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KON & AMIR OFF TRACK BBE/Rapster September 2007
Kon and Amir are two of the most extraordinary but underrated beat diggers in the game." - Lord Finesse
"Kon and Amir are legends in the beat digging game. Their compilations and mixtapes are classics and represent astyle of Djing that's true to the essence of Hip-Hop." - A-Trak
Like legendary treasure-hunters, Kon and Amir have spent the past twenty-five years excavating record bins findinggems to pierce ears with. Fortunately, everyone gets to share in the riches of their labor with the release of theirlatest offering The Off Track Series; Long forgotten musicians are now getting their proper dues and appreciativeaudiences are being turned on to some amazing music.
Since first putting it down together in 1997, the duo has released a total of eight albums; six On Track installmentsof critical acclaim, another album called The Cleaning, and most recently, an album appropriately titled, The Kings ofDiggin’ along with DJ Muro from Japan.
Most recently, Kon & Amir accepted a five record deal with BBE/Rapster to begin the Off Track series, whichbuilds off the successes of their highly respected On Track series. Unlike the On Track series, which featured shortsnippets of samples and breaks, the Off Track double disc series features full versions of some the best and rarestaudible gems in their entirety. On one disc, Kon serves up extraordinary dance music (modern soul, boogie and disco)while Amir rounds out the sonic odyssey with rare, private press jazz selections from the 70's on the other disc.
Some of the most prized material on the new album was acquired while headlining various DJ tours across Europe. Fansand music industry peers alike admire Kon and Amir not only for their vast collection of music but also for their partyrockin' abilites. Their mastery as DJ's has earned them celebrity status across Europe. During these tours, it's notuncommon for locals to bring their rare and treasured records to shows to give to Kon and Amir as a "thank you" forbringing some of the best music they've ever heard to their attention. Other locals in the European crate diggin' sceneoften take Kon and Amir to some of the best record shops in their areas. To their peers, famous or unknown, Kon and Amirare looked up to as A List DJ's who keep parties poppin’ with everything from classics that people know and tojoints from their special collection that people are happy to be introduced to.
Because of their status as A-List DJ's, it's hard to imagine a time when Amir lacked the authority to choose whatmusic he wanted to listen to. As the youngest in his family, Amir didn’t get to decide on what music the familylistened to on the weekends. He begrudgingly absorbed his father’s jazz collection, his mother’s gospel andhis older siblings' disco. It wasn’t until he was old enough to listen to the music of his choice, hip-hop, thathe fully appreciated the soundtrack of his youth. In early Run-DMC and The Treacherous Three songs he recognized many ofthe samples used on the beats from his family's music library. When he heard samples he couldn't identify, he wouldinvestigate until he found the original source. This came to be his passion; to map the sonic lineage of hip-hop.
Kon too, had been a fan of music since he was young but unlike Amir, precocious little Kon was into adult music fromday one. One of his earliest childhood memories includes going record shopping with his mother and buying Kiss, Chic,and the Disco Superman 12". "I remember having an argument with another kid in kindergarten about the correct titles ofBee Gees songs," recalls Kon with a laugh. "Whereas other kids were into pop music, I was into Stevie Wonder, ElectricLight Orchestra, and The Clash." Although Kon always loved music, it wasn't until he saw the formative movie Wildstylewith the scene of Grandmaster Flash cutting in the kitchen that Kon begged his grandmother for a mixer. Armed with aRadio Shack Realistic brand mixer, one belt-driven turntable and one vertical loading turntable, 13-year old Kon beganto put his already impressive record collection to work.
Kon and Amir met at Boston’s Biscuithead Records in 1996 while shopping for breaks. Months later they recordedtheir first On Track mixtape on a Fisher Price tape deck. Although they received little appreciation at first, theirpassion was undeniable. They did everything to learn more about their obsessions - they read biographies of greatartists, talked to record store owners and old musicians, and scoured over phone books all across America, looking forrecord stores. One particularly hairy memory of record hunting sticks out for Amir. While in Colorado one winter in themid 90's, Amir located a promising looking record store by thumbing through the phone book. After greeting the owner,who was strangely dressed in gator boots and a fuzzy trench coat, Amir feasted his eyes on bin after bin of sealedold-school hip-hop vinyl. Slowly, Amir realized that the other "shoppers" were actually crack fiends who were coming into get their supply. "It was wild," recalls Amir. "After buying 2 boxes of mint-condition hard-to-find records, the pimptold me to go next door to the pool hall to call a cab. There was nothing but pimps and whores in the pool hall, some ofwho began asking me 'Honey, you lost or something?' It was 20 degrees outside but I opted to endure the cold rather thana beat down," laughs Amir. He ended up having to wait 45 minutes in the dead of winter in Colorado with his preciousboxes of vinyl. Although Kon never encountered pimps during his digging expeditions he's had his share of dramaticexperiences ranging from dumpster diving to "borrowing" from college radio stations and public libraries. Such are theadventures that come with the dedication of scouting for long forgotten treasures.
Despite all the drama, Kon & Amir wouldn't have it any other way. When asked what keeps him motivated to keepdigging, Amir replies, "How do you explain breathing? What started out as a hobby has become a part of my life like anextra limb." Both partners are perfectly content with enduring occasional hardship to help good music see the light ofday. "Its just the nature of the beast" explains Kon. Some of the most respected names in the game, including ShadyRecords, Diamond D, Dr. Dre, Capitol Records, Pete Rock, and Lord Finesse have sought their record knowledge and diggingservices.
Thousands of hours, dollars, and record stores later, Kon & Amir are ready to bring five more expertly compileddouble-albums to the forefront for us to enjoy. They have managed to salvage some of the greatest music you've neverheard. Audiences who are tired of being force fed sub par music will thank them for providing an alternative. As Amirputs it, "We made this for the neglected audience, for people who are looking for mature music. Simply put, thesetreasures are food for the soul." Whet your appetite with the first serving of the Off Track series in September anddust off your dancing shoes for their upcoming tour.
Bio by Michelle McDevitt and Matt Bar