With his dope ‘Saving Seamus Ryan’ album out now, we checked in with Esoteric to talk about working with Masta Ace, nearly recording with Eminem, and why Seal is cooler than most modern rap chaps…

What’s the meaning behind the album title, ‘Saving Seamus Ryan’? And were there any other alternative titles that you considered?
“Nah, not really. That title spawned the idea of a solo record in general. It is a play on the movie Saving Private Ryan, and it just sort of stayed as the title as the album came to fruition. This was supposed to be my first solo album, but I got a little carried away with Tokyo, Egoclapper, Gary Numan, East Coast Avengers, and stuff like that.”

So what’s the story behind Max?
“Max was the dog I had to put to sleep in the beginning of the album. He was fictional, but I used memories of euthanising my Irish Setter ‘Boo’, and my wife’s family dog, Domino, for inspiration. Putting a dog to sleep is the hardest thing in the world for people like me. Dogs are easy to understand, humans are too complicated… that’s why mankind is drawn to canines – there is a simplicity and a loyalty that can’t be found in people. Saying good-bye to a dog that seemingly lived to make you happy can really affect people.”

The album comes packaged with a short story – when did that idea come about?
“That was Karma’s idea. He did the layout for the album and wanted to put the entire lyrics and liner notes inside. I was against it initially because my hands were full with so much stuff and I had just closed the books on the album emotionally and didn’t want to lay all that out there again by typing it. He talked me into it though, and I’m glad I got it done.”

Did you check out Atmosphere’s kid’s book that came with ‘When Life Gives You Lemons…’? If so, what did you think about it?
“I have seen the album at the stores definitely, and I heard some tracks from it, but I never knew it came with a children’s book. That’s a great idea. I saw it packaged like a book, I just never knew it was for kids. That rules.”

How long did ‘Bar Thief’, which sees you using lines from classic rap songs, take to write? Were there any lines that you love but just couldn’t manage to fit into the song?
“It took no time to record. I don’t write anything down, I just turn on the mic and go. I had a lot of fun with it. I remember that KRS-One song where he is connecting all the lyrics from the hit songs and I thought I’d do that with four times the lyrics, make it all hardcore hip-hop, and just reference stand-out lines. I challenge anyone to catch them all. The song was actually inspired by the Fat Albert sample I found where the kid gets caught stealing candy bars. Hence the concept and title, ‘Bar Thief’.”

What one line or couplet of yours would you most like to hear incorporated into a rhyme by another rapper? And which rapper?
“Not sure, probably something where I’m referring to myself in third person, so the guy would have to directly dickride me. I think the obvious answer would be to have Jay-Z quote one my lines, but at this point, I think I’d prefer Seal. Seal has some joints man, and he’s cooler than all the rappers.”

How did the hook up with Masta Ace come about? What was he like to work with?
“Edo G put me in touch with him. I wanted to get Ace on the record because the album tells one long story, and I know that is Ace’s forte. He always impressed me with seeing an entire album out from beginning to end and making it all tie together. I thought mine was a little different since I am interacting with soundbytes and samples from movies throughout the whole thing, taking things out of context to make them work, but having Ace on there just really puts a stamp on it for me.”

What’s the best piece of advice he’s given you in real life?
“He’s never really given me any advice, but honestly, you find a lot of advice in his music. He’s one of the few artists who still gets my money every time they drop an album because he entertains the shit outta me.”

And what’s your favourite Masta Ace album?
“‘Slaughtahouse’.”

You rap the line “My whole career is a maybe” on the song – what one moment in your career do you look back and wonder ‘What if?’ about the most?
“Hmm, I don’t know… We had major label offers and interest in the late ’90s and early 2000s. I don’t look at that as a big fork in the road though. Sometimes I think, ‘Hmm, what if I came a little harder on ‘Speaking Real Words’ and chose a dirtier track, would that have picked up more steam?’ Oh, and we had a chance to do a joint with Eminem back in ‘98 and I was like ‘Hell no!’ for stupid fucking reasons. I don’t think that would have changed things, but it would be nice to look back on because I have a lot of respect for the way he writes.”

If you had to select one track from the album for people to check out first, what would it be? And which one song would you advise Bill O’Reilly to check out most?
“I think I’d play ‘Hold On’ first, because it sums up a lot of themes of the album. I don’t know what track I’d advise Bill O’Reilly to check out on this album, there is no political shit here… I’d tell him to listen to our East Coast Avengers album again.”

Finally, will there be another 7L & Esoteric project any time soon?
“You bet. We are working on it now, and expect to drop it in 2010. 7L is sending me beats as we speak. Peace!”

(Click here for more on Eso’s hip-hop..)