1200 Techniques are an Australianhip hop group formed in 1997 inMelbourne, Australia, consisting of DJ Peril (Jason Foretti) as producer, percussionist, DJ;N'fa Forster-Jones as lead vocalist (under the name Nfamas) and Kemstar (DJ Peril's brother, Simon Foretti) as lead guitarist. Whilst primarily being in the genre of hip hip, they drew influences from other genres includingrock,funk,soul,electro,drum and bass,electro jazz andbreakbeat.^[1] They released their debut studio album,Choose One, in March 2002.

AllMusic's Jody Macgregor wrote, "Although Australia had an undergroundhip-hop scene starting in the late '80s, it wasn't until 2001 that it began to be recognized by the mainstream of Australian music. 1200 Techniques were an important part of that moment, with charting singles, appearances on TV shows like John Safran's Music Jamboree, and a sound that contained an eclectic blend of rock, dance, and funk influences to win over those Australians unconvinced their country had a place as a producer of quality hip-hop music."^[2] The group disbanded in 2005 and reformed in 2014.

Brothers DJ Peril (Jason Foretti) and Kemstar (Simon Foretti) were involved inAustralian hip hop, since the early 1980s as pre-teens.^[3][4] DJ Peril started with the Island Boys, one of Melbourne's first ever hip hop crews and he was the DJ in a number of different bands: Big Pacific, Rollercoaster, Dub and Reggae, and Blow Sound Unit.^[4][5]

Peril formed 1200 Techniques in 1997, as producer, percussionist and DJ, with the English-born brothers Nfamas (N'fa) on lead vocals and Kabba Foster-Jones on vocals.^[2][4] The Foster-Jones brothers had moved from London to Perth in 1983, they were both in a hip-hop crew, Deadly Fresh, during the mid-1990s before relocating to Melbourne.^[4] When DJ Peril saw the duo working with another band, he approached them, "I thought they were wasting their talent."^[4] The group's name references, "the Technics 1200 turntable the name also represents the multi-direction attitude of the group's music."^[4] Kemstar joined soon after, Kabba then returned to London in 1999.^[4] Kabba's vocals can still, however, be heard on some of the group's early tracks, "Don't Stop".^[6] 1200 Techniques continued with the three remaining core members, recruiting a drummer for live shows.

In 2001, 1200 Techniques were signed to an independent label called Rubber Records and they released their debut Extended Play titledInfinite Style. The lead single from the EP "Hard as Hell" was released and had a low budget video clip which saw the song receive national recognition onTriple J.^[7][8]

In April 2002, the band released the single "Karma", the lead single from their debut studio albumChoose One. "Karma" became a crossover success.^[6]Choose One was released in June and peaked at number 20 on theARIA Charts. At theARIA Music Awards of 2002, the group were nominated for five awards, with "Karma" winningARIA Award for Best Independent Release andARIA Award for Best Video.^[9] Also in 2002, the band won Best Debut Artist" and Best Hip Hop Act at theDance Music Awards.^[2] The group supportedLinkin Park on their 2002 Australian tour that year and headlined their own tour with support by American rapperPrincess Superstar.

Their second albumConsistency Theory was released in January 2004, and peaked at No. 38 on the ARIA album chart. Three singles were released from the album and all appeared on the ARIA singles chart. Following the album's release, the group appeared at theBig Day Out festival in early 2004. At theARIA Music Awards of 2004, the lead single "Eye of the Storm" was nominated for two awards. The group went on hiatus in 2005 to allow the individual members to pursue solo work.^[2] In October 2014, the group reformed and announced the release of a new extended play.^[10] After a successful fundraising campaign onPledgeMusic, the band releasedTime Has Come in January 2015.^[11]

• Jason Mark Foretti^[12]p.k.a. DJ Peril: Founder, producer,turntablist,percussionist
• N'Fa Deynde Jo Jo Forster-Jones^[12]p.k.a.Nfamas:vocals
• Kabba Adewale Verne Forster-Jones^[12]p.k.a. MC Kabba: vocals (rapping)(1997–1999)
• Simon Chris Foretti[12]p.k.a. Kemstar:guitar

DJ Peril released a solo album,King of the Beats in 2006, which includes the singles "It's About to Blow" and "Rock Ya Baby". the latter featuring singerRahsaan Patterson.^{[citation needed]}

Nfamas released a solo album, asN'fa, calledCause An Effect in 2006.^[13] Both of the album's video clips were directed by his friend, actorHeath Ledger.

Kemstar played guitar with his bandQuarter 2 Nine circa 1990 as well with the Australian supergroup The Jack (with members ofYou Am I,Grinspoon,The Living End,Spiderbait, and Sender) for the 2004Thunderstruck film soundtrack, performing on the songs "Crash & Burn" and "It's a Long Way to the Top (If You Wanna Rock 'n' Roll)".^{[citation needed]}

TheARIA Music Awards is an annual awards ceremony that recognises excellence, innovation, and achievement across all genres ofAustralian music. 1200 Techniques have won two awards from eight nominations.

• Australian hip-hop groups
• ARIA Award winners

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