“I’ve always heard great things": US duo Calm talk coming to Leeds and keeping the independent spirit alive

When international musical acts plot a tour across the UK, their itineraries almost universally default to a predictable rhythm: London, Manchester, and perhaps Bristol.

Yet, when American underground hip-hop duo Calm. - comprising rapper Chris "Time" Steele and producer AwareNess - mapped out their Pushing on Portals tour, they intentionally broke the mould to ensure Leeds was a definitive, uncompromised destination.

“I’ve always heard great things and loved the art coming out of Leeds…” Time coolly states, “…from Nightmares on Wax, Sisters of Mercy, Chumbawamba to Gang of Four.”

With the confession from Time that he had tracked down Chumbawamba’s Boff Whaley after hearing collaborative tracks through their mutual label partner Emergency Hearts, Calm. secured a definitive stop on their Pushing on Portals tour, though it seemed they had once needed a localised pointer.

It took a few shared contacts and a recommendation from opening artist Marc Mushington to trigger their upcoming consorting with the city via the stage at The Packhorse.

A shared philosophy of creative rebellion led them to a distinct creative kinship in Leeds’ independent music heritage.

Keen to stay away from being pigeonholed into one select genre, their somewhat distinct, socially conscious sound, many could cite as being "preachy" influenced. This wasn’t intentional, yet the characterisation many acts get for this heavy, issue-driven lyricism is what Calm. are grooming to near-perfection.

A listen to such tracks as “Am I Only My Pain?” would have you believe that there must be a traditional political motivation behind them; again, the band stressed it’s a mere coincidence.

When asked about a similar sound to traditional conscious hip-hop, Time remarks on the modern digital landscape and the algorithms mining us for attention, then quickly subjugates that possible nod, explaining that good art instead breaks the walls built up between us by turning the camera inward.

“The David Lynch of hip-hop”

If anything, it’s a love of surrealism and dream states, which seems to be the concurrent theme in their work; “…it’s everything really, the music… taking the edge off of dark topics…” both men remark, as they briefly discuss the concept of their latest album, Pushing on Portals, and a fondness for speculative fiction and animation.

Critics have frequently labelled the group the “David Lynch of hip-hop” due to the intensely raw nature of their lyricism, and when asked about the parallel, Time notes Lynch’s knack for weaving humorous and wholesome moments between parallel dimensions of creeping evil.

Producer AwareNess adds: “Time is really good at taking his real-world experiences and wrapping them into something surreal,” adding “Also, we live life fully delusional but not naively.”

As far as their independent ethos through Dirty Laboratory Productions is concerned, the two are entirely candid about a grassroots venue climate that is facing unprecedented challenges.

With the tour bringing them to the UK at a time when independent venues are fighting to keep their doors open, the duo notes that the landscape is just as unforgiving back home.

“Big company conglomerates have taken over most of the venues out here…” AwareNess observes on the American climate, “and the local independent shows of the past are few and far between.”

It's a reality Time flatly reinforces, characterising the current landscape for underground acts as one of “extreme brutality.

Yet, despite AwareNess noting that in the States they are “met with more resistance than in the UK,” their feet remain firmly on the ground as they head toward the Woodhouse Lane stage.

With a special show planned for Leeds alongside exclusive UK tour t-shirts, Time states that they will be running an interactive freestyle set where the audience provides the material, issuing a direct challenge to the crowd to “bring your most complicated word.”

It is an uncompromised live experience that AwareNess promises will deliver for local hip-hop purists; “If you're a fan of hip-hop, bars (lyrics), Art in general, then you won't be let down. We're not flying out there just to do some show that leaves you scratching your head.”

Calm. will perform live at The Packhorse on Woodhouse Lane on June 9 with the show starting at 7pm. Tickets will be made available through Bandsintown or by paying on the door at the event.