Mix + Interview for FML - Funk My Life ( Leeds, United Kingdom 🇬🇧 )
FSQ’s Chuck Da Fonk recently had the pleasure of sharing a 2 hour mix for the FML - Funk My Life DJ and party crew out of Leeds, United Kingdom. DJs BriBuckle, DJ By Name, and Marma Jam are the heads behind this deep and funky disco dance DJ team. They also asked Chuck Da Fonk a bunch of important questions about FSQ.
Chuck Da Fonk adds: “This 2 hour set for FML reflects how I would interweave FSQ original productions into a mix with some of my favorite artists of my entire listening history.
It hops from straight funk jams, to extended progressive house cuts, to 80s new wave tunes, then back to rare disco sides, before jogging left to Balearic stunners and back to center with fresh releases from our dance music artist peers.
This mix includes unreleased FSQ (a special treat for our fans), plus new releases from The Illustrious Blacks, Tigerbalm, Payfone, and Quinn Lamont Luke - those are some of my favorites in here, but your ears may find the classic funk groups represented - with workouts by Cameo, Kid Creole and The Coconuts and Nona Hendryx - are more your bag. This mix will keep everyone entertained and is representative of the diversity found in our Funk, Style Quality sets.
Record labels represented heavily here include two FSQ continue to be involved with - both now 11 years old - that’s Soul Clap Records and Midnight Riot Records.
Sit back and listen to the mix, and read our following interview with FML - Funk My Life - to get a better sense of our FSQ DJ agenda, our flow, and unique musical selections and presentation.
The full FML x FSQ mix track list follows the interview.
#Vol.15 FSQ "Funk Style Quality" - Mix My Life Guest Mix 9/05/23 at SoundCloud
INTERVIEW WITH FUNK MY LIFE
What DJs have had the most influence on you?
This is a hard one because I didn't really follow DJs proactively until like 10 years into my music career. But the flip side of that is I was keenly aware of producers - for instance Francois K and Louie Vega were producing all the remixes for my favorite artists as I was coming up, I owned every 12" they did. And they are also heavy DJs, but I was buying their records for the remixes not because I was a DJ fan.
There are 6 artists that really influenced my personal interest in sound and power FSQ's production style - Duran Duran, Yello, George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic (P-Funk), James Brown & The JBs, Sly & The Family Stone, Sly & Robbie. I really was digging on these 6 artists from the mid 1980s, and onward for life. These artists are my compass points, the foundations. I didn't get them all in this mix but you'll certainly hear a few of those artists here.
When I moved back to Philadelphia, my birthplace, in the early 2000s, Diplo and his partner Low Budget were throwing wild parties there, known as Hollertronix, where you could hear a slice of every genre thrown against the beats of local emerging club beat sounds, like Baltimore Club, Philly Club, Jersey Club. Their DJ experience and sound really got me excited about changing the direction of my work from jazz-funk towards more dance oriented productions. Then of course Diplo blew up maybe like 2 years later. Living in Philly for a bit, I started thinking about how I could marry P-Funk with the dance community, as I work closely with P-Funk and used to tour and still record with members of the group. That led me to meet the electronic dance duo Soul Clap, who I paired with P-Funk in 2013, and they remain my favorite production and DJ duo. Soul Clap
You’re being put to death, but can listen to 1 last track before you die. What track do you choose?
FSQ Disco Remix of Nick Monaco's "Baby Face". That's because if I am going to die, I want to remember that on that track, I accomplished everything I wanted to do in life in terms of music production. Really when I first heard the finished mix and master, I remarked to myself, "I can die a happy man now - I did it!".
The way the "Baby Face" FSQ remix sounds is exactly how I heard it in my head before it was ever recorded - a sound I didn't think was possible. I thank FSQ's One Era for the achievement, he translated every idea I had into sound. Fortunately One Era (aka Matt Coogan) works at a percussion instrument supplier so we were able to get all the weirdo things we wanted for that track like a bell chime. Also this jam is almost 10 minutes long so I'll at least have a few more minutes to reflect on the success of FSQ before I am put to death. You can find it on our 2018 remix compilation, "The Remix Special" (Soul Clap Records). It just makes me so happy, always! Our live band FSQ & The Supreme Qualities (The SQ's) even performs it, weird right performing a remix live, kind of like a cover, but we'll never get that close to the amazing recording.
What’s your favourite label?
Right now, Razor N Tape is winning for hottest label of 2023 with sizzling releases from Underground System, The Phenomenal Handclap Band, Midnight Magic, J Kriv, Cor.ece, 79.5 many others. Soul Clap Records I know so well because I work on the label team and there's such a big catalog there to study including their partnership with Wolf + Lamb Records through Crew Love, and we have some huge things cooking for this year, like The Illustrious blacks' new EP which is in the mix here, plus some demos from the next FSQ album. Midnight Riot always offers the sleekest crowd pleasing Nu-disco burners, and I'm a huge fan of Yam Who? production work so you'll find a few tunes from the label in this mix. I haven't touched on any classic record labels yet which is just as important to me. In that arena I'd say I'm a huge fan of Henry Stone who had TK Disco and a bunch of other imprints he ran out of Miami, that have the rarest, best disco funk, replete with the rawest Caribbean sounds.
P-Funk in some sense is a classic record label as it was a huge roster of P-Funk related artists - but they spread the acts like Brides of Funkenstein, Parlet, Bootsy Collins, Fuzzy Haskins across some major 70s US labels like Casablanca Records, Warner Bros Records, Arista, Westbound and several others.
Best thing about Dance Music culture right now?
The consistent flow of amazing new releases. I host a 3 hour weekly program on The Face Radio and I can barely fit in all the new music even with that large of a window. The volume of new music really gets me excited. Also the fact that disco / funk sounds are being used in big pop songs, like new cuts by Miley Cyrus, Beyonce, etc. This trend makes my job as a DJ easier because when I play something that a non-club goer doesn't know their ears are at least open to the funky disco sounds. In Southern California, you might find yourself DJing at a hotel pool, a members only club, a diverse festival -- and you want these gigs, you just need to be prepared that it's not your typical club crowd who have come for a disco-funk-house music night so you're going to have to win them over. The fact there's so much music and it's aligning with the tastes of a diverse audience is wonderful.
Worst thing about Dance Music culture right now?
There's no room for complaining out here. We just gotta keep pushing forward with FSQ and we are thankful for your support FML crew, and everyone that even gives us the slightest amount of energy we build on it.
What's the best club/event you have ever been to ?
The best club / event will be the next unexpected one! ... that being said:
In no particular order here are few parties and venues, sadly most are memories now but I'm drawing upon them for lyrical inspiration for our next album, titled "Nightlife Geography". A few on this list are still strong ...
Jupiter Disco - an amazing Brooklyn NYC cocktail bar with a rotary mixer, bangingn system and always packed dance floor. FSQ DJ's there quite a bit.
The Work Party with Eli Escobar and Lloyd - this Thursday night NYC party used to be at a venue in Soho New York City, called Submercer which is like a little brick wine cellar in the basement of a hotel, but you had to know it was there, that was wild. The party later moved to LeBain in Meatpacking District after Submercer closed. I always had the freakest nights at this party and Eli + Lloyd are supreme.
Cielo NYC - this Manhattan based club (a rare thing, most of the action is in Brooklyn) - a Funktion 1 system with a square center dance floor surrounded by lush couch seating was like no other, and sounded amazing ! It was steps from my apartment in the West Village NYC. Francois K had Mondays with Deep Space, and Louie Vega had Wednesdays with Roots NYC party, so wow the regular talent too, so close to home! Closed in 2018 :(
The Bunker, San Francisco - an unsanctioned venue, a real abandoned Navy bunker out on the edges of the city, I only went there once to see Matrixxman play. There's no way to really get out there but by car. The sun came up, everyone left, and I found myself abandoned out there in the hood. Took me most of the day to get back! Epic! Another venue I think is long gone.
Black Flamingo New York City - a dank triangular bomb shelter underneath a cafe in Brooklyn, so many great nights in there with Soul Clap and FSQ has DJ'd there quite a bit.
Oslo Hackney, London - FSQ night in 2018 at the Locomotive Disco party. An epic UK night, big crowd, the last DJ gig with my partner Sa'd Ali before he passed away a month or so later.
Disco Dolly, Amsterdam - I think this small club has changed a bit over the years as far as format / DJs, but I always go there when I visit the city just to cut a rug with the locals.
Soul Clap / Crew Love Party with FSQ + more - Output NYC Club in 2014. This club had three sides - The main room, Output, the other side, The Panther Room, connected by a roof deck, plus a third venue, The Stilton House. All connected wow, you could bounce around and see 20 artists in a night and the party closed at 6am. I'll never forget that one, it was our biggest NYC debut. Output sadly closed in 2018 but will always be remembered as the house of so many amazing DJ nights.
Electric Pickle Miami - gone as a few years ago, a two story club in an old pickle factory this is where you caught the best of the best always, even during Miami Music Week, this was the family spot vs the giant Miami megaclubs.
FML x FSQ MIX TRACK LIST (2 hour set):
Yello - The Expert
FSQ - 11:00AM featuring Chas Bronz, Fonda Rae (Cosmodelica Remix)
Nona Hendryx - Scream (Michael The Lion Remix)
Duran Duran - Big Thing (Single Mix) (2010 Remaster)
Jaegerossa - Side of Soul
Hollie Profit - Keeping Tabs (Yam Who? Discomania Remix)
Fat Gaines Band - I Just Want to Freak with You (feat. Zorina)
FSQ - Nightlife Geography (Demo)
Tigerbalm – Kete (Mang Dynasty Remix)
Payfone - Side Call
FSQ - Dancefloor Democracy featuring George Clinton, Trey Lewd (Sare Havlicek Remix)
Cameo - I Like It
Michael Jackson - We're Almost There (DJ Spinna Remix)
FSQ - Infinite Reprise - A Tom Moulton Mix
Etienne De Crecy featuring Belita Woods - Scratched
FSQ - You Don't Say (Demo)
Kid Creole and The Coconuts - Maladie De Amor (12" Mix)
Tryangle Man - Lost Chronicles
The Illustrious Blacks featuring Seven Davis Jr - Shook
Yello - Tied Up (In Mind) Remix by Zeo
Power Dress & Jon Pearn - The Way We Move (Extended Mix)
Sa'd The Hourchild Ali - Asylum (FSQ Remix)
FSQ - Whale Songs
Quinn Lamont Luke - No Getting Over You (Ron Basejam Remix)
R.J.'s Latest Arrival - Terri's Place