Shadow Authors are an Adelaide hip hop duo consisting of Subliminal and Dienamix who share the roles of DJ, MC and producer.
It's a potent combination that has resulted in a series of underground releases over the past several years, their 2016 mixtape being the most recent.
Roll call. Subliminal and Dienamix: which one's which and who does what?
Dienamix: Watup [sic] guys. So Subliminal is the tall guy and I'm the short ass haha. Both of us emcee. Subs is the man behind a lot of the mixing/ studio work. I basically do the raps and keep a close ear in the lab when things are getting mixed and edited for personal judgement/ input/ approval.
How did you two come to start working together?
D: Basically we grew up in high school together with the same interests in music. Subs started pennin' rhymes first and I got madd [sic] inspired by that, so not long after that I got the itch. 2005-06 was when I started writing. Best believe those rhymes are stashed deep away haha.
Subliminal: Loosely, we used to rap together near the basketball courts in cyphers over Mobb Deep instrumentals among others. At the end of '08, start of '09 we started writing songs together once I’d left the cesspit we call high school, and always worked together since.
Why call yourselves Shadow Authors?
D: The name Shadow Authors only came about a little while before we dropped the mixtape. We had to think of a name for ourselves: 'Subliminal and Dienamix' felt a bit too long. I think it resonates well and suits our dark, real-life type of style.
S: It was originally the title of our debut mixtape; once the theme and identity was established we realised people were gonna call us that anyway haha. We take pride and care with our lyrics and penmanship, and a lot of our content comes from the shadow self, so the name is [quite] appropriate.
What sets Shadow Authors apart from other local artists/ crews?
D: I really think we put a lot more time, thought and effort into our work tbh. Also a lot more feeling and emotion that the people around us can relate to. We're not afraid to touch on subjects that many other artists don't. It's not all happy days and colourful rainbows out here, so we don't sugarcoat anything – 100 per cent real life sh.t.
S: Our magnum dongs.
Is there a guiding philosophy to the group that helps give your work direction?
S: Quality over quantity. Integrity, passion, love for music in general and the hip hop culture in all of its elements above fame, flashy, gimmicky or over-saturated, non-relatable pugwash [sic]. As Dienamix has touched on, we aren’t afraid to touch on subjects that others don’t. We use music as a form of catharsis and as a form of therapy. That can be perceived as dark, angry, honest, uplifting or positive. But our philosophy is to always give the listener our 100 per cent truth and [to] work through our personal struggles in music, in hopes that others can relate and we can help others through their own trials and tribulations.
You released your Shadow Authors mixtape in 2016: what have you been up to lately?
D: Since the mixtape was released we have been heavily working on a D.O.S album (Dienamix.Oblivious.Subliminal) entirely produced by Oblivious. This will be the next project to be released hopefully this year. I have also been steadily working on a solo LP for the last few years too. As well as another Shadow Authors release.
S: I've just been stripping, doing bank robberies and drinking vanilla thickshakes.
Is there an album in the works?
D: Most definitely. We are still in the writing process of it all so early days still.
S: As Dienamix has mentioned we have been putting majority of our focus into this D.O.S album, but as that is in final stages of completion I have produced an album's worth of beats for a new Shadow Authors release, so just in the writing process with nothing set in stone yet.
How does the music you're producing now compare with tracks from the mixtape?
D: From then to now we have developed even more as artists so I think there's a lot more direction with our new stuff and much higher quality in all areas. It's still us though so you can expect a lot of raw emotion and even more passion. We're hungrier than ever right now.
S: The Shadow Authors mixtape never really reflected our abilities as it was released so long after completion due to numerous unforeseen things; a lot of what people were hearing in 2016 was actually made in 2013 or 2014. The main difference I think is maturity and development of the craft; we have made a lot of songs since then haha. Also, from now on I am handling all the beats (beforehand that wasn’t an option) so I have the pleasure of creating the musical landscape to fit our identity and musical flavour. Also improvements in equiptment, knowledge and experience means that our quality is a hell of a lot better than the mixtape.
Describe a Shadow Authors live show...
D: Raw, aggressive, in your face, powerful, heavy emotion, lots of energy, dark, uplifting all in one!
S: Imagine being horny, scared, excited, happy, sad and proud. We’re the full journey. Everytime you come to one of our shows, we want to change your life and corrupt you, just a little bit.
What do you have planned for the Word Of Mouth Part II show?
D: An hour-long set full of all new material as well as a couple of favorites off the mixtape. A lot of heavy tracks on this setlist so be prepared for that. We also have a couple of very special guests joining us throughout the set too. This will be a huge one for real!
S: I'm going to be dressed in all bondage, Dienamix is coming in a hotdog suit. My mum will be crowdsurfing. Gonna have burritos thrown to the crowd instead of CDs and also gonna have a tanning booth so everyone looks like Oompah Loompahs. Its going to be great.
What's coming next for Shadow Authors?
S: Basically, we’re going to work on finishing the other albums close to completion already (D.O.S album, Dienamix’s solo album, a few singles/collaborations I have/finish my Rhymebook Sessions series) While that is happening we will be in the writing process for the new Shadow Authors project, be it an album or EP.
Do you two have individual projects you work on outside the duo?
D: We definitely do. I have a solo LP that's been in the works for a few years now. The writing process for that is 95% finished and I'm about halfway through the recording now. Don't want to give away too much right now but I can say that it has four beats each from four dope producers and feature verses from five artists, and you know my brother Subs is one of those features. This has been the main focus for me outside of the D.O.S album. Myself and Subliminal are also working on an EP with our long-time brother Yzur on the production. So we have all been very busy over the last four years and don't plan on stopping. Much love for reaching out. Peace
S: I look at both of us as talented and musical individuals that happen to work quite well together, but we have always had other projects/solo material as well. Dienamix has covered most of them, with the exception of a few others, but it's safe to assume that we have albums upon albums very close to reaching your ears, and there will be a overflow of our music very soon. Appreciate the the chat for real, much love!
