If you’re not familiar with Adelaide group EAST AV3, here’s a quick catch-up. It’s been a steep rise for the trio that have swiftly garnered praise for their confident, genre-pushing sound. After taking over their hometown Adelaide with a sold-out show at the end of last year, they have won the hearts of the rest of the country. Triple J Unearthed has named them Ones To Watch for 2020 and they were also finalists in the station’s DIY Supergroup competition, narrowly missing out on the top prize.
It’s been a homegrown project from the very start. The trio - comprising of Nic Flare, Kane Trop3z and YOURPAPASENSEI - met at high school and eventually moved into a house together. That’s where the music really started.
Today, they release their debut EP RUGRAT$, drawing comparisons to the likes of BROCKHAMPTON and 99 Neighbors. It’s an innovative take on hip-hop, mixing the genre with glitchy electronica and wonky pop. Australia’s local rap scene has ballooned in the last few years but EAST AV3’s arrival feels like a breath of fresh air, carving out their own lane.
We’re going to go track-by-track through the EP, unveiling some of our favourite moments and lyrics from the project.
2:22 (Intro)
It’s an alarming start to a record that we already know is going to bring the energy from start-to-finish. This beat feels like it’s rooted in trap electronica, owing to producers like RL Grime and Baauer. EAST AV3 come through with an instantaneous hook - “2:22 am on the low...bring the fucking rockets when we turn up on the door.” It feels like a mission statement. EAST AV3 are going to make it impossible for you to ignore them.
Rugrat$
This is the only song from the EP that dropped before and it feels like it’s going to become a theme song for the trio. With glitchy synth-work in the background, EAST AV3 are bringing the energy on this one. The lyrics are braggadocious, dropping lines like “always in the freshest clothes.” Just like its titular cartoon, RUGRAT$ is all about causing a havoc and they lay it out in the hook of the song. “EAST AV3 RUGRAT$ raising all the havoc.” The cartoon isn’t the only one to get a shoutout though. Beyonce also nabs a shoutout as they rap, “Like Yonce with the lemonade.”
BL3W BAND$
BL3W BAND$ ups the energy even more so, adopting the same sort of energy that they brought to the table on Le Labo. You’ll hear the BROCKHAMPTON influence come through strong on this one, mostly in the pitched-up hook that has them asking, “What you gon’ do when the plans fall through.” There’s a howling alarm circling that hook too just in case you weren’t already providing all your attention.
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TURBø
TURBO is one of the darkest cuts of the EP, bringing a damning, minimal beat to the table that gives the boys room to get particularly forthright. “By the end of this song are you in it or against us?” they question in the chorus, giving everybody very little time to lock in their decision. Thankfully, they make it easy. Some of the best quick-spit bars of their short careers feature on this track particularly around the halfway mark which has them declaring, “better run, better run like Forrest.”
J!G
If you thought they were going to let us out of the EP gently, you’d be wrong. Literally, on the first beat, they declare, “time’s up,” as the beat rings in the background. This is one of the most hypnotic tracks of the set. The chorus is intoxicating as they play with psychedelic vocal techniques. The haziness of the chorus is juxtaposed by the committed verses which make everything crystal clear. “This shit ain’t new, we been doing this since the avenue,” they rap, referring to East Avenue - the location of their first share house.
