Bad Taste are Aotearoa’s newest hip hop super-duo, masterminded by turntable wizard Alphabethead and veteran lyricist Young Gho$t. A decade apart in age and with vastly divergent musical tastes they explore the merger of their artistic practices.
Adrift in the musical cosmos, somewhere between the constellations of hip hop, electronica and experimental rock exists Alphabethead. An innovative producer who cut his teeth in the hip-hop battle scene. He began DJing at 15 and his first few years were dedicated entirely to the world of turntablism and competitive DJ compititions. He he found himself the New Zealand DMC champion aged only 18. In more recent years he found himself as one of the cogs behind experimental post-punkers The All Seeing Hand. Alphabethead has toured internationally, and performed at a variety of festivals such as Womad, Splore, Laneway and The International Jazz Festival.
The other half of Bad Taste is its frontman and mouthpiece; forthright lyricist and seasoned bar-spitter Young Gho$t. A dab hand on the mic with over eight years experience. Known for an all-encompassing upfront and raw style that defies genre, Gho$t found his natural match in Alphabethead. With countless club shows, two full-length albums and a handful of EPs under his belt, Gho$t has taken extra time and care to make sure his Bad Taste project elevates his sonic pallet to new heights both musically and lyrically.
"Sure to turn heads, the self-titled collection sounds like the hip hop duo have a bottomless grab-bag of ideas to draw upon, sculpting a wide variety of sliced 'n' diced elements into mind-boggling new shapes. Meeting the ambition of Alphabethead's dope beat wizardry head on, Young Gho$t's imaginative lyrical flow takes you on a cosmic ride while situating all the blazed madness 100% in everyday Aotearoa. Their shared appreciation of pop culture is on full display too, giving props to red fox puppet larrikin Basil Brush at one moment, art-pop pioneer Laurie Anderson the next."
Chris Cudby, UTR
