Interview: Guante of Guante & Big Cats!

Over bandmate Big Cats!’s layered, dark beats, rapper Guante is an avalanche of words.
Throughout “An Unwelcome Guest” — the local hip-hop duo’s recent debut — the spoken word poet/emcee extols community unity, jabs at systematic displacement and flashes his University of Wisconsin -honed verbosity. The finished product channels a novel indie rap vibe, but the accompanying smarts and production value deem it viable.
Guante, a La Crosse, Wisc., native, lacks the deep Twin Cities roots of many local wordsmiths. He doesn’t have a visual hook like Brother Ali’ s albinism, P.O.S. ‘s punkishness or Slug ‘s well-documented ugliness. But since 2007 he and Big Cats! have drummed up considerable buzz and the very solid “An Unwelcome Guest” cements much of the hype’s validity.
Guante (Kyle Myhre ) doesn’t possess a purebred emcee’s effortless flow, but he makes up for it with earnest narratives that weave a complex concept through the record’s 15 tracks. He’s heady without treading arrogance and grassroots without nearing Palin-esque callus populism. This political consciousness doesn’t sacrifice artfulness, as the spoken word portraits are constant. “But take my coffin/set it on fire to warm this night and light this road/and if I should catch a bad one, rig my body with an IED so I can go home,” Guante forcefully spits on “If It Bleeds, It Leads.”
Big Cats! (Spencer Wirth-Davis) is the duo’s not-so-secret weapon and more than lives up to his dual billing. The man has produced for indie gloom’n’doom hip-hop staple Sage Francis and it shows. His dense beats brood powerfully, interconnect meticulously and sample diligently. Lazerbeak and Ant are the Twin Cities’ go-to dudes for beats, but Big Cats! makes a convincing case for his inclusion in local production prominence.
Guante took time to chat with A&E about his raps, Twin Cities hip-hop politics and Eminem ‘s timeless advice to young rappers.

You’ve been tabbed with the “political rapper” label. What are your politics, specifically on
“An Unwelcome Guest”?
[The political rapper label] is a thing I kind of embrace because I think it’s a positive thing when you’re talking about issues that you care about and matter in the world. My politics, generally, are community orientated. Change comes from people working together to do something. We don’t elect someone to solve all our problems; that can be a piece of the puzzle, but I’m a firm believer in the power of community organizing.
“Unwelcome Guest” is more of a specific thesis project. The album itself covers a lot of ground, in terms of stuff I wanted to talk about. On one hand it’s about struggle and displacement. On the other, it’s about violence; can violence be a tool for social change? Whose place is it to say whether or not it can be a tool for social change? That’s the main thrust of it: the idea that when the powers-that-be push an individual or community, they can’t predict how they’re going to push back. They can’t control it; it’s the natural way of things.
What’s the dynamic of Twin Cities hip-hop culture? Is it cliquey with Rhymesayers and Doomtree or is it more open and supportive?
There’s an obvious hierarchy that I think everyone recognizes. Ryhmesayers is at the top, then there’s Doomtree … beyond that is where I think things get really interesting.
You have a wide variety of styles and people doing very different things musically trying to get to that next level — whether that is the Doomtree level or the Brother Ali level or whatever.
What I’ve found, at an institutional level, it can be tough to break in. But on a face-to-face, interpersonal level everyone’s really cool, nice and supportive.
Are you a fan of the Minneapolis indie-rap elite: Atmosphere, P.O.S. and Brother Ali?
I’m a music writer (Culture Bully , alt-weeklies in Madison ), and I tend to be a pretty critical music critic. There’s no one I’m head-over-heels in love with musically here. But, I think a couple Atmosphere songs are brilliant, a couple P.O.S. songs are brilliant and couple Brother Ali songs are brilliant — but their body as a whole doesn’t bowl me over every time. I’d say I’m a fan; I’m not a die-hard, crazy fan.
Who’s the best rapper in Minneapolis?
You have to seriously consider Toki Wright . Particularly after his album came out, just as a pure, bar-for-bar rapper who’s one: a very good technical rapper, like with rhythms and flows. And two: he’s able to say really on-point things while doing it.
You’ve been flirting with “Next Big Thing” territory; is that something you embrace or is there pressure?
There’s pressure mostly just from myself. This might sound overly dramatic or whatever, but you only get one shot … that kinda sounds like Eminem …
I believe “8 Mile” covered that.
[Laughs] You really only get one chance. I don’t mean that in terms of Jay-Z knocking on your door and saying “Hey, do you wanna sign to my label?” You get one career. You have to build that career in not only a sustainable way where you can be successful, but something you can be proud of. Artistically we’re doing stuff that is forward thinking, interesting and innovative; but it’s also listenable.
In terms of “Next Big Thing,” ya know, that’s the idea. Not to be too egotistical or whatever, but we do that balance as well as anyone and we work as hard as anyone. If success is a combination of your work ethic, your talent, your community and just pure luck — we’ve had all of those things, and in pretty good supply.

Finish these sentences:

Minneapolis as a city is …
A lot more complex than people give it credit for.

Guante and Big Cats! is …
Something you can enjoy and also not feel ashamed about enjoying.