The OMC 4 Track: Bliss N Eso

The Skinny:

The trio known as Bliss n Eso, originally known as Bliss n’ Esoterikizm (shortening their name due to problems with pronunciation among their fans) are an award winning Australian hip-hop group based in Sydney comprised of American born MC Bliss (Jonathan Notley), Australian MC Esoterik (Max MacKinnon) and DJ Izm (Tarik Ejjamai). The group first met while attending the same high school in Sydney after Notley moved to Australia from America in the 1990’s.

“Back then hip hop was basically non-existent; there was no urban or hip-hop section in the CD stores. You’d be lucky to find a couple of albums like a Public Enemy album or something if you went to the CD stores. So I guess that’s one of the reasons why Max, who’s Eso, and I kinda bonded at high school, I think, because he was really the only other guy in the school who was into hip-hop.” – Jonathan Notley, [1]

Australian hip hop was influenced by, but distinct from, that of American hip-hop during its inception in the 1980’s. However, since the 1990s, a distinctive local style has developed localised with the use of Australian slang, political views and references to localities.

The Sounds

• Website: www.blissneso.com
• Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bliss_n_Eso
• Labels:  Obese, Illusive
• Last Album: Flying Colours

[1] – Source