Q: Do you have any favourite songs off your new self-titled third album? If so, why? Is there something in the lyric that resonates with you?
A: We all have different favourites and I personally find it hard to single out tracks as being better than others.
I really like the freshness of Article 9 with MCs Ayumu, Chikau, Piyo and Korsuke.
Those guys spent a lot of time ruminating on the complexities of the Japanese constitution, and as young Japanese MCs, they work some fairly heavy material.
Q: The album sure covers plenty of ground, from dub and roots-reggae to hip-hop to soul. Did you have a clear idea in mind as to how you wanted the album to sound? Or was it a case of experimenting as you went and just seeing where the mood took you?
A: We never set out to have a specific sound or style, though we often set up processes in order to create the music.
For example, we had a writing session with our vocalists in Martinborough in order to generate material.
We also spent some time at Trident Studios tracking loads of different instruments.
We took all this material back to our studio and messed with it. We then mixed it through the mixing desk at Trident.
The sound that came out the other end was a result of all this experimentation.
Q: Can you explain your methodology? Is there a common way in which you work on material - eg, does someone focus on beats, another on textures or effects, another on lyrics?
A: We have a fairly loose approach to our methodology.
Lyrically, our vocalists work on their own material, and we sometimes help out where we can.
Musically, each track comes into being in various different ways. We did a drum recording session with Darren Mathiassen and built some tracks around his beats.
Some tracks I have written on a sampler, others have come from [computer programs] Ableton Live or Protools.
Sometimes we work alone, sometimes together, but when a track gets to a certain point, Koa, Simon and I steer it to completion.
Q: Is Rhombus a full-time concern? Do you have day jobs? How busy are you?
A: For Koa [Williams], Simon [Rycroft] and me, Rhombus is a full-time concern.
This is our first independent release, and there is an extraordinary amount of work involved.
We have some people helping us in various areas, but we are a very hands-on team - everything from the music, artwork, posters, tour management, remixes, podcasts, mail-outs, website . . . the list is never ending.
Q: Do you enjoy getting down to the South? Do you book time off to enjoy yourselves away from the stage?
A: We love getting down to the South.
The last time we played at the Remarkables, Simon was a few minutes late to start due to a pause in the ski lift.
We have a lot of good friends in the South and they always look after us.
We never seem to have the time to book in a week up the mountain, but there is always enough downtime to soak up the scenery.
Q: How big is your tour line-up? Have you pulled in some extra musicians [eg horn section]. Does the line-up change depending on where you are playing?
A: The tour line-up consists of Simon Rycroft on the sequencing and dubs, Thomas Voyce on keyboards, Peter Hill on guitar and our four vocalists Raashi Malik, Lisa Tomlins, MC Antsman and MC Mana.
DJ Koa will be playing a few fresh cuts.
Raashi is very pregnant and won't be with us for the Otago leg of the tour, so I guess our line-up does change depending on where we are playing.
Q: Given your upbeat, yet relaxed vibe, is it a case of the bigger [audience] the better? How much does an audience affect your energy levels? Would you still be able to put on a show for, perhaps, three men and a dog?
A: We have played to small numbers before - more so in the early days.
MC Antsman likes to recount the time we rocked the crowd "and then gave her a lift home".
For the most part, we have a strong following across New Zealand, and yes, we like big crowds.
There's nothing quite like feeding off the energy of a big crowd, though it is more about the quality of the event.
We like to be able to see our audience and communicate with them directly.
We also prefer happy crowds to angry ones.
• Rhombus play at Subculture, Queenstown, on Thursday, October 30, with Sunshine Sound System (DJ Downtown and MC Switch), plus DJ Koa and Choice1.
