Artist On Artist: Boorloo's SUPEREGO + Sakidasumi On The Musical Disconnect Between The West And East Cost Of Aus

SUPEREGO, the Australian alternative hip-hop group known for pushing genre boundaries, have dropped their latest single Lies featuring the Boorloo-based vocalist and multidisciplinary artist, Sakidasumi. 

Lies, a fusion of alternative hip-hop, electronic and soul, is the second single from the group's upcoming album and serves as a reflection on the shades of love and the remorse and melancholy that can come with it.

The emotive track tells the story of two lovers whose relationship has been eroded by dishonesty to the point of crumbling and falling apart. The track serves as a reminder of how deceit can slowly wear down even the strongest of bonds.

SUPEREGO is a storied underground group in the Australian alternative hip-hop scene, having supported well-known acts such as Midnight Oil, Sampa The Great, REMI, and Blackalicious. They even nabbed the West Australian Music Awards for Most Popular New Act and Live Act. 

Their unique sound has put them on the brink of legendary status, and their return to the music scene is highly anticipated by fans of Australian alternative music and hip-hop.

So, in celebration of SUPEREGO teaming up with Sakidasumi for their banger of a track, Lies, we had the WA-based artists interview one another to discuss everything from working on the track together, to the intricacies of the disconnect between the East and West coast of Australia when it comes to music.

SUPEREGO: It was such a great experience working on the song with you! How’d you find the collaborative process of creating ‘Lies’ compared to creating by yourself?

Sakidasumi: Collaboration is so different to working on my own. My space at home is quite small and a bit claustrophobic (lol), whereas going to Fremantle and being in your studio space and feeling the energy of what has been cultivated there was refreshing. 

I love the back-and-forth aspect of collaboration, seeing things and creating with different perspectives was really cool. And it was a really warm and comfortable studio space which made me feel at ease! It was the fastest I’ve ever written a verse, it was so surprising!

Truly, it was a great place to be, I wasn’t second-guessing myself at all, it just came really naturally.

Sakidasumi: What inspired the song Lies and its verses?

Superego: Toby and Nelson thought that the power and ramifications of lies and lying was such an interesting idea because it’s such a taboo subject in our society and also something that everyone has experienced in their life whether as a child or as an adult.

Especially the idea of rationalising lying because you think the truth will hurt someone more. But inevitably lies just make a situation worse as the receiver and as the teller of a lie. So the verses are inspired by meditations on lies and these realisations within our own lives.

Superego: Who are your favourite artists and collaborators in WA?

Sakidasumi: Oh my god so many!

Denisa Snake is an amazing Indian-Indonesian artist who is absolutely made for performance. I saw them at the Blue Room Theatre recently and it was the first Indonesian-Indian representation in theatre I’ve seen in WA, which was so special for me as an Indonesian woman.

Grace Sanders; such a special performer built for the stage, I can see NY for her or anywhere in the world!

Cez, who’s also in the Lies video clip! They’re an amazing dancer and one of my favourite movement artists. 

Mali Jo$e, he’s so sick and naturally talented and so consistent in his output. I’m always looking forward to his next drop.

You (POW! Negro / Superego)! Your performances are insane! I can see it worldwide on a massive f**ing stage!

Superego: If you could work with anyone in AUS who would you like to work with?

Sakidasumi: I’d love to do something with Srirachi! Whether it’s just as a producer or as a vocalist, I think we’d make something really special together. There’s such a big creative Asian scene in Aeora and she’s really putting it on.

She launched her own event, which arose from her starting to DJ and saying f**k it, I’m gonna book myself and make my own lineup and put all these Asian creatives on. And she’s killing it which is so inspiring to see.

Sakidasumi: How do you see SUPEREGO’s sound and presence expanding in the Boorloo music scene and wider Australian industry?

Superego: I think our sound and presence in both the Boorloo scene and the wider Aus scene has been that of trying to elevate experimental rap music and we’ve been working hard to push the quality and create an eclectic diverse record that exemplifies this. We’ve also been working hard on our aesthetic, our video clips and live show so hopefully all these contribute to helping expand our presence in the scenes.

Superego: Do you find a disconnect or a harmonious crossover between the west and east coasts of Aus music scene?

Sakidasumi: I think it depends… There's definitely been more of a disconnect but for me personally, I have connected a lot to the different scenes around Aus and overseas via Instagram and social media.

I lived in Naarm (Melbourne) for a bit, and I’ve never been to Eora (Sydney) but I feel that part of the disconnect is that booking agencies don’t look at or support WA enough. Boorloo (Perth) is the most geographically isolated city in the world and it’s super expensive to go over east but we have a great variety of artists and talented individuals here who deserve to be supported and put on more.

Sakidasumi: How do you see the music industry evolving and how are you working to keep up with it?

Superego: In the last few years it’s evolved to ask and expect more constant content from artists for less exposure and reward. Similarly, live music and sonic diversity seems to have become less popular than it was in Perth when we started.

To keep up with it all we’ve definitely been working on our social media presence and creating way more content than we ever have and continuing to make every show we put on as special as possible. I hope that the future is bringing a slowing down of this expectation of quick creation and an emphasis back towards quality over quantity - but probably not.

Superego: You recently supported Kucka in Boorloo, how was the show?

Sakidasumi: It was so good, I was blessed to be put on as support and to see her set. Every song was crazy and the production (which she does all by herself), mixing and mastering was insane! Her wife was also on stage performing with her which I thought was beautiful and would be great in terms of touring. 

It was so cool to meet her, she’s such a gentle and kind person and she’s from Boorloo (Perth) which is really inspiring! I’d love to collaborate with her one day (fingers crossed).

Superego: For all your releases and press shots your styling is so unique, what’s your process for coming up with your visual aesthetics?

Sakidasumi: I’m a highly evolving person, I’ve gone through so many phases and I’ve always loved expressing myself through fashion and I like to show that exploration through the photos and videos for my releases. The Punk and 

Heavy metal worlds have had a consistent impact on my visual aesthetic since I was a kid, industrial accessories, chunky jewellery and thick heavy boots have been a love of mine for a long time. Also, Tumblr had a major influence for me growing up. Boorloo (Perth) is a small city and being born here I didn’t have much inspiration around me but Tumblr gave me access to so many different subcultures from around the world and places where creatives were progressively pushing the boundaries of style.

In terms of process, visuals usually pop into my mind once I’ve got the song and from there I work on expanding the idea. For example, I did an event release for SLASHERBOK which had a kind of a horror vibe, so I wanted to create promo that looked eerie and Ethereal with an industrial and gothic tint to it.

Superego: Have you explored much of your Indonesian heritage into your art?

Sakidasumi: I’ve only recently reached a point now where I want to start incorporating more of my Indonesian heritage in my art, before now I'd say I’ve kept them separate. When I was young I was quite limited by my religion and especially as a woman I couldn’t express myself freely. So my art and music has been my self-liberation and total freedom of expression away from that…

However, recently I’ve really been connecting a lot more with my culture, which I love so much, separate from religion, which now I think is starting to come through in my music.

SUPEREGO: Do you have any upcoming releases you can share with us?

Sakidasumi: Hell Yes! I've got 2 singles that are coming out soon, 1 in around a month which has a crazy music video I worked really hard on. It’s a very personal song, it’s very cinematic and atmospheric and I’m super excited to share it.

The second single is a club song or for when you want to party and I’m really excited for people to hear that contrast in my art as well.

Sakidasumi: Any upcoming releases for you guys on the horizon?

Superego: Yeah we have a few! After Lies we’ve got another single called Dead People On Plastic Notes (DPOPN) ft. Mali Jo$e coming out in May and then our debut album Who Are You Hiding From? comes out in June! So we’re super excited for the next few months.