HIP-HOP - MELBOURNE // MUPH AND PLUTONIC
Sobriety its Own Reward
of people do the ‘’n’ like Bliss ‘n Esso. That’s been an ongoing o“Heaps thing. Heaps of people think it’s ‘’n’,” says Dan, otherwise known
as Muph (sometimes) from the frequently improperly titled Muph and Plutonic. But there are more important things to worry about. “I used to care. I don’t care anymore. I get called Murph heaps. Murph and Plutonic. I’m used to it.” SAUCE thinks that it’s a strangely melancholic to say, despite the smile in his voice.
Sounds like you’ve been battling a few inner demons… Yeah, it’s an ongoing thing. I guess a lot of people have their own inner demons so hopefully they’ll get something out of that song too. I empathise with you. I’m also not alone in that sort of stuff. It seems to be a condition humans are stuck with. We’ve been getting “out of it” since they invented red wine… Yeah, I know, and it seems to be increasing these days as well. Not to be too negative, but with the way the world is these days there’s a lot to worry about and stress about, and I guess it has even more appeal these days to just switch off for a moment and not think about it. But unfortunately it can get kind of addictive so, yeah… There seems to be a lot of double standards in our society as well, in terms of what’s a legal and an illegal way to escape. Just a couple of days ago here, some brothers were sentenced to twelve months jail for growing a marijuana plantation. One of the things the judge said was that they had “intent to profit from harming the community.” What the heck is the difference between that and an alcohol brewer or a cigarette company? That’s exactly right. It’s just the government need to be
able to put a tax on it and make some money out of it. It’s all drugs really. To me, they’re all on a similar scale really. They can all have a big impact on someone’s life and take over, so I don’t see any difference between that and selling at your local bottle shop. I guess, if it can’t be governed, then they wanna ban it. There’s a great Public Enemy song called 99 Bottles and it was about a drug store and liquor store on every corner in the black communities and how they were systematic institutionalised ways of keeping people in line… subservient. These days every drug is readily available anyway and it’s in your face so. For me, it’s kind of like gambling. It’s unfortunate that some of us have addictions to certain things but at the end of the day it’s gotta be our choice to actually change that. You can’t avoid it these days, there are temptations everywhere, so… you’ve gotta work out for yourself what you can handle and what you can’t handle and deal with it that way. How do you find strength to resist temptation? To be totally honest, it’s been the last four years I’ve had this roller-coaster ride with alcohol, in particular. I guess, now, it’s got to the breaking point with me where it was almost at the point where I could be pissing away my whole career… for a while, it was like I didn’t want to let other people down, but then I realised it was me that I was letting down, so it was me that had to make that change. I’m getting help as well. I can’t do this by myself, y’know? I don’t wanna wake up in five year’s time and have wasted a whole possible career so; I guess it’s the music, in the end, that’s actually keeping me focussed. It’s a vicious cycle – you feel guilty or frustrated with yourself for doing these things and that predisposes you to drink again, I guess… Yeah. Guilt is a big part of it. There’s a lot of guilt involved with being a musician. Even after the shows, if
“… in Th vo er lv e’ m ed s a l us wi ot ic th o ia b f g n… ei u ” ng ilt a
In that vein, where did the track Beautiful Ugly come from? That song started with the beat first… It’s pretty upbeat and I guess it’s got that pretty bouncy vibe to it. I thought, with the subject matter, it kind of contrasts with that [so] I could do a more serious topic but do it in a more playful way. It’s about the effects of alcohol and drugs – any form of escapism that people crave and how ugly it can make us, and yet it has a beautiful appeal, that escapism, and that numbness has a beautiful appeal but can make things quite ugly. There’s a big part of myself in that song.
you don’t go and talk to the audience and hang out with them you can walk away from that show that you didn’t show them the attention that you think they deserve and so forth. You feel bad, so you have another drink and so forth, so it’s just a matter of dealing with that.
totally sober and am looking forward to continuing that throughout the rest of my career. And you get much more of a buzz and an adrenalin rush as well. I kind of like that nervous energy before shows these days. sDAVID WILLIAMS
It’s a lot of pressure, isn’t it; to do what you think is the “right thing?” Yeah, but at the end of the day, the music in itself, and the audience, are rewarding. For me, it’s better to enjoy that from a straighter perspective. But you know, it’s a lot of fun and games touring and that, so I’m just looking forward to the last few shows [which] I’ve done
Catch Muph and Plutonic on: 0 October 17 @ The Batman Fawkner 0 October 18 @ The Republic Bar Listen to more at www.sauce.net.au
SAUCE #79
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