Goretex – Goretex, Himself

SMN News readers who also listen to underground rap are probably already acquainted with the work of Goretex. The Brooklyn, NY MC was a member of seminal hip-hop group Non-Phixion. He’s also released a solo album called The Art of Dying a few years back and made numerous guest appearances with groups like Jedi Mind Tricks. SMN News recently sat down with Goretex to talk about his history in the rap game, his thoughts on music (metal included), and his future plans.

What are your first musical memories?

I think the first memory musically I had which is odd is that song by Blue Swede, “I Cant Fight This Feeling” that was always on the radio, my mom had the 45 single.  I hate it now but yeah, some stuff like Santana, Pink Floyd too.  My dad was a Mexican pothead he always had a bunch of vinyl laying around.  Years later I realized he had Syd Barrett, Black Sabbath, Hawkwind, and Nucleus.  He has a lot of weird prog-rock and stuff along those lines.  I guess I didn’t realize how hip he was!  I also remember this obscure show on PBS in New York, it seemed like some sort of music workshop with all sorts of afro’d and dashiki wearing musicians would jam out.  It would usually feature heavy soul and funk bands along with some free jazz kind of stuff too.  I would always watch that when it was on.  Once they had Buddy Rich on and it destroyed my brain!  I couldn’t believe what he was doing!  He was the best ever and still untouched.

Which bands/artists did you obsess over when you were a kid?

When I was around 4 or 5 I started to collect music and was slowly becoming a creep.  When I went with my mom to the local library back then, they had thousands of albums you could check out.  I’d fill up my schoolbag with as much as I could jam in. I was eventually caught taking a Blondie or Hot Tuna album.  I can’t remember which.  This must’ve been around 1977.  Around 1980, I went to summer camp on Huntington, Long Island, and got turned onto stuff like Judas Priest, Iron Maiden and AC/DC.  My friend would cut himself while listening to Maiden in the back of the bus on this crappy little one speaker radio, I didn’t understand it.  I’m like, “what the hell are you doing?”  He tells me, “I’m doing it for Eddie.”  We must’ve been 7 or 8 years old.  We’d solo back and forth, it was ridiculous.  Anyway, my cousin was a local DJ out on Long Beach out on Long Island and he had all the old school hip hop stuff on vinyl and all the James Brown albums.  He was a break-dancer too who wore Puma sneakers and had the huge boom box.  I’d say he was a major influence on me musically and culturally.  He was 16 or 17 years old then so I don’t think he took me too serious back then.

Why did you choose to express yourself artistically through hip-hop rather than heavy metal?

It was never a conscious decision in terms of expression.  I’ve always written.  Whether it was poetry in school, short stories, raps, letters to girls, I always kept busy that way.  I think I saw rap more as a direct vehicle to express everything back in that time.  I had bands back then, or kiddie bands.  In 1984 I started a band called Warlock.  The singer wore obscene corpsepaint.  Ride The Lightning by Metallica had just come out and we tried ripping them off!  The singers name was Phil he had a short afro and wore upside crosses and also would cut himself.  Years later around 1991, I heard he went in the woods somewhere upstate and shot himself. Although I was always interested in both genres, rapping seemed more direct than say, putting a band together, dealing with nutjobs and flakes.  I had the instruments too.  I played and could’ve put something serious together back then but felt hip hop was my calling.  Anyway I hear my verses and flows like guitar riffs anyway it’s all the same in my world I suppose.

Was it rough in school being into such wide musical influences?

School could be rough due to the kids’ lack of culture.  By 1986 I lived in Glenwood Projects in Brooklyn.  I always had to have two or three sets of friends.  Some hated Hip Hop, some hated Metal or Hardcore so it was tough.  I know for a fact that I was the only person trying to rhyme like Rakim over “Hell Awaits” by Slayer.  Its trendy now but it meant something then. School sucked, I got tired of fighting with the guidos just because I’d wear an Exodus t-shirt to class or metal kids heard me talking about Run DMC.  It got too stupid!  If I grew my hair out, I was a “rockhead” or Satanist.  In seventh grade I started becoming a truant and when my mom would go to work, I’d throw parties everyday.  Everything was an event. I totally fucked up my education around that time and I regret that now.

Did you relate more to metalheads or hip-hop kids?

Again I had lots of different friends, but I did grow up really poor and at times I felt like I didn’t fit in anywhere really.  Who the hell would want to go to the store by yourself and pay with food stamps?  I grew up with black and Latino kids in Long Beach.  My father’s side of the family is Mexican so culturally I’ve always had that instilled in me.  We shared poverty and I guess that sometimes brings kids together.  I moved to the projects in 1986.  Metal kids may have thought I was an alien wearing shell tops with fat laces and spikes, and a cutoff Maiden denim jacket with a custom paintjob on the back.  If you looked at me as an outcast I was going to live up to it.  People in the projects always showed me love because in their world if you keep it real, you earn their respect.

After doing some solo stuff you went on to join up with Ill Bill in Non Phixion. How was it working with MC Serch (ex-3^rd Bass) and why did the group disband?

Well fast forward a bit I was the last member to join Non Phixion. Everyone was doing solo stuff before. Bill and I had a few different groups prior to Non Phixion. In 92 we started The Dead Celebrities. No one was doing the brutal fucked up shit back then except The Geto Boys, who were our main influence at the time. Musically it was more east coast. It was us and B-Wiz (R.I.P.) doing the beats. B taught me a lot about rare vinyl as he everything back then. He was the first to have a sampling keyboard around too, he had an Ensoniq. He totally influenced me and Bill. After that it was The Dept of Forensics. We did some demos; it was Bill, me and 10 K on the beats. It was definitely the most foul style wise of anything we were involved with. Bill had his “Gory Professor” style lyrically and myself I was gobbling tons of acid, so it was very interesting. To make a long story short, Non Phixion was started by MC Serch in late 1994.Sabac was his boy and he brought in DJ Eclipse. I spit for Serch one night at Bill’s crib and that was that. Serch got us a major label deal with Geffen Records but that somehow got fucked up.our A + R was the chick who signed Grim Reaper in 85, which to me was dope lol, but her knowledge of hip hop or underground hip hop was limited. She wanted us to sound more like “Puffy”, that’s all we fucking heard Puffy this or Puffy that. It was an ulcer. Miscommunications with Serch ultimately ruined the deal with Geffen. It’s a seven page story; you can fill in the blanks loll. We had a good run of 10 years and basically with a few other cats like Company Flow + Juggaknots we started the NYC underground movement. Around 95, 96 the scene was strong and you really felt like something was happening, some sort of alchemy involved. We toured the world 4 times over, met a lot of cool fucking people ,inspired tons of people and helped a lot of people along the way too. It was a blast!

What I will say about the break up is that I didn’t want the group to break up at all. It was a shock to me. I gave ten years of my life if not more to the group and something that could’ve been handled privately should’ve. It got real immature. To be honest cause I am. I had some issues with an ex-girlfriend I had been with for about three years. She had a bunch of issues that ultimately affected my professionalism in the group. There is way more to it but that’s the gist of it. Lots of legal issues too with respect I don’t want to get into but, to clear things up further, everyone besides DJ Eclipse used drugs. We respected E for that and it was never a problem, once in a while id smoke out the van he couldn’t see where he was going but everyone in the group got fucked up…..Me and Bill would drop acid every weekend at some points around 94, In 96-99.. We’d go to L.A. and get fucking zonked! Tons of  X…haha! We wound up at some party and Naomi Campbell was there and her jaw was finished. Haha! She was a zombie dude! I asked her where the bathroom was and she led me to the kitchen and told the manager I was the new chef haha.totally trashed! She admitted to me she liked W.A.S.P, which was awesome….so…lets keep it really real! I don’t mind being the “drug guy”, but let’s not get crazy.

How do you feel about your solo album, Dopesick, looking back? Did you get to do everything you wanted to do artistically?

Well I guess for what it is it was ok. I know for certain people it means a lot and helped them out in their lives, so I don’t want to go too in depth about why I don’t like it or what it lacks. To be honest the whole project was done in less than 3 weeks, written, demoed, recorded, mixed etc. It was very rushed, but what can you do? I had the title track already done but everything else was done on the spot, super spontaneous which is not the way I like to work. In a nutshell the album is a demo. No sweat, I know heads love it and it’s special to them so I’m fine with that. The Italian press for some reason tore the production to shreds focusing on mostly the mixing and mastering .They were super offended for some reason. The first Non Phixion album sonically doesn’t sound great either, but they loved that one. You can’t please everyone, it just doesn’t happen. I do agree with some of the beefs they had with the album though. Anyways, the new stuff I have been demoing already sounds 100 times fresher and it’s not even mixed yet so I’m not worried about it. I still had the best cover in the history of hip hop…haha!

You’ve done some great guest appearances in the last few years. What would be your favorite collaboration?
I’m trying to think here. I like most of them but probably the one I did with Jedi Mind Tricks which was called “Kublai Khan.”  I like the way they mixed my voice and the beat is hard! I think everyone came correct on that one. I also I like the one I did with Brian Austin Green.

Your lyrical style is very frenetic. The closest I can compare it to would be Ghostface Killah. Can you get into what inspired your flow and patterns?
I tend to view what I’m writing about or how I’m flowing as if it’s an instrument. My flows are only guitar riffs basically. Obviously there’s some influences there as well, mostly old Nas, Big L, Kool G Rap, Geto Boys and King Sun. Who wants to hear the same riff over and over? Well if your Sunn O))) or Neurosis yeah, but generally I just keep it fresh so every time you listen to it your still discovering. I think a lot of my shit people don’t even get what I’m talking about really, so maybe I’m making it harder for myself, who knows? I’m very into creating scenes for the listener and involving the audience so you get the actual scenario, I’m not a battle MC by nature but if I had to be its game over, ill shred anyone or at least, mostly anyone…haha! Maybe I should, that way I could be on “Cribs” and snort coke with Chad Kroger!

Which MC’s are currently doing something interesting to you?

I wish I’d hear new cats and be blown away but I’m not. It’s super rare in 2008 brother. If someone stands out its either cause they bite someone popular or ripped off myself or heads I grew up with. I don’t hate on anyone I’m just saying as far as hip hop it’s mostly a dead issue.  I wish id hear a new cat and be inspired. There aren’t anymore more great white hopes either. Mathers came in and took his $125 million. Its weird cause when I started getting serious in  the game like 92 it seemed there were kids everywhere getting dope, I would do shows or open mics and there was a bunch of  heads getting busy, where did they all go?. One thing I have learned is this game is that it’s not for everyone. It’s a tough fucking racket and the worse thing is that there are no rules and no guarantees. It’s all or nothing and if you aren’t ready to sacrifice everything you should just go home. I lost a lot for this shit…trust me! I die for this everyday and will continue to die for my art… All those cats got regular jobs or got locked up had 12 kids and are stuck watching “Will & Grace” with wifey while she stuffs her fucking face with Bon-Bons.

Which bands are?
I listen to everything I guess, not much hip hop after 99 the game got weird after that I’m sure you would agree. I like some but not too much recent stuff no ones heard of. I love Torche, Unearthly Trance, Aura Noir, 16 and tons of doom stuff. I’m also into Bedemon, High Tide, Iron Monkey, Saint Vitus, and Electric Wizard. I’m just looking around at what records I have laying around forgive me…haha! There’s lots of bestial black metal too: Impeity, Unlight, Semargl, Horned Almighty, Havohej. I’m also into some new thrash like Violator and Warbringer.

What are the biggest misconceptions people have about you?

Not sure what people think about me. Maybe that I’m constantly having blood orgies with hot teen sluts, while shooting the finest Hollywood Hills heroin and hanging out with John Frusciante??….wait, that would be cool…actually who knows? People are sheep they believe anything on the internet they read. It’s an atrocity, but I’ll be whatever you want me to be. Fuck you, pay me…  I tend to look at hip hop as wrestling circa 1981, I’m like Hulk Hogan when he was “bad” and had that creepy mustache. I’m a real cat but everyone tends to play a character I suppose. If I didn’t talk about brainwashing chicks with acid, or lesbian pissing who would like me?  haha. I’m not saying I didn’t rob people or stores or haven’t sold drugs, but come on dude! No one is molesting corpses, shooting 20 people a weekend, selling that much drugs, robbing that many people or pumping that much crack! This is all entertainment my friends. Most of your favorite rappers never do drugs, nor have sold any. They stay in on weekends, cuddle with their girl and go to the mall to buy stupid fucking gay anime DVD’s.

Where are you in terms of finding a label deal and when can we expect a new album?
Well I’ve been in the studio a minute now, just been demoing and getting the machine rolling. In terms of a label, it’s me doing it DIY for now. I’m hoping to get this out during the first half of 2009. I know I have my goons waiting and I want this to be official.  It’s a new chapter in my life. I want to reach people before we all die.

All of my people who stayed true, it means everything to me.  Y’all know I’m a laid back, down to earth dude. Let’s build. Thanks for taking the time out brother. The Supercoven is only expanding.  Hail Satan!

(17 votes, average: 4.53 out of 5)

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