The Westside Of The Moon
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Album Summary
Dert, the underground hip-hop producer and emcee out of New Zealand, dropped 'The Westside Of The Moon' in 2007 as a deeply personal and largely self-contained project. Released during a period when the New Zealand underground scene was quietly asserting itself on the world stage, this vinyl-formatted record came out with all twenty tracks listed simply as untitled cuts — a deliberate, almost defiant artistic choice that put the music front and center without the distraction of branding or commercial packaging. The double-sided LP format, with ten tracks on each side, gave the project a raw, uninterrupted flow that felt more like a late-night session than a conventional album release.
Reception
- The album flew largely under the mainstream radar upon release, finding its audience through word-of-mouth within the New Zealand and broader underground hip-hop communities rather than through any significant chart presence.
- Critical recognition, where it existed, came from within the independent and underground hip-hop press, which appreciated the project's commitment to raw, unpolished presentation.
Significance
- The deliberate choice to leave all twenty tracks untitled speaks to a countercultural aesthetic rooted in letting the music speak for itself — a rare and bold stance in an era increasingly dominated by digital marketing and track-by-track promotion.
- 'The Westside Of The Moon' stands as a document of New Zealand's underground hip-hop movement in the mid-2000s, a scene that was carving out its own identity distinct from both American and British influences.
- The vinyl-only, side-A-side-B structure of the album reflects a deep reverence for the physical format and the tradition of listening to music as a complete, intentional experience.
Tracklist
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A1 Untitled 01 —
1:44
-
A2 Untitled 02 —
1:42
-
A3 Untitled 03 —
1:20
-
A4 Untitled 04 —
1:53
-
A5 Untitled 05 —
1:18
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A6 Untitled 06 —
1:54
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A7 Untitled 07 —
1:37
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A8 Untitled 08 —
1:43
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A9 Untitled 09 —
1:49
-
A10 Untitled 10 —
2:13
-
B1 Untitled 11 —
2:08
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B2 Untitled 12 —
1:38
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B3 Untitled 13 —
1:22
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B4 Untitled 14 —
1:38
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B5 Untitled 15 —
1:36
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B6 Untitled 16 —
1:49
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B7 Untitled 17 —
1:27
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B8 Untitled 18 —
1:33
-
B9 Untitled 19 —
2:05
-
B10 Untitled 20 —
3:12
Artist Details
Dert is a lyricist's lyricist who emerged from the underground hip-hop scene in the 2000s, carving out a reputation for his sharp wordplay and introspective rhymes that cut deep like a needle on a late-night groove. He built his foundation the old-school way — through the craft, the cipher, and a genuine love for the art form that kept his sound raw and authentic in an era of slick production. Brother brought a poet's soul to the microphone, earning the respect of fellow emcees and true hip-hop heads who knew the difference between noise and music.
