Apsci
Encyclopedia
ApSci is a video-centric avant pop duo with origins in indie hip hop. As individuals, their roots go back to punk rock and opera. The duo consists of Bronx born, New Jersey
-bred Ra Lamotta and his Filipino
-Australian wife Dana Diaz-Tutaan. The duo, which has been performing together since meeting in 1998, have received added attention after being signed to underground hip hop
label
Quannum Projects
in 2004. The band name is a portmanteau of "applied science."
group Vitapup before expanding to production work in New York City music studios. Then Sydney
-based Dana Diaz-Tutaan, a classically-trained singer with theater background, was heavily involved in the Australian hip hop
underground scene at this point, and met LaMotta through mutual friends when she travelled to NYC to complete some studio sessions with hip hop outfit Meta Bass'n'Breath. After Diaz-Tutaan relocated to NYC, the pair began playing as Applied Science in many downtown clubs such as Baby Jupiter, The Knitting Factory
, CBGB's and the Nuyorican
. In this period they met now resident Def Jux DJ, DJ Big Wiz. Soon after they also started working with drummer Guy Licata, known for his work with Bill Laswell
, The Collective, Dr Israel, Hercules and Love Affair
and Santigold.
e
The group released their first album, Get It Twisted, on Australian indie hip hop label Elefant Traks
on November 17, 2003, and their European EP Release of Tirade Highway in early 2004. Around this time Diaz-Tutaan signed on to work with American
underground hip hop group Blackalicious
during the latter group's Australian tour. During the tour, the duo garnered the attention of Blackalicious
DJ Chief Xcel, who was impressed with their recently-released CD. Chief Xcel soon signed the group to Quannum Projects
, and with his blessing Get It Twisted was re-released as Thanks for Asking
on July 26, 2005. The new version of the album was primarily produced by LaMotta and features guest spots by Big Wiz's Def Jux labelmate Mr. Lif
, Tunde of TV On The Radio
, Martin Perna
of [Antibalas] and Pigeon John (Quannum Projects). During their European tours they've played outdoor festivals such as the well-known Eurockéennes
Festival, where they picked up French-based DJ Gero, DMC
France Champion.
In 2006, Diaz-Tutaan was asked to play the lead role of Imelda Marcos
in Here Lies Love
, a musical collaboration with David Byrne
& Fat Boy Slim. Diaz-Tutaan performed alongside Byrne at the premier of the musical in the Adelaide Festival.
Over 2007 ApSci continued to do shows throughout Europe, U.S., Asia and Australia including recent headlining the 2007 Pyramid Rock Festival
for NYE. They have reportedly been working on their sophomore record due Winter 08 on Quannum Projects.
LaMotta featured on the Plump DJs single 'Shifting Gears'.
In 2009 ApSci released 'Best Crisis Ever' on Quannum Projects. The first single & video 'Under Control' was shot entirely with an iPhone and garnered attention from Wired.com. The second single 'Crazy Crazy Insane' was featured in a Time Warner Cable commercial and the song's video was featured on YouTube's homepage.
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New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
-bred Ra Lamotta and his Filipino
Filipino people
The Filipino people or Filipinos are an Austronesian ethnic group native to the islands of the Philippines. There are about 92 million Filipinos in the Philippines, and about 11 million living outside the Philippines ....
-Australian wife Dana Diaz-Tutaan. The duo, which has been performing together since meeting in 1998, have received added attention after being signed to underground hip hop
Underground hip hop
Underground hip hop is an umbrella term for hip hop music outside the general commercial canon. It is typically associated with independent artists, signed toindependent labels or no label at all....
label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
Quannum Projects
Quannum Projects
Quannum Projects is a hip hop collective based in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has been active since 1992, when it was formed at UC Davis under the moniker Solesides Records. It is also the name of the independent record label that releases their records, as well as those of a number of other...
in 2004. The band name is a portmanteau of "applied science."
History
Raphael LaMotta, previously known as Raphael Heatley, began his musical career as bassist for the NYC indie punkIndie (music)
In music, independent music, often shortened to indie music or "indie" is a term used to describe independence from major commercial record labels or their subsidiaries, and an autonomous, Do-It-Yourself approach to recording and publishing....
group Vitapup before expanding to production work in New York City music studios. Then Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
-based Dana Diaz-Tutaan, a classically-trained singer with theater background, was heavily involved in the Australian hip hop
Australian hip hop
Australian hip hop music began in the early 1980s; originally it was primarily influenced by hip hop music and culture imported via radio and television from the United States of America. However, since the 1990s, a distinctive local style has developed. Australian hip hop is an underground music...
underground scene at this point, and met LaMotta through mutual friends when she travelled to NYC to complete some studio sessions with hip hop outfit Meta Bass'n'Breath. After Diaz-Tutaan relocated to NYC, the pair began playing as Applied Science in many downtown clubs such as Baby Jupiter, The Knitting Factory
Knitting Factory
The Knitting Factory is a music venue and concert house with locations in Brooklyn, Boise, Reno, and Spokane. The club originally specialized in jazz and experimental music and has expanded to showcasing all genres of music, performing arts and comedy....
, CBGB's and the Nuyorican
Nuyorican
Nuyorican is a portmanteau of the terms "New York" and "Puerto Rican" and refers to the members or culture of the Puerto Rican diaspora located in or around New York State especially the New York City metropolitan area, or of their descendants...
. In this period they met now resident Def Jux DJ, DJ Big Wiz. Soon after they also started working with drummer Guy Licata, known for his work with Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell
Bill Laswell is an American bassist, producer and record label owner....
, The Collective, Dr Israel, Hercules and Love Affair
Hercules and Love Affair
Hercules and Love Affair is a musical project from New York based DJ Andy Butler. Members include Andrew Butler, Kim Ann Foxman, Mark Pistel,Aerea Negrot, and Shaun Wright...
and Santigold.
e
The group released their first album, Get It Twisted, on Australian indie hip hop label Elefant Traks
Elefant Traks
Elefant Traks is an Australian hip hop record label based in Sydney, Australia. Elefant Traks are distributed nationally through Inertia Distribution.-History:...
on November 17, 2003, and their European EP Release of Tirade Highway in early 2004. Around this time Diaz-Tutaan signed on to work with American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
underground hip hop group Blackalicious
Blackalicious
Blackalicious is an American hip hop duo from Sacramento, California made up of rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel . They are noted for Gift of Gab's often "tongue-twisting", multisyllabic, complex rhymes and Chief Xcel's "classic" beats...
during the latter group's Australian tour. During the tour, the duo garnered the attention of Blackalicious
Blackalicious
Blackalicious is an American hip hop duo from Sacramento, California made up of rapper Gift of Gab and DJ/producer Chief Xcel . They are noted for Gift of Gab's often "tongue-twisting", multisyllabic, complex rhymes and Chief Xcel's "classic" beats...
DJ Chief Xcel, who was impressed with their recently-released CD. Chief Xcel soon signed the group to Quannum Projects
Quannum Projects
Quannum Projects is a hip hop collective based in the San Francisco Bay Area. It has been active since 1992, when it was formed at UC Davis under the moniker Solesides Records. It is also the name of the independent record label that releases their records, as well as those of a number of other...
, and with his blessing Get It Twisted was re-released as Thanks for Asking
Thanks for Asking
Thanks for Asking is an alternative hip hop album by Apsci, released on Quannum Projects on July 26, 2005. The album includes songs from the groups Elefant Traks debut Get It Twisted, plus newer tracks produced by frontman Ra LaMotta. Guest spots include appearances by Quannum labelmates Pigeon...
on July 26, 2005. The new version of the album was primarily produced by LaMotta and features guest spots by Big Wiz's Def Jux labelmate Mr. Lif
Mr. Lif
Mr. Lif is an American hip hop artist from Boston, Massachusetts. Often noted for his political lyrics, he has released two studio albums on El-P's Definitive Jux label and one on Bloodbot Tactical Enterprises. Mr...
, Tunde of TV On The Radio
TV on the Radio
TV on the Radio is an American art rock band formed in 2001 in Brooklyn, New York, whose music spans numerous diverse genres, from post-punk to electro and free jazz to soul music....
, Martin Perna
Martín Perna
Martin Perna is an educator, social entrepreneur, and multidisciplinary artist living in Austin, Texas.-Music:He is founder of the musical groups Antibalas and Ocote Soul Sounds, and has written for and/or recorded with Sharon Jones, Scarlett Johansson, Baaba Maal, Angelique Kidjo, The Whitefield...
of [Antibalas] and Pigeon John (Quannum Projects). During their European tours they've played outdoor festivals such as the well-known Eurockéennes
Eurockéennes
The Eurockéennes de Belfort is one of France's largest rock music festivals. The Eurockéennes, a play on words involving the words rock and européennes , is a festival based in a nature reserve in Malsaucy near Belfort...
Festival, where they picked up French-based DJ Gero, DMC
DMC
-Computer Science or IT:*Diffusion Monte Carlo, a method that utilizes a Green function to solve the Schrödinger equation*Dynamic Markov Compression, a general purpose statistical data compression algorithm...
France Champion.
In 2006, Diaz-Tutaan was asked to play the lead role of Imelda Marcos
Imelda Marcos
Imelda R. Marcos is a Filipino politician and widow of 10th Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos. Upon the ascension of her husband to political power, she held various positions to the government until 1986...
in Here Lies Love
Here Lies Love
Here Lies Love is a concept album and rock musical made in collaboration between David Byrne and Fatboy Slim, about the life of the former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda Marcos along with the woman who raised her—Estrella Cumpas—and follows Marcos until she and her family were forced to leave...
, a musical collaboration with David Byrne
David Byrne (musician)
David Byrne is a musician and artist, best known as a founding member and principal songwriter of the American new wave band Talking Heads, which was active between 1975 and 1991. Since then, Byrne has released his own solo recordings and worked with various media including film, photography,...
& Fat Boy Slim. Diaz-Tutaan performed alongside Byrne at the premier of the musical in the Adelaide Festival.
Over 2007 ApSci continued to do shows throughout Europe, U.S., Asia and Australia including recent headlining the 2007 Pyramid Rock Festival
Pyramid Rock Festival
The Pyramid Rock Festival is a New Year's Eve camp-out rock music festival at Pyramid Rock, Phillip Island, Victoria, Australia.Beginning in 2004, it runs over two nights with two stages - the Main Stage, and the Pharaoh's Annex...
for NYE. They have reportedly been working on their sophomore record due Winter 08 on Quannum Projects.
LaMotta featured on the Plump DJs single 'Shifting Gears'.
In 2009 ApSci released 'Best Crisis Ever' on Quannum Projects. The first single & video 'Under Control' was shot entirely with an iPhone and garnered attention from Wired.com. The second single 'Crazy Crazy Insane' was featured in a Time Warner Cable commercial and the song's video was featured on YouTube's homepage.
Studio albums
- Get It Twisted (2003, Elefant Traks)
- Thanks for AskingThanks for AskingThanks for Asking is an alternative hip hop album by Apsci, released on Quannum Projects on July 26, 2005. The album includes songs from the groups Elefant Traks debut Get It Twisted, plus newer tracks produced by frontman Ra LaMotta. Guest spots include appearances by Quannum labelmates Pigeon...
(2005, Quannum Projects) - Best Crisis Ever (2009, Quannum Projects)
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Singles
- See That? (12") (2005, Quannum Projects)
- "Tirade Highway" (12") (2004 Ekler'o'shock)