. I always want an artistic direction to respect, to give a unique colour when I think about an album project
What state were the band in, whereabouts were you in terms of getting on, the label, the songwriting, the relationships within yourself and everything else?
In general, I make concept albums based on feeling and sincerity without asking too many questions. The recordings were done quite quickly, I contacted the singers, rappers or others and very often in 48 hours the song was finished, either I kept it or I threw it away
What were you aiming for with the record?
To please me and to make curious and music-loving diggers happy who come across my records in 30 or 40 years
Was it difficult to write or easy?
Not knowing that I work a lot on feeling and intention
What were the times like that influenced you, and what artists were you listening to
and trying to emulate, if any?
For this album in particular I was influenced by a lot of groups; Beastie Boys, The Cure, the B52’s, Nirvana, Sleaford Mods, Sextile, La Femme, Daft Punk, Frustration, Joy Division ….
What were the major difficulties with the record – time, money, equipment,
production?
As always when you are independent, time and money, which are linked when you
are not rich.
Anything that was going on in the world, or your world, was a factor at the time?
Yes of course, I work a lot by feeling and the moment.
Track by track
01 ‘Press OK’ Is a retro-futuristic delusion that I imagined in the film “1984” (George Orwell)
02 ‘Broken Ill’ Is a bit like a presentation, a calling card for this album, a bit heavy, a bit cold, almost industrial.
03 ‘New Area’ Is very grunge influenced (Nirvana) with a mix of the “ESG” group , this is the kind of sound that I would have loved to listen to as a teenager.
04 ‘Dans Tes Yeux’ It’s very influenced by cold wave from the 80s (The Cure).
05 ‘My Name Is Tim’ Is very influenced by UK punk and in the spirit of the first Sleaford Mods album.
06 ‘Trust My Uh-Oh!’ There’s a lot of New Wave influence “New Order” in the production of the music and an 80s rap flow like “JJ Fad” which I really like.
07 ‘It’s Not A Dream’ There is clearly an 80s electro hip hop influence and a big nod to the song “I Need a Freak” by the group “Sexual Harassment”, with a nonchalant “uffie” (Ed Bangers) flow style
08 ‘AI Sucks’ I don’t really know how to describe this hybrid track which deals well with the subject of
artificial intelligence which is eating us.
09 ‘Bastille Vichy’ Deals with the ambient fascism that has reigned for decades on a very punk sound between Beastie Boys and Sleaford Mods
10 ‘Broken Glass’ I was very inspired by The Mummies (band) to make this track I wanted to give a horror movie, spooky side while keeping an electro punk touch in my own way. I then proposed this title to mynameisleonidas who himself wrote and interpreted his text according to the atmosphere of the title.
Finally the title is inspired by a couple’s argument, like we all have every day.
11 ‘Wolfie’ I imagined the life of the dog “Wolfie” in Terminator 2, when John Connor calls his adoptive parents and the T-800 discovers that the T-1000 is there you must have the reference to understand ahah
12 ‘FAYP’ This track is a UFO between a slasher chase and an acid trip who ends up in a mass with the angels
For this album I only used sounds from old drum machines (boss, roland, yamaha) bass, guitar and old synths (arp odyssey, arp 2600, MS 20, Mini Moog, prophet 5…) I really wanted to keep a color of sound and an artistic direction
I recorded and produced this album myself at home
Check out the track Broken Glass Ft Mynameisleonidas, below:
Purchase the album here
Find out more via Ugly Mac Beer’s Facebook
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