An Interview with Barnie Duncan, Nisha Madhan and Marlon Lobo of The Hot Grits

I met the three of the thirteen of this Auckland-based Afrobeat-Soul-Funk fusion band at a K-road old-timer, Verona, one summer evening. Their album It’s too Drunk to be this Early had been a staple on my playlist since I was compelled enough to acquire their album because their music video got banned at TVNZ last 2008. Always powerful, with a hint of philosophy here and there, a lot of side-looks towards Africa while dancing forward with their squid tentacles, that’s how I’d describe their sound.

They’ve opened for Ron Ayers and played alongside Batucada Sound Machine, have won the Radio Active Handle the Jandal award for Best Non-Funded Video and Best Exploitative tactics award for their video Headlights, and have played many a gig and festival last year. With those ticked off the list, the band certainly have a lot to look forward to ‘09.

Over some cold beer we discussed funk, knitting, everyone being Indian, sea creature mascots on stage, the origins of Hip Hop and why politicians should at least get drunk once a week at a gig. Things we didn’t discuss are Shortland Street, and cake.

Here’s Part One of the interview. 

You guys play a fusion of soul and afrobeats and funk. Can you tell me about your first encounter with soul and afrobeats, and what can you remember from that encounter.

N: My first encounter with all of them smooshed together was when I saw the Hot Grits before I became part of them

So you just watched them…

N: I was a groupie!

B: Nisha was front row at every gig.

Really!

N: Front row to the side, not quite centre. (laughs)

When did you get in? When did you join?

N: Last December.

What made you guys decide to take her in?

B: Well… I think the hypnosis finally worked.

(Laughs)

No we, he, uh, our original key player was leaving, and it was a bit of a blessing in disguise ‘coz we wanted somebody with, maybe with a bit more contributive personality to the band? That sorta thing?

N: And someone prettier.

B: Yeah. Better tits.

(Laughter)

He was pretty skinny. Uhm, and uh, Nisha and I had worked together acting before and we were friends for a long time, and I’ve seen Nisha play keys in a show. And I think I’ve subtly, asidely mentioned to Nisha, “He’s leaving soon…what sorta keyboard do you own…” and, like doing ‘hinty’ things.

N: Yeah.

M: Nisha’s in the band, new sound, good times.

N: Great. Booze.

When you said ‘contributive personality’, what do you mean by that?

B: Well, I dunno if it’s a word.

And I don’t wanna be like talking ‘dis’ of our old player…just in that, when you’re writing a song, I was hoping to have someone with a bit more willingness to just offer ideas…

Like creative input…

B: Yeah. And I knew that Nisha worked in theatre and the device…just stuff where that’s kind of like you have to be like that to make your stuff work anyway.

In line with that, how did you guys start, when did you start…how did The Hot Grits come about?

M: Long story…

B: Six years?

M: Six and a half years ago. 3 or 4 people–not us, at a party

B: Our guitar player’s birthday party. –

M: Yeah,

B: –wanted to have a funk band to just play covers of his favorite funk songs. So He got together a bunch of guys and they played it…they learned all–they spent two weeks learning these covers and played and it was kinda fun and they liked it so they organised a gig at Rakino’s I think?

Oh, right.

B: But then, the singer left, and the drummer left, and then they got a hold of me. I was…I used to deck at this regular night called “Shrine,” just a night of djs and a few of that like Martin the guitar player came up to that quite a lot and started talking to me about like, “you like this music? Do you know any singers?” And I was drunk, “Yeah I can sing,” and…

M: (laughs)

B: And then I had to learn like seven songs, in a week? Having never really–I’d sung in punk bands but not really funk singing, soul-ly singing.

But punk is kinda like soul I believe,

In what way?

B: Well it’s uh, it’s like, about, uhm, very working class? And it’s about sort of like working class trials and tribulations, and it comes from uh–it’s quite honest? Like brutally honest? LIke it comes from a real like–it’s quite direct. There’s no flowery shit, it’s just straight up raw emoting, kinda?

‘Coz one of your influences is Fela Kuti right? Sort of, looks like that, in a way (gestures)

B: Yeah, big way. BIG influence.

Big influence yeah. Can you talk about Fela Kuti–why is he your biggest influence, as a band?

B: Well, I first heard of Fela when I was 17, and it kind of, I had a pretty much a born again Christian sensation happen when I heard it? (laughs a bit) And, men started trying to find like, uhm, when I started djing I decided I wanted to just play like afrobeats and stuff like that because I thought that more people could hear it? And then when I joined the Grits I started introducing a few members of the band to it, and it just kind of, it took on, I mean it’s a really interesting music for a horn section…its really beautiful horn arrangements..and drummers and percussionists can go fucking mental with that ‘coz it’s quite a tricky beat to figure out that there’s lots of cool rhythms going on.

Is there a lot of improvisation with percussions…

M: Not so much improvisation but there’s syncopation that everyone’s doing something different, yeah, and, you know, I guess it’s not improvisation but syncopation is just everywhere…everyone’s doing something.

B: And I mean, it’s kind of, I guess, it’s worked out, it’s taken, it’s like, uh, it’s taken root and blossomed so well with us, is that, when you play, ‘coz we started making our own versions of afro beats. And once we finally got it right, when you play it to a New Zealand crowd, they do…they really like it? They like dancing to it. People like, –you can’t quite help but move a little bit.

That’s true yeah, I was at one of your gigs and, the whole crowd was just…

B: Yeah…it was also a vehicle for quite conscious lyrics? So it’s been sort of protest music? Or, I mean there are afro beat songs about love, but there’s not many? Most of them about stuff that’s shitty.

From that song WWI–Word Wide First, you mentioned the preacher. Who’s the preacher?

M: That’s a good question.

N: Who do you think the preacher is?

I guess the higher intelligence like…in you.

N: Preacherman…

B: Yeah. I mean it’s kind of about…that song’s sort of about everyone’s got a vice? And we’re more…we’re getting more and more vice-ridden as we develop as a fuckin’ planet? So that’s like first, that’s all over the place? And like, when like, ‘Preacherman come to deliver us his bread, would leave it on the table and take his drink instead’ it’s sort of like, here’s a guy coming to offer some spiritual guidance like, communion and bread or whatever, but, we don’t really want that? We just take, the wine glass.

M: Yeah, yeah.

That’s deep man.

H: Laughs

End Part One.