- Freestylers
:"For other uses, see
Freestyle ."Infobox Musical artist
Name = Freestylers
Img_capt =
Img_size =
Landscape =
Background = group_or_band
Alias = Raw as Fuck
Origin =United Kingdom
Genre =Breakbeat
Years_active = 1996–present
Label =
Associated_acts =
URL = [http://www.freestylersmusic.co.uk FreestylersMusic.co.uk]
Current_members =
Past_members =The Freestylers are a British electronic music group, generally fitting into the
breakbeat genre. However, while on tour, the size of the group may vary dramatically as well as the genre that characterizes the group. For example, in their latest Toronto show, on October 6, 2007, only Matt Cantor and Aston Harvey performed; their DJ set consisted of music such ashardhouse andfunky house for the first hour, followed bybig beat including a 1997 Chemical Brothers track and "Smack my Bitch Up," by the Prodigy. At around an hour and a half into the set, a short breakbeat mashup was played, followed by some popular drum and bass. [Review: Freestlyers in Toronto Oct. 6, 2007 [http://www.residentadvisor.net/forum-read.aspx?id=34360&page=1] ]Career History
The Freestylers formed in 1996 when
DJ s and dance music producersMatt Cantor ,Aston Harvey and (initially)Andrew Galea joined forces. All three of them had been involved in the British dance music scene since the 1980s. Cantor had recorded asCut n' Paste and Strike with Andy Gardner (Plump DJs ). Aston Harvey recorded as Blapps! Posse best known for the 1990breakbeat dance hit "Don't Hold Back" before working withDefinition of Sound ,Rebel MC andDJ Rap (as DJ Rap and Aston). Harvey joined with Galea under the nameSol Brothers before Cantor was recruited to form the Freestylers. The group took their name from their first sample "Don't Stop The Rock" by Freestyle.The trio's first single "Drop The Boom (AK-48)" on their own Scratch City Records in 1996 became a dancefloor hit in the UK and Miami. The band released the "Freestyle EP" in 1996 on
Freskanova (Freskanova's parent label, "Fresh", had released Cantor, Galea and Harvey's previous work).Andrew Galea left the Freestylers shortly after the release of the "Freestyle EP".After the departure of
Andrew Galea , Matt and Aston formed an 11-piece band (initially an idea of their record label,Freskanova ). This consisted of the 2 producers (Cantor and Harvey), a scratch DJ Jason Tunbridge (Mad Doctor X ), a guitarist (Tony Ayiotou), drummer (Clive Jenner), bass guitarist (Joe Henson), 2 MCs (MC Navigator andTenor Fly ) and 3 breakdancers (Coza, Marat, Tim).The band's first album "We Rock Hard" was released in
1998 . The single "B-Boy Stance" became a singles hit in the UK in 1998 featuring the contributions of rapperTenor Fly . In1999 , the Freestylers enjoyed success in the U.S. with track "Don't Stop" reached the top 10 of the Billboard dance charts and "Here We Go" becoming aMTV Buzzworthy clip. "We Rock Hard" sold well in the US selling over 150,000 and reaching the top 30 of the Billboard Heatseeker chart.Following the success of "B-Boy Stance", the band were asked to remix tracks by
Audioweb ,Afrika Bambaataa andthe Jungle Brothers as well as abig beat compilation album "FSUK 2 " and a Radio 1 Essential Mix featuringBeenie Man , Public Enemy,Whodini and The Fall.The Freestylers released a mix album "Electro Science" in
2000 . Their second album "Pressure Point" was released in 2001 with the track "Get Down Massive" featuring Navigator reaching top 20 on the Billboard dance charts in2002 .During
2002 and2003 the group began releasing singles under the artist name "Raw As F**k " which then became the title of their third album. Released in2004 , it featured the single "Push Up", which reached the top 30 in the UK and top 3 inAustralia . Another single, which was previously released before "Push Up", called "Get A Life", was re-released and reached the top 20 in Australia.Raw as Fuck
"Raw As Fuck" is an alternative name used by the band during
2002 &2003 primarily for theirvinyl releases.The band continued to use the alias in2004 only this time for their album title rather than their group name.Releases under the name "Raw As Fuck"
*Punks / Demon Beats (12") (2002)
*The Slammer / Theme From Raw (12") (2002)
*No Replica (12") (2003)All 3 releases went on to appear on the "
Raw as Fuck " album.Band members
Current
*Matt Cantor
*Aston Harvey
*MC SirReal
*Rich Budgen (Guitar)
*Dave Budgen (Bass)
*Clive Jenner (Drums)Past
*
Andrew Galea (producer)
*MC Navigator (vocals)
*Tenor Fly (vocals)
*Mad Doctor X (scratch dj)
*Tony Ayiotou (guitar)
*Joe Henson (bass guitar)
*Coza (breakdancer)
*Marat (breakdancer)
*Tim (breakdancer)Other collaborators
*Million Dan
*Justin Warfield
*Spanner Banner
*Petra Jean Phillipson
*Valerie M
*Top Cat
*Soul Sonic Force
*Definition of Sound
*Julie Thompson
*Onallee (Reprazent )
*Chip the RipHaunted Peanuts Discography
Albums
*"
Adventures in Freestyle " (2006 )
*"Raw As Fuck " (2004 ) - #66 Australia
*"Pressure Point" (2001 ) - #34 Australia
*"We Rock Hard " (1998 ) #33 UKDJ Mixes/Compilations
*"
A Different Story Vol. 1 " (2007 )
*"Fabric Live 19 " (2004 )
*"Electro Science " (2000 )
*"Rough Technique Vol. 1 " (1998 )
*"FSUK2 " (1998 )ingles
*"Dynamite Love" (
2007 )
*"Electrified" (2007 )
*"In Love With You" (2006 ) #40 Australia
*"Painkiller" (featuring Pendulum & Sirreal) (2006 )
*"Boom Blast" (featuringMillion Dan ) (2005 ) #75 UK
*"Fasten Your Seatbelts" (with Pendulum) (2005 )
*"Get A Life" (2004 ) #66 UK, #15 Australia
*"Push Up" (featuring Theo) (2004 ) #22 UK, #2 Australia, #1 Belgium
*"Told You So" (2002 ) #100 Australia
*"Here We Go" (1999 ) #45 UK
*"B-Boy Stance" (featuringTenor Fly ) (26th January1998 ) #23 UK
*"Ruffneck" (featuringMC Navigator ) (1998 ) #23 UK
*"Warning" (featuringMC Navigator ) (1998 ) #68 UK
*"Adventures in Freestyle EP" (1997 )
*"Uprock EP" (16th June1997 )
*"Freestyle EP" (1996 )
*"Now Is The Time"
*"Get Down Massive"Interviews
Radio
* [http://syn.org.au/syncast/ Radio Interview. Dec 2006] -
3SYN 90.7FM Melbourne,Australia External links
* [http://www.freestylersmusic.co.uk The Official Freestylers Website]
* [http://www.residentadvisor.net/forum-read.aspx?id=34360&page=1 DJ Review]
* MySpace URLs
** [http://www.myspace.com/freestylersmusic Freestylers]
** [http://www.myspace.com/mattfreestylers Matt Cantor]
** [http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=user.viewprofile&friendid=59046472 Aston Harvey]
** [http://www.myspace.com/richbudgen Rich Budgen]
** [http://www.myspace.com/sonofhoward Dave Budgen]
** [http://www.myspace.com/mcnavigator MC Navigator]
** [http://www.myspace.com/tenorfly Tenor Fly]
** [http://www.myspace.com/maddoctorx Mad Doctor X]
** [http://www.myspace.com/milliondan Million Dan]
** [http://www.myspace.com/justinhell Justin Warfield]
** [http://www.myspace.com/spannerbanner Spanner Banner]
** [http://www.myspace.com/maxfieldvalerie Valerie M]
** [http://www.myspace.com/topcat Top Cat]
* [http://www.ruffnett.com/ Freestylers/Freskanova information at Ruffnett]
* [http://www.thefreestylers.com/ Freestylers web page from Supercharged/Against The Grain]
* [http://mammoth.go.com/freestylers/ Freestylers web page from Mammoth (US Record Label for We Rock Hard and Pressure Point)]
* [http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=Byd9gs37ua3pg/ Allmusic.com Freestylers page]
* [http://www.pias.com/videos/freestylers-pushup.wmv Freestylers Push Up Video]
* [http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/freestylers/artist.jhtml?_requestid=1068574/ Freestylers VH1 page]
*
*
* [http://www.petrajean.com/ Petra Jean Phillipson]References
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.