If you been checking out popular Asian publications and web sites on the Internet, you may have seen or heard of the trio from Philadelphia.

     With their unique rhymes and style the group has been attracting the attention of fans all over the country.

     The group formed seven years ago while they attended Penn State University.

     Their big break came in 1996 when they won the Sprite "Rhymes From the Mind" rap contest. This led to a Mountain Brothers commercial that was played on urban radio stations throughout the country.

     This month, the group released their new album "Self, Volume 1" on the Pimpstrut Records label which contains tracks from the past four years that the trio felt representative of what Mountain Brothers is all about.

      Recently, I had the opportunity to interview Styles, Peril-L and Chops of the Mountain Brothers.

DENNIS: Who are the members of the Mountain Brothers and what is the ethnicity of each member of the group?

Styles: Chops is Cantonese, I am Taiwanese, and Peril-L is some of each.

Peril-L: Half and half baby.

DENNIS: Where were you born and raised? How old are you? Where were you born and raised? How old are you?

Chops: I was born in New Jersey, and lived in various places around the country. I’ve been in the Philly area for the last decade or so. I’m 26 years old.

Styles: I was born in Madison, Wisconsin. Actually I am approaching my 25th birthday and am slightly depressed about it.

Peril-L: Born and raised in the Philly area. I'm 24... been depressed about it since I passed 21.

DENNIS: What kind of atmosphere did you guys grow up in and are there a lot of
Asians in Philly?

Chops: I grew up in a lot of different places, most of which didn't have too many Asian people. In junior high, it was like me, my brother, my best friend, his sister, and like one other dude.

Peril-L: Same here. At Penn state it's mostly white too. But because the school is so big, there's still a good number of minorities... and they tended to stay to themselves. Philly doesn't have that many Asians compared to some other cities, but like in any city you'll find a certain percentage of Asians.

DENNIS: How did you guys come up with the group name, "Mountain Brothers"?

Peril-L: It's from a Chinese legend about a gang of bandits that lived on a mountain and fought against corruption and injustice. We try to apply that concept to hip-hop. How did you guys come up with the group name, "Mountain Brothers"?

DENNIS: How do you describe your style of hip-hop to the newbies who want to know what MB is all about?

Styles: That's kind of a tough question... if the person who was asking didn't know anything about hip-hop, we'd have to explain all about hip-hop culture. But in a nutshell, we try and be creative and original in the music that we make, and break new artistic ground rather than tread over old, more well-traveled terrain. That's kind of a tough question... if the person who was asking didn't know anything about hip-hop, we'd have to explain all about hip-hop culture. But in a nutshell, we try and be creative and original in the music that we make, and break new artistic ground rather than tread over old, more well-traveled terrain.

Chops: I'd say if you're into hip-hop/jazz groups like the Roots, Tribe Called Quest, Digable Planets, and into 70's soul and funk, you'll dig us. Also if you're into lyricism, we got lyrics for days.

DENNIS: O.k., you guys ready for the deep questions. What is the most satisfying thing about being Asian and in the music business?

Styles: Probably being looked up to by young Asian Americans trying to do music, act, or write, or anything that isn't stereotypically an "Asian" occupation. It's real cool to know that our music is kind of helping inspire other Asian Americans to pursue what they feel strongly about as well.

Chops: I think the best thing about being Asian American and in the music business is, there's not too many cats that came before us. So therefore, people don't have an idea in their head of somebody we're "supposed" to sound like, and we can just kind of be ourselves.

DENNIS: Now what is the most frustrating thing about being Asian American and in the music business?

CHOPS: Our main fans are people who know and love hip-hop music. One of the biggest frustrations is that label execs haven't figured out how to market us. Here we are, three Asian cats in a hip-hop group, but we have no gimmick. And we're not trend-followers, so we're not one of those groups that somebody can just blow up real quick and then spit us out once the gimmick fades.

APR: What kind of music do each of you listen to?

STYLES: Hip-hop, 60s and 70s soul music.

CHOPS: Yeah, stuff like Isaac Hayes, Curtis Mayfield, the Meters and jazz funk cats like Roy Ayers, Herbie Hancock, Bob James.

PERIL-L: Hip-hop and certain select female singer/songwriters.

DENNIS: Do you have any role models in the music industry or in general?

DENNIS: How about some history of the Mountain Brothers and how did you all get so hardcore into hip-hop?

STYLES: I've just been listening to hip-hop since about 1988. At first we were just fans, and then each started doing little rhymes and little songs on our own. When we met, we starting doing things together for fun... and it just grew.

CHOPS: I've been into hip-hop since '84, and began making beats in about '87. Meeting these guys kind of got me back into hip-hop real serious. I was in a heavy metal guitar phase for a while there.

PERIL-L: I had a little skate/punk phase too... but I've always been into hip-hop since like 6th grade.

DENNIS: Let's talk about your album, "Self: Volume 1". I dig the whole album! How long did it take you guys to put the whole thing together?

CHOPS: The album is pretty much the result of all our experiences as a group up until 1998. Some of the material we've been working on since as far back as '95. A lot of time and effort went into recording and mixing the record, and then re-doing the whole thing after we broke ties with the label we were on.

DENNIS: Let's dig into the life of the Mountain Brothers. What's a typical day for you guys?

PERIL-L: Get up at 7, work from 8 to 5 or 6 or 7... go home and eat, work on MB stuff or chill, go to sleep.

STYLES: Well, I'm in school now at Temple Med. Generally, I arise at 7:10, get on the subway and go to school from 8 to 12, have lunch, more school from 12-3, get back on the subway, check e-mail and work on any Mountain Brothers stuff until dinner, like 7. Eat dinner, study a few hours, watch Howard Stern, and crash.

CHOPS: I get up around 9 or 10, handle phone calls, e-mails and faxes from various people in the music industry until about 7. Sometimes I'll dub tapes, record, mix, go to the bank and post office, or make beats.

DENNIS: Trick question! When you guys were young did you breakdance?

PERIL-L: Marginally....

CHOPS: Me too, but I've destroyed all evidence of that fact, and I would rather take human lives than try to demonstrate. I have what is known as "no skills".

DENNIS: O.k. So, what does Philly have that Calif. doesn't:

STYLES: Come on! That's easy: cheese steaks! And NO SALES TAX ON CLOTHES!

DENNIS: What advice do you have for people who want to go into the music industry?

STYLES: Well, I'd tell them that they ought to be doing it for the love of the music, and no other reason. If you're in it for any other reason than personal fulfillment... there's other occupations that are easier, and will give you those same things.

PERIL-L: Be original!

CHOPS: Also, be dope. Hip-hop hates biters! Well, I'd tell them that they ought to be doing it for the love of the music, and no other reason. If you're in it for any other reason than personal fulfillment... there's other occupations that are easier, and will give you those same things.

DENNIS: Any final words?

CHOPS: Tell friends about us!!! And uh, tell enemies too! And whatever strangers you see on the street.

PERIL-L: Let your voice be heard by buying the album in volume! Be on the lookout for more MB material in the future.