Tag Archives: Make It Funky SF

Get to Know: Feed Me Jack [TMN Exclusive Interview/Event Preview]

Posted by Ash El Gamal - February 19, 2015

We’re really excited to be teaming up with the Make It Funky SF collective to put on a series of showcases in California highlighting local talent. Launching this Saturday, February 21st at El Rio in San Francisco, the first installment will feature experimental indie band Feed Me Jack and the folky, electronic vibes of Mosaics with support from acoustic soul duo, The Kakaroaches making for an eclectic mix of styles. As part of the series, we’ll be catching up with some of the performers to shed light on up ‘n coming musicians. RSVP at the link below.

’Feed Me Jack – Knight Fork’

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Since we were first introduced to Oakland-based Feed Me Jack a couple years back, they’ve quickly become one of our favorite up ‘n coming indie bands. The collective musical talents of the group have allowed them to perfect, and build on, a broad range of musical styles and influences. Their 2012 debut, Chumpfrey, recorded during their time at UC Santa Cruz, embodies their prowess and versatility, but the follow-up Anatolia EP saw FMJ combining their skill set with a seemingly endless amount of creativity for a cohesive, flowing sound all their own. We caught up with Sven Gamsky (guitar/vocals), Cameron Lampert (bass/vocals) and Jake Thornton (keyboard), 3 of the 5 members of Feed Me Jack (Robert Luisi on guitar/vocals and Eric Lawson on drums are the other two), in advance of their upcoming show. Enjoy the interview below, head to FMJ’s website to grab a bunch of great music and catch them at our showcase at El Rio this Saturday, it’s not one you’ll want to miss!

RSVP: Make It Funky & Music Ninja Present: Feed Me Jack, Mosaics and The Kakaroaches

TMN: So, you all first met at UC Santa Cruz. Can you talk a bit about how you all got together?

Sven: It was freshman year when I first met Robert. I was just in the quad, around the dorms, and heard some beautiful guitar wafting down from up high. I just kind of followed my ears and found the room where the guitar was coming from. I didn’t know Robert before that but I introduced myself and showed him a song that I had written. He recorded it and wrote a bass line for that song. That later became “Pirate Muse.” Then, we added a friend of ours who was our old drummer. So we had him and two guitar players, but we played one of the guitars out of a bass amp and had a sub-octave pedal to lower it to that range.

Cameron: So, the original bass player was not actually a bass player, it was just a pedal.

Sven: From that point on, we were kind of moving around until we found the right sound and group. We added Cameron as a permanent bass player and collaborator along with Eric as our new drummer.

’Feed Me Jack – Definitely You’

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TMN: There are so many different styles infused in your sound—ska/reggae, jam bands and sometimes even stuff like The Strokes just to name a few. Who are some of the bands and artists that influenced your sound?

Cameron: The Strokes are definitely an influence and Grizzly Bear. But really, music is derivative and we definitely acknowledge that. I think we love listening to all sorts of different stuff and really, I hate to use the classification of World music because all music comes from the world, but all music finds its place in our sound. Especially guitar music, plus The Beatles and classics like that.

Jake: I would say the first album, Chumpfrey, draws on a lot more of the influences that you mentioned first. We all think that was more of an accessible sound, a little more pop influenced, than some of our more recent stuff. We’ve really been striving to come with different sounds and go in more of an experimental direction while maintaining the influences that are still with us.

TMN: How did that process of putting together something as cohesive as Anatolia compare with the experiences behind Chumpfrey? Was that shift a conscious effort?

Sven: Yeah, I think it was kind of a conscious effort. The Anatolia EP was an attempt to go with a little more of an atmospheric and visceral sound focused more on the composition, which is just writing a song that doesn’t have any recurring parts. It was kind of a journey from beginning to end. We’ve been messing with the idea that we want to have one piece of music as an album with all the songs bleeding into each other. So, we kind of tried to create transitions that connect the songs to make one larger piece of music—basically like a twenty minute song.

Jake: It was definitely more of a concept album for us and it also marked our transition from college, house-party type of music into a more identifiable sound. Continue reading →

Mosaics Talk their Musical Vision, Influences and San Francisco [TMN Exclusive Interview/Event Preview]

Posted by Ash El Gamal - February 17, 2015

M o s a i c s
GLAM

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The emergence of electronic music has created a fascinating rippling effect across genres as more and more artists find creative ways to combine musicianship with the seemingly limitless capabilities of modern studio technology. San Francisco band, Mosaics, have perhaps one of the most novel fusions we’ve heard yet using unconventional, percussive acoustic guitar to create samples that can be manipulated, arranged and layered with unique vocals into brooding, experimental compositions. Their debut LP, Of Colors, helps establish their forward-thinking sound proving refreshingly original without losing accessibility or catchiness. We had a chance to catch up with Mosaics band members Devon Kelts (guitar, vocals), Tyler Hill (production, keys), Grady Lee (vocals, guitar, bass) and Westin Joy (drum machine, bass) about their collective vision, musical influences and experiences as musicians in SF. Get to know Mosaics below and come out to see them this weekend at our first ever Music Ninja show in the Bay Area!

RSVP: Make It Funky & Music Ninja Present: Feed Me Jack, Mosaics and The Kakaroaches

TMN: Can you tell us a bit about how you all first met?

Devon: Tyler and I went to Loyola Marymount down in Los Angeles to study music and composition. We were best friends from college and decided to move up to San Francisco to try to make it as musicians. We did a couple musical projects that were kind of just our own thing but we didn’t really put out anything. Mosaics was the final iteration of those projects where we felt like we had a sound that was something we could stand behind. We needed a passionate musician and strong vocalist to get our LP Of Colors finished so we brought on Grady. It ended up working out really well and he made some really strong contributions in helping us finish the record. Then we needed someone to help us play live—Wes and I were already friends and he was pretty excited about the opportunity so we brought him in. He already has experience with production and has similar musical tastes so it worked out quite nicely.

TMN: Your music falls at this really interesting intersection of folk/acoustic, experimental and electronic. Can you talk a bit about the vision behind Mosaics?

Tyler: I think that the vision essentially started with Devon and I painting sonic landscapes on the computer. We wanted to create a sound that could be considered pop but still is drawing all of this original material in from things we’ve created. When we did our first EP, we had a concept where all the songs heard were coming from the guitar. So, basically we made an album all from samples created from hitting the guitar for drums, creating pads out of the guitar using production techniques and obviously writing melodies with lyrics. Our goal is to make something that is very authentic and artistic, but can still have that pop catchiness and drive.

Devon: We wanted to unite things. Often times really unique ways of playing the acoustic guitar are kept in a purist category. Meaning that they just play the instrument and nothing else. It’s very seldom that you see people with unique approaches to acoustic guitar uniting with the world of electronic production. Our goal was to find a way to unite the two in a tasteful manner and maybe, in that unification, to create something that’s new and novel.

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[SF Giveaway + Exclusive Interview] Buku & Willy Joy w/ Washed Out & Make It Funky, 12/5 @ 1015 Folsom

Posted by Ash El Gamal - December 2, 2014

’Willy Joy & Buku – Punani’

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Bass music is in a constant state of evolution with new sub-genres emerging each year. The artists who shine in an often over-crowded space, though, are those who manage to be unaffected by the current trends around them. Two producers who stand out in the realm of trap/dubstep/future tunes are Chicago’s Willy Joy and Philly’s Buku, who recently teamed up for the two-track Meaner & Leaner EP. While Willy brings a festival-ready, big-room sound, Buku provides a far-out bounce and funk making them a force to be reckoned with as a duo–both in the studio and on stage.

Buku and Willy Joy will be taking over the upstairs room at 1015 Folsom SF this Friday, December 5th, as part of their Meaner & Leaner Tour and we’re excited to be offering a couple VIP passes to the show, which will also feature sets from Washed Out and the DJs of Make It Funky SF among others. We also had a chance to catch up with Willy and Buku in advance of the show to chat a bit about their musical backgrounds, the tour life and how they first met. Enter the contest and enjoy the interview below–if you win, you’ll also get a meet & greet with Buku & Willy in case you’ve got any questions for them we haven’t already asked! Please keep in mind that all participants in this contest must be over the age of 21 and bring a valid ID to the venue to pick up their tickets. The winner will be notified via email Friday morning. Tickets are also still on sale and available for purchase here.

TMN: Thanks for taking the time guys! First off, can you tell us a bit about how you first linked up? A Chief Keef show was involved, right?

Willy Joy: The first time we met was when we were booked on the same show in Washington, DC. It was in a big complex, and Chief Keef had a show in another room of the building. We kept sneaking away from our own show to go watch his. It was a definite bonding moment.

TMN: What caught your attention about each other’s sound?

Willy Joy: Buku has such a strong sonic identity – you can instantly tell if a track is his, and its such a dope, cohesive sound. I’m always drawn to people finding originality in established forms, and he’s carved out an entirely new lane for himself. That’s a long winded way of saying his tunes bang super hard.

Buku: I was and still am infatuated with the amount of energy Willy has in his music. From listening and playing together, I’ve learned quite a bit how to keep the party going wild. When he plays his tunes and special edits live, I usually have to grab hold of something concrete nearby.

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