ROX-TV sits down with Murder House Records and Troubled Mindz
All of these artists were featured on a Murder House Release called #Since99 that came out in 2019 on your label. As an old school Juggalo and ESHAM fan, the music featured on the album takes me back to an earlier time in Murder Mitten music. Since the early to mid 90’s, I’ve been digging on that dark vibe that seems to hang over the underground scene in Michigan.
I place a high value on the original causes of things. I don’t just enjoy what is, but what made “that” possible. Beyond that, I also dig personal stories from the artists that create music. Before we get into some more in depth questions about Murder House, I feel like for newer readers and first timers, if you could introduce them to who exactly are the faces of Murder House Records?
The original lineup for Troubled Mindz was Toxzik, Wicked K and Demonic. We all 3 met each other in school and had common interests. We actually started off backyard wrestling with each other. We all discovered we had similar music interests as well with influences like ICP, House Of Krazees, Esham, NATAS, Bedlam and other underground artists from around the Detroit area. Through the magic of the brand new-ish internet at the time, we discovered that we could download instrumentals of popular rap beats off of super sketchy programs like Napster, Kazaa, Limewire, etc.
After hearing tracks we worked on, a friend of ours gave Demonic a copy of MTV Music Generator for the PlayStation. Toxzik ended up taking that copy and making a ton of beats. We messed around on a few, liked how we sounded and decided we should start a group. Even for beginners we were smart enough to realize that finding a record label to sign us would probably take a long time, so at the same time we created the group, we created the label. We decided to sign ourselves.
Now here’s where the list starts to get longer. Over the years we’ve had an incredible amount of friends and family that helped us with all sorts of miscellaneous tasks to help us get closer to our dreams. We’ve had people put their own schedules and worries to the side just to help us with this label in some way whether it be loading in equipment, running the merch booth, security, promotion, artwork…just about anything you can think of. These people became family to us. Not just from helping us. From the experiences we all shared on this journey. I’ll list some, but I apologize if I forgot anyone:Stubbz (R.I.P), Clayton (R.I.P), Jessi (R.I.P) & John, Chris & Charbel, Juggalo Joe, Pat, Boogey, PJ, Defekt, Bruce, Bob Roxxx, Sticker Stash Customz, Stampdogg, Michelle & Audrey, Lois & Dan, Donna, Ken & Donna, and so many more but I could go on all day if I keep listing names and I want this article to be more than that haha.
Murder House formed up from the Lincoln Park zone, for ROX-TV readers who might not be from the Mitten, can you describe the area in your own words?
Back in 99’ when we started Murder House, we were all living in Lincoln Park, which is connected to Southwest Detroit. At that time, underground music in Detroit was booming. Every show we booked was packed. People in the area were thirsty for something new. We definitely thrived in the beginning years of Murder House once we started making a presence.
Did Detroit, help shape at least some aspects of the Murder House world? Obviously Detroit is a Horrorcore town, did being so close to the mecca make that journey into the Horrorcore world easier or at least give you a mark to shoot for?
It definitely made it easier to dive into horrorcore. We had a decent delivery and rhyme structure, and people clung to that immediately. Like I said, they were thirsty for something new. I’d also like to think that the rough outlook of Detroit has shaped the stories we tell in our songs and gives us ongoing inspiration to make our music darker.
You guys have been around for twenty years or more. That’s a long time in the business. How have things evolved since Murder House first got going? As far as how you reach the fans? Maybe the venues that you used to play? The technology and recording process?
When we first started, we were 3 kids with a karaoke machine, a $20 microphone from K-Mart, and no clue what they were doing. Through many trials and errors, we were able to record very poor-quality cassette tapes. As technology changed, so did our studio. Little by little. Looking back at the equipment we started with, I probably couldn’t even make a track on it today. If we had today’s equipment and knowledge back then, we would have had a humongous impact on the scene.
Reaching the fans has become a lot easier with the help of social media over the years. We used to rely on flyers that we would go to Kinko’s, print ourselves, cut ourselves, and distribute hand to hand ourselves. When MySpace came along, reaching fans got a lot easier and we were able to reach a wider audience.
Troubled Mindz is a corner stone of the Murder House scene. Can you tell the ROX-TV readers that might be just coming onto the scene a little background of the group?
For people who haven’t heard of us, we’re just a couple friends who were fans of horrorcore. We had a dream to make our own sound. We started our own group as a trio at first. After our first album, Demonic went solo and Wicked K and Toxzik stayed as Troubled Mindz. We evolved year after year, album after album, and we now have a sound that I’d like to think is unique to us. If you’re a fan of horror music, I would at least give us a try.
What makes Toxzik and Wicked K tick? The music has been coming from Troubled Mindz for a long time, so long in fact that many peers or competitors in the industry have simply faded away. What gives Troubled Mindz their staying power and will to keep producing this wicked shit?
The fans and supporters keep us going. Coming to the shows, sharing the music, buying the merch, but one of the biggest things that keeps us going is hearing stories from people about how one of our songs like “I Need Therapy”, “Going Insane” or even going back to “Suicide High”, have helped them through rough times in their lives.
As far as 2021 and beyond is concerned, what can the readers expect from Murder House Records and their artists, going forward in the future? New Projects, big plans for the next year? Any news that the Murder House camp wants to tease out?
At this moment we can confirm a new Troubled Mindz album for 2021. We already have 90% of the album done. The title of that album is “Mindz In A Dark Place.
With twenty years in the business, Murder House has opened for a lot of the big names in Horror Core. What have been some of the most memorable shows for the artists and the label?
I think the most memorable show for the label was Hell On Earth 2007. We rented out the legendary Shelter underneath Saint Andrew’s Hall. We had this elaborate “Hell’s Gates” backdrop with glow in the dark flames and everything. The whole show really embodied the spirit of Murder House.
In this journey for Murder House and the artists Troubled Mindz, what has been the hardest situation or obstacle that you guys have had to deal with since coming onto the scene all those years ago? Could be anything/maybe nothing
One of the hardest situations and obstacles we have had to deal with would be this Covid shit. Going from doing shows all the time, and then last year only being able to do a select few, or online performances. Then we lost one our best friends, Stubbz, right at the beginning of 2020 and that was definitely one of the toughest things to deal with.
We always love new material and concerts, anything dropping or coming together in the next couple months?
We have a show coming up on April 10th at Simon’s After Dark. It’s actually a concert/death match. I believe as of right now there will be 5 death matches as well as performances by Suicide Saints, Rookz, Sic G The Villain, and Troubled Mindz. Besides our new album that’s in the works, Gxdhatesus also have new material they’ve been working on. I can’t give specific dates for any releases, but I would expect something new soon.
Shout outs. I’m from the 90’s and this is where the shout outs go down. Who are you shouting out tonight?
First and foremost we’d like to thank you and Rox-TV for reaching out to us and doing this interview, and keeping fans up-to-date with what’s happening in the the Underground. Shout outs to all the fans and supporters that have been down with us along this 20+ year journey. Shout outs to all our other homies who are out there killing it right now and keeping the underground alive like Scum, Insane Poetry, Bake Lo, Damien Quinn, Bad Mind, Stir Crazy, Le Chum and everyone else who’s doing their part to breathe life back into the underground scene. Shout outs to our Murder Mob family past and present. Shout outs to our Murder House brothers Gxdhatesus and Ntellekt. Shout outs to every single person I mentioned up top that has helped us along the way. If we left anybody out, we apologize. And an extra shout out to all of our homies we’ve lost along the way…we’ll see you on the other side…
