Biography
The name Egyptian Hip Hop implies Egyptian roots or an MC collective, yet the act is actually a four-piece indie band shaped by the 1980s Hacienda scene responsible for New Order and Happy Mondays. Lead vocalist Alexander Hewett and bassist Nick Delap had previously performed together in Copycats, but after founding member Jake headed to university the pair enlisted guitarist Louis Stevenson-Miller and drummer Alex Pierce, forming Egyptian Hip Hop in 2009. While completing music technology A-levels at college, the group’s demo “Rad Pitt” landed on an NME-distributed MP3 mixtape, after which they started playing cafes and bars across greater Manchester. Support slots for Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti and Girls earned invitations to France’s MIDI festival and the Reading/Leeds festivals, and the band also developed material with Late of the Pier’s Sam Eastgate and electro producer Hudson Mohawke. Their debut single “Wild Human Child”/“Heavenly” appeared in 2010; after opening for Gold Panda and Django Django they issued their first EP, Some Reptiles Grew Wings, later that same year.
Singles