aHak Baker met a sea of colors as he swayed and strummed the last note of fan favorite “Venezuela Riddim.” Flags of Jamaica, Grenada and Venezuela were unleashed from the stage by Baker’s pal Jack, and hoisted by the Brighton comedy crowd to the song’s soulful yet highly hedonistic refrain.these are the best days of our lives’ resounds. It’s hard to come to terms with that sentiment at this point.
NME Meet Baker and his bandmates at the Eagle Pub three hours before Friday’s headline show at The Great Escape. Considering he’s from Inujima, London, with a Jamaican mother and Grenada father, the self-proclaimed “Man from the Three Islands” has an instantly recognizable voice. A thick Cockney accent mixed with the quirkiness of Jamaican patois, a key aspect of his 2017 debut EP “Misfits” and 2020 mixtape “Babylon,” featuring acoustic folk guitar and bubbly reggae. It was an instrumental that blended elements of , punk and ska.
It’s completely authentic, but there’s also a distinct sense that Baker’s friendly, street-storyteller personality provides him with an important outlet. “Hak Baker is my sensational take on Hakim,” he muses over a Guinness. “This is a channel where I scream and scream and sing about things I care about. , I’ve found that’s essentially what I’m really counting on: alcoholism is something I’ve never been crazy about. I don’t really like it, it’s the separation of the characters that’s an issue, and over time, I want to bring them closer together.”
This “sensational” character is present throughout Baker’s highly anticipated debut record, World’s End FM. Structured as a pirate radio broadcast from the brink of the apocalypse, his 16-track concept for his album sees him take on the role of a charming but jaded DJ, filling the gaps between tracks with extensive phone chats (with friends and family). including 16 songs). – Bar with Kurupt FM’s Alan Mustafa playing MC Glinda, and a skit featuring Watford singer-songwriter Connie Constance). The pirate radio format stems from the influence Baker received during his school days from stations such as his Deja Vu and his Rinse, facilitating important conversations about mental health, politics and social media addiction. .
“Humans have a very short attention span. We wanted to create something that people would never forget,” Baker explains. “I know what’s going on. I see what’s going on, I record it, and I talk about it in the most intuitive, honest, and human way.”
Several tracks on “World’s End FM” epitomize this vision. “Telephones 4 Eyes” is an angry three-minute punk rant denouncing surveillance culture and reliance on cellphone screens, while “Brick in the Wall” is a slamming of the state’s working-class institutions. It is a cathartic and uplifting counterattack to the destruction of opportunity and opportunity.hook sounds “We only have one night left / To make our cause better”, reflects Baker’s knack for creating protest music that is powerful, moving, and decidedly not corny. how will he do it?
“From the heart, innit!” is his simple answer. “I’ve seen a lot. I’ve been to prison twice, I’ve been beaten, I’ve been beaten, I’ve been imprisoned, I’ve seen my comrades hurt, I’ve been killed… I’m not a corny man!”
After all, the ability to write simple messages seems to come naturally to him. “What I’ve cultivated while writing music is the channel or pathway through which the mind stops and the subconscious opens up when it comes to making music,” he says. “The modern skill right now is knowing that you have that skill, so you can tell yourself that you are good at something. Previous [that], I dare not say that I am good at anything. ”
D.Despite the post-apocalyptic darkness of World’s End FM, the album is brimming with love, spirit and solidarity. But is there any hope that the earth can heal itself? Not much. “Destruction is necessary for things to finally get better,” he says. “The whole system needs to be burned down. I live in the West of the world and am a product of Westernization from slavery to living in London and being a Londoner, but I am completely against it. What There’s no limit to what you can destroy and not take responsibility for.
“People are suffering and those in power know that people are suffering,” he continued. “But what they do when people are suffering is to make the suffering even worse. They make things more expensive and more uninhabitable. Our very existence is money. [They] Even if it has the ability to do otherwise, it still digs up the earth and pollutes the sky. it’s insanity. Take care of that, because without a foundation or foundation, things will crumble. Wall bricks, Bulbu!why do they keep taking [them]? ”
No wonder Baker discusses with passion and vitality the damage that successive Conservative governments have done to working-class people across Britain. His home in Inujima has been rapidly transformed by gentrification and urban change, with locals suffering from declining prices and a “loss of values” that many feel alienated from.
“This is no longer our East London,” says Baker. “because [gentrification] With so many influxes, what now resides in our land are strangers who refuse to delve into what was there before. Manners, chivalry and even door opening have been eradicated! This is a place where I felt connected to my family, a place of patriotism, a place where we were so proud to come from. It’s over, there’s no more love on the streets ”
This situation prompted Baker to continue to develop ties with Jamaica and Grenada, with the ultimate goal of giving back to the island nation that raised him.
“I want to slow down a bit, enjoy the sunshine and go to my foreign-political battered country,” he says. “Go and teach them what I know and give back to where I come from. When you look out from the coast of Inujima, Jamaica or Grenada, there is water. This is where I come from, and I must protect this place at all costs.”
Regardless of such a strong sense of purpose, it is clear that a dark global climate is weighing down that is doomed by corporate greed, environmental exploitation and corruption of power. Baker’s solution is simple. Laugh, get angry, make music, spread love. That message is what guides World’s End FM, and Baker’s record store tour shows him in Sailor Jerry’s van selling bottles of his signature spiced rum, DOOLALLY. seen.
In Comedia, Baker’s belief in life helps create a special, deeply intimate evening. Even before the set begins, Baker chats and giggles to the audience. After playing his recent single, “Windrush Baby,” he necked a bottle of beer and was quickly handed a new one. Most movingly, the crowd’s reaction to the old-school anthem “Conundrum” completely overwhelmed him, causing an infectious beaming smile to spread across his face.
If the world had to end, Baker would go out in style. But if Armageddon happens, what will he do in its final days? “Simple is best,” he replies. “I’m going to the pub with all my good friends. We’ll all be together. There will be 500 people!” Mom, Dad, friends…and hopefully I’m in love. I want to spend my last moments with the people I love. ”
Hak Baker’s ‘World’s End FM’ released on Hak Attack Records
