The seeds of Wrecluse were planted in 1995 on the campus of Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. Serge Schneider (Serge Boogie) and Eric Montesano (Eraq) met through the college radio station WKSR and bonded over their appreciation for the hip-hop of the time. Immediately they began a radio show that would serve as a showcase for the deep cuts and unheralded favorites of the early 90’s. Eraq would bring the crates and he & Serge would wax poetic, speak on things and enjoy the boom bap stylings of Gangstarr, De La Soul, Wu-Tang Clan, Aceyalone, Del, The Beatnuts, Nas, Tribe Called Quest, The Pharcyde along with the underrated cuts of Pete Nice, Saafir, Group Home, Lord Finesse, Ultramagnetic, Kurious, Main Source, KMD, and Diamond D.
The show was dubbed “Beneath the Surface” and created a loyal following of listeners who. Around this time Serge was developing his natural skills as an MC. It all started with a chance meeting with a producer in his dormitory and out of this initial session came an amazing track called “The Emperor’s New Clothes”. Over a slow rolling, murky beat Serge Boogie was beginning to take shape. Eraq heard the tape and was blown away by the natural flow, voice and presence of Serge on the track. The Russian-born Ohio-based MC had a knack for poetry and an effortless, confident flow which dominated the track. On a whim, the tape was sent off to Bobbito Garcia of the world famous “Stretch & Bobbito Show”. During this time period Serge, also ran into an oddball German industrial producer by the name of Squibcakes. Through his encounter with Squibcakes he was able to use an EPS-16 to develop his one-of-a-kind production style. Fusing off-kilter samples with bumping, original and inventive drum sounds is the style Serge Boogie
The dusted, warm sound of the keyboard along with the mad sampling style of Serge Boogie spawned a series of off-the-cuff, banging, and brilliant songs crafted in a whirlwind session by Serge in 1997. These songs were collected on the “Eye Contact” LP. An underground phenom which traveled around the world switching hands through countless dubs, “Eye Contact” gave the world its first listen of the mysterious MC named Serge Boogie. Eye Contact brought forth “The Soak” where a sleep deprived, over caffeinated Serge Boogie compares the human brain
to a sponge over a lunch table kick, lunch box snare driven track, the brash and undeniably witty “Gimpology 101”, the vintage funk loop of “Hollywood”, the bugged-out, chopped-up madness and lyrical free-for-all of “Lawnmower Man” to the somber, cymbal crashing “Dog Dayz”. The EP caused waves which came to a head in 1998.
1998 was the year Serge Boogie snuck in the door. A Midwestern MC with no gimmick, no deal, no contacts, no distribution and no promotion gets shine from his originality, uniqueness and fresh songs. Self-produced and put together in a one-day session in the hills of Pennsylvania, “Eye Contact” created a buzz from the ground up. A chance appearance in the February ’98 issue of VIBE magazine sends the wolves coming to Serge’s door. VIBE Editor Blackspot heard the “Eye Contact” tapes and spent weeks trying to track down the elusive Serge Boogie. He was captivated by the brashness and confidence found in the flow of an unknown and hungry MC from the middle of Ohio. Around this time period hip-hop had not yet branched out to the untapped artists of the Midwest, Ohio specifically. The VIBE article which praised Serge Boogie for his ability to “confidently mold paragraphs into complicated weapons of crass destruction” caused a barrage of calls from people all over the globe wanting a copy of the infamous “Eye Contact” tape. DJ’s, writers and tastemakers like Bobbito Garcia and hip-hop scribe Dave Tompkins called to praise the EP and get better sounding copies. Classic lines abound in a free-for-all of rhyme scheme where each verse packs a punch. Calls from Sony550 (home to Celine Dion…word), and various shady indie labels came along with invites to open mic nights in NYC, Tokyo, Toronto, Atlanta and Los Angeles. Managers, magazines and crews looking for a novelty came as well. From The Outlawz in NJ to a manager from Detroit who was grooming an up-and-coming MC named Eminem, to incarcerated cats wanting to freestyle to him, to a famous actor’s kid wanting to make beats for him, to a one-hit hip-hop vet wanting to hook-up…it all became too much for the creative, reclusive MC/producer with a desire for an open outlet for his ideas.
Serge Boogie chose to vent his frustrations into a new project in 2000 with the drunk, German madman Squibcakes. Through a friend Serge had discovered that the producer was holed up in an empty bottle filled apartment in Columbus, OH. Serge got in contact with Squibcakes and together they crafted the blunt and booze laced “Amotivation”. The dark EP set the tone for the time, as Serge Boogie and Squibcakes experimented with hi-fi production using computer programs to produce and record the 6 song edgy, banger. “That Never-ending Beginning” keeps it sparse and bumping with drum taps and bass tones providing the soundtrack for Serge Boogie’s proclamations, while Squibcakes chops up Bill Withers “Lovely Day” for Serge’s slow roll flow on “Salvina Molesta”. Serge serves up a slice of storytelling on the self-produced sci-fi funk of “Secret Agentz” and throws down a colorfully twisted Aphex Twin meets The Bomb Squad track on the grim fairy tale “St. Idez Satire”. The Squibcakes produced “Pagin’ J.B.” flips the weed song an entirely new way while “Sensory Overload” features Serge Boogie firing off an array of punclines over “an interesting drum pattern, that switches at times, to get some corny 80s synth bass effects out, that are treated with so much freshness, it actually sounds dope.” (urbansmarts.com) And as usual Eraq came in with the scratch accompaniment.
Talking with Eraq in 2001, Serge threw down the idea to form a unit for each other’s outlets. Serge and Eraq created Wrecluse as a platform for 2 individuals to come together with sounds and create a new kind of hip-hop and pop combination. This brought forth the “True Indeed” album. The two set off to create a hip-hop record that bypassed all the bloated and tired albums and presented nine undiluted tracks from an MC and a DJ. You can call it “gutter pop”…the 9 track record supplies the hooks, the melodies and lyrics set over an eclectic soundtrack. Pop elements but with a little bit of a gritty edge to it. “True Indeed” sets off and takes the listener on an intense ride for about 30 minutes, along the way exploring the mind of Serge Boogie back dropped by psychedelic, boom-bap, sample-heavy hip-hop. Touching base with everything from indie rock to blues to 80’s pop to lounge music as well as jazz, 60’s soul and reggae.
From the opening strains of the rough and tumble drums of “Crunchtime” Serge sets it off with help from the Brady kids and some vicious lines. “Solitary Man” creeps in next with a crackling drum kit and a sublime chorus. Serge Boogie’s songwriting shines as the MC opens up and lets out, intensity building as the beat rides along, commencing with Eraq’s scratch outro over some plush horns. Serge crafts an introvert’s anthem with emotion and depth coming from every line. “Dunno” shows Serge Boogie’s originality in the beat department, crafting a catchy chorus over a chopped up soul banger. In “Whirling Dervish”, Eraq brings a twisted hard hitting ambient –laced beat to provide Serge a back drop for a storytelling descent into a club-fueled nightmare. Serge Boogie freaks it lovely on “Junkyard Love”, ramblin’ and professin’ to a female over a breezy jazz guitar. On the big band 808 boom of “The Skinny”, Serge spits the effortless game to a parrot while a lifted reggae singer croons the hook. Serge Boogie unleashes on some suckers over the thick bass and drum pounds of “Sleepy Hollow”. Effortlessly dissecting some incompetents, Serge goes for the throat and never lets up. “Cat in the Hat” continues to show and prove the diversity of Serge Boogie. Eraq hooks-up a three-movement beat, copping some blues and jazz to provide a background to Serge Boogie’s take on some social ills. Serge knew 1st hand of those social ills via his 9 to 5 as an adolescent caseworker and treatment tech at an emergency shelter care in the city of Columbus, OH. The album ends up with a straight-up hip-hop love song….but it’s like no love song you’ve ever heard. “Fresh Produce” closes out “True Indeed” with a Serge Boogie concocted dirty pop tale. Thumping beat, funky bassline, haunting piano and a stuck-in-your head chorus provide the sonic scene for Serge Boogie’s inventive take on lust and a certain female “bringing sensations to the average Charles Dickens”.
Recorded in 2001 during a chaotic 1 ½ day session at Mud Hut Studios in Pennsylvania, “True Indeed” features the polished, unstoppable flow of Serge Boogie combined with a colorful, bumping and diverse production style. Done up punk style with an MC laying down all vocals live during the session and the DJ scratching live as well, “True Indeed” bypasses the rest and keeps it fresh. A mix of hi-tech and organic, “True Indeed” combines the computer-based production madness of Serge Boogie combined with the warm, dusted sampler based style of Eraq. A fusion of two different styles with one common goal….to take sample-based production to a new realm, create bumping beats and let a talented lyricist loose. Wrecluse has lots more in store for 2005. “True Indeed” hints at the mystery, rawness and sense of discovery found in the music of Cypress Hill’s 1st album, De La’s “De La Soul Is Dead”, Beck’s “Odelay” and Gangstarr’s “Step in the Arena”. Wrecluse presents an MC and a DJ, with no guest production, MC’s or 7 songs of filler bull@#!$. We’re currently creeping into your stereo, iPod, turntable and headphones with “True Indeed”.
Along with the recently completed video for “Fresh Produce”, we are setting up dates for both a stateside and overseas tour. Two songs from the album are also currently slated to be featured in an indie film as well as an animated short. Serge and Eraq also started a publishing company with BMI called “Two Hits and a Cough” publishing which plans to expand the song work of Serge Boogie even further. Music-wise, Serge and Eraq are constantly hustling in their respective labs. They are both currently in pre-production on a funk and rock inspired heavy drum throwdown. Expect another sampling free-for-all with sources never unearthed before, crackling, dusted-out drums and thick, booming bass. Serge Boogie is speaking on the world, pop culture and society with the same intent on twisting words and packing as much street-corner, new slang poetry into each line. Yet another Serge Boogie exclusive is in the works with a Wrecluse mixtape featuring Serge Boogie snapping necks over some of his favorite beats tentatively titled “Sloppy Seconds”. Serge has also recently inked a deal with LoudLouderLoudest to have his music turned into ringtones and is also working to set up a collabo between himself and the people at realfight.com. Look out for a review slated for the August 9th edition of HIP HOP CONNECTION MAG available internationally at newsstands . And a possible upcoming review in Murder Dog.

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