Places and Spaces: Making Beats on the Road - ‘Bat’leth’

“In the drink aisle I started to feel chest pain and had a bout of vertigo, the shelf in front me seemed to spin and I began to shake uncontrollably.”

For several years I was making beats while living out of my van. The circumstances that put me on the road were unexpected, and it wasn’t my first choice for a lifestyle, but the experiences I had were irreplaceable and the music that came out of this time came to define where I am now. Where am I now? Before I answer that, it might help to explore where I’ve been.

Setting up shop in a pizza place taking samples for what became “Bat’leth” with Guilty Simpson, Fame, and Kool G Rap. I had to charge my phone, so why not kill two birds with one stone.

Fort Collins, CO:

A few nights before I arrived in FoCo, I was in Chicago visiting some old spots and had one of the worst nights of sleep of my life. It was dangerously hot in the van and I was in a neighborhood where, to avoid unwanted attention, I couldn’t leave the car running to use the A/C. I bought a bag of ice from 7-Eleven and held it like a teddy bear as I sweated through the humid late-summer Chicago heat. I left the next morning for Fort Collins, CO. A place where I used to live and where van living started for me, for better or for worse.

I was in the middle of making ‘Actus Reus’ with Guilty Simpson, and I had an absolute banger on my hands with the track ‘Bat’leth’. The beat was made a few years earlier from a record I checked out from the Chicago Public Library (an excellent resource for producers on a budget), the verses from Guilty, Fame, and G Rap came later. The song still had more of a demo feel to it, it was missing the glue to tie all the verses together thematically.

I had one more night before it was time to head down to New Mexico to meet a friend and hunger was badgering me, I remember not feeling well. I brought my spartan recording setup in to Avogadro’s Number, a community staple with live music and food near downtown, to go through some of the records I found that week at All Sales Vinyl, including a record about how to make crêpes.

One record I was excited to check out was sealed copy of a record with field recordings from the Six-Day War. This record proved to have what was required to set the tone for “Bat’leth”. The recording of the radio broadcasts, bombs, and the news announcer all came from this record. It was a coincidence that both G Rap and Guilty had references to conflicts in the Middle East in their verses, and that Fame has the haunting line on his opening verse where he compares his home to a warzone, so the opening sample and bridge sample from this record fit perfectly. I sent the finished demo to all 3 emcee’s immediately and they all felt the vibe.

That night, I went to chateau Wal-mart to stock up on supplies and sleep for the night. For those that don’t know, most Wal-marts allow RVs and personal vehicles to park overnight and sleep. When you’re living in your car, finding a place to park for the night without getting hassled can be a huge pain, so Wal-marts were helpful in that you didn’t need to do too much thinking about where to catch some Z’s and the chance of getting bothered by police or other ‘tough guys’ was lower. It’s also necessary to make sure you’re well stocked at all times on simple foods and drinks to, frankly, stay alive.

In the drink aisle I started to feel chest pain and had a bout of vertigo, the shelf in front me seemed to spin and I began to shake uncontrollably. I was checked-in to the nearest hospital and was immediately IV’d and hooked to an EKG. It turns out my kidneys were working over-time because of severe dehydration. I was thankful it wasn’t anything worse.

When you’re living in your car you are essentially exposed to the elements. You might not be on the street, but there are limited climate control options, and if you don’t have anywhere to go, you’re wandering outside all day if you need to get things done. Without knowing it, I put myself in danger, sweating through the night in Chicago, hauling-ass for 15 hours to Fort Collins, and spending half the day in a record store digging. Somewhere in that time I forgot to drink enough water. It might sound stupid to some people but it really did sneak up on me. I was too engrossed in the work to focus on self-care. Most people don’t work a full-time remote job, produce 2 albums, and live in their car at the same time.

What good would a banging hip-hop track with my idols be if I wasn’t around to enjoy it? The lesson here is don’t be an idiot, go to the library, eat more pizza, and drink more goddamned water.