turntable.fm

jessipedia: hey folks
$$mailman$$: hey
HumpDayFunk: hi jess. :)
jessipedia: how’s it going?
jessipedia: everyone ready for some interviewing?

jessipedia: So, how did everyone get into funk and soul music? Was there a first time that you knew this music was for you?

Ronald Cason: i was born funky.
Horns-A-Plenty: I’m a horn player… what else is there?!?
b3playr: I’m a b3playr.  Ditto.
TheCaptain: My first concert at 14 was Tower of Power in Maui.  It was an accident but I fell in love with the music from that point on.
dj hermanation: i took a trip to new orleans when i was 14 and it changed my life
victrolacola: I blame my parents! They bought a lot of records before they had me…R&B and jazz.
$$mailman$$: watching soul train
TheCaptain: I miss Soul Train.
jessipedia: What was soul train like?
TheCaptain: amazing music and HUGE hair.

 
HumpDayFunk: soul train was the black American bandstand. with a dance line. :)
Dr. Otis: afro picks everywhere
HumpDayFunk: saw a video where don Cornelius himself made a rare dance line appearance. don got moves.
$$mailman$$: re run from what’s happening got his start on soul train
Ronald Cason: So did Shalimar

jessipedia: What is it about the music itself that you find most appealing?

$$mailman$$: the groove!
TheCaptain: the groove.  the passion.
Dr. Otis: it’s all about the groove!
HumpDayFunk: I believe the universal rhythm of life is on The One. funk ain’t just music. it’s life.
Deep_Fried_Guyute: this just puts you in such a great mood.
UnstableFlux started playing “Smoke” by Ohio Players
b3playr: Music is everywhere.  It’s the best way to express emotions.
badgerDeuce: people don’t know this, but Grand Moff Tarkin played the trumpet.

jessipedia: @Dr. Otis How did this room get started? Was it just you in the beginning? 

Dr. Otis: Yeah, just me sometimes on my own for days :)
jessipedia: Days?
TheCaptain: Doc was the man behind getting this room off the ground.  He was the one doing the lonely DJ gig playing song when few people were around.
jessipedia: Was it ever discouraging to play in here by yourself?
Dr. Otis: In the early days it was lonely sometimes
gr8fulgruv: doc & cap always welcome the crowd!
Dr. Otis: But I really believed this was something that TT needed and I persevered and it’s true what they say “If you build it, they will come”

jessipedia: Was there something that happened that caused the room to really gain traction? Or was it more of a slow burn? 
 
TheCaptain: The rest of us started showing up after that.  Slowly but surely he’s built this into a solid room.  Along the way others of us joined and we’ve managed to get this room running close to full time now.  
HumpDayFunk: I stumbled in here one night. got roped into pinch-hitting for a Power Hour. been a slave to the cave since.
Dr. Otis: I think Power Hour has helped a lot. We’ve kept that going every Wednesday without fail
 
jessipedia: What’s the power hour? 

TheCaptain: All cuts under 4 minutes.  Theme based hour.  With some great DJs
UnstableFlux: Power hour is when we have 5 djs sign up to play songs for an hour straight, all songs under 4 minutes. And the hour always follows a theme. This weeks is thanksgiving
jessipedia: who organizes that?
UnstableFlux: Doc
Horns-A-Plenty started playing “Big Ole Booty” by Big Sam’s Funky Nation
Dr. Otis: Wednesdays, 11pm-12midnight, eastern
jessipedia: How do you settle on a theme?
TheCaptain: Doc rounds up ideas then picks something cool

jessipedia: How do you think having a regular event like that helped the room? 

victrolacola: It’s a port in the storm of the week.
Dr. Otis: i think it provides an anchor for the room
jessipedia: how so?
TheCaptain: It helps get everyone together at once. We catch up, gossip, listen to great music.
HumpDayFunk: it’s good to have some kind of anchor in your programming so to speak jess
b3playr: I happened upon a Power Hour accidentally and had a great time.  Kind of like a family affair. It brought me back.
HumpDayFunk: and now we can’t rid of him.
D-Dubs: yeah… overall, we have a pretty tight lil’ community in this room - and the set times are great times to see everyone
badgerDeuce: my brother and i hadn’t talked in months. he’s a jerk. but then i saw he was in the room so i checked it out. it healed our rift. we’re friends again now. funk heals family feuds.
Dr. Otis: a lot of ppl who stumbled across us at power hour have come back and become regulars
victrolacola: And it keeps you on your toes if you’re DJing…

jessipedia: How long do you think it took before you had real ‘sticking power’ as a room? 

UnstableFlux: I can’t say before I was here, but about 2 months ago it really started picking up regularly
TheCaptain: in the last few months we have been able to keep the room going with a day and night shift.
jessipedia: How did you work that out?
TheCaptain: It’s not formal.  It’s just who’s around.
UnstableFlux: Also helps that we represent all timezones in the US
TheCaptain: West coast here so we can handle late nights.
UnstableFlux: East coast FTW
HumpDayFunk: we have a pretty active roster of mods. usually always one of us is here to keep things rolling.
Dr. Otis: we also have a very active fb group which we use regularly, with 250 members, and growing
$$mailman$$: you have a FB page? why wasnt i told about this?
TheCaptain: LOL

jessipedia: And I just saw today that you have a twitter account too. Is that new? 

Dr. Otis: yes, i just created that
HumpDayFunk: new as of last week jess
jessipedia: What inspired you to create the twitter feed?
Dr. Otis: i saw other rooms were doing it, so thought it was about time
TheCaptain started playing “Space Captain (Feat. Susan Tedeschi & Derek Trucks)” by Herbie Hancock
Dr. Otis: haha cap is about to hit 10K
TheCaptain: Thank you for this version Doc.
Dr. Otis: good choice cap, and congrats
b3playr: Nice choice!
$$mailman$$: get the suit!
badgerDeuce: 2 more!
b3playr: omg - one more
UnstableFlux: Who is going to pop his 10k cherry?
gr8fulgruv: congrats cap, gr8 choice!!!!!!
b3playr: Yay!
badgerDeuce: hOoray!
victrolacola: w00t Cap!
$$mailman$$: WOHOO!
jessipedia: Congratulations!
TheCaptain: bows to my friends
$$mailman$$: well done cappy you earned it
HumpDayFunk: yay cap! good on ya pal!

jessipedia: You’ve said before that this was a ‘teaching room’. Is there any quintessential music you’d suggest to someone new to funk and soul? 

$$mailman$$: i find that on hands training is best that’s how i built my Q
TheCaptain: There are some very talented and knowledgeable soul and funk aficionados that can really reach deep and pull out tracks that I haven’t heard in ages.
Dr. Otis: someone new to funk and soul should just spend a couple of days in here
gr8fulgruv: black joe lewis & the honeybears, budos band, sharon jones & the dap kings,…more recent artists that are well suited here
UnstableFlux: Lettuce, Ohio Players, Herbie Hancock. MMW
gr8fulgruv: scofield
UnstableFlux: James Brown
TheCaptain: Dap Kings, Tower of Power, Trombone Shorty, James Brown
$$mailman$$: james is funk?
UnstableFlux: Bar-Kays
badgerDeuce: Randy Watson and Sexual Chocolate
$$mailman$$: diplomats
$$mailman$$: breakstra
UnstableFlux: Leon Haywood
victrolacola: Roy Ayers, Mandrill
$$mailman$$: TOP

jessipedia: Do you ever get up to room shenanigans? Do something wacky?

TheCaptain: Lots of theme days.
jessipedia: What kind of theme days?
HumpDayFunk: there are so many funk subgenres to explore in here too… afrobeat, groove-jazz, deep funk, neo-soul
Dr. Otis: Flux posts the “Funk Signal” every day to get people in here
jessipedia: Funk Signal?
UnstableFlux: http://i.imgur.com/3ltGN.jpg
UnstableFlux: ^ Funk signal
UnstableFlux: Outside of the room there are things as well
TheCaptain: It is wonderful how many people in this room do actually end up getting together to do things.  Several of us live in major cities and we have gotten together locally and gone to shows and dinners together with others that drop in town.
UnstableFlux: There have been many real life meet-ups between members of the cave
jessipedia: Oh? What kind of meetups?
TheCaptain: I just ended up going to see The Ohio Players Saturday night.  Funky D (Darwin Dortch) is the bassist for the Ohio Players.  They tore the house down in a sold out show at the Morongo casino.  
UnstableFlux: Concerts, bars. Some of them have actually become friends
TheCaptain: Cheffy_Pants and I have been to shows here is LA with Doc and JamiQ.   Several of us are getting together up in San Francisco over the holidays to see some shows as well.  I know the east coasters get together as well.  There is even a long-distance romance brewing between some of our members.
UnstableFlux: And some have, *cough* started dating

jessipedia: Do you ever have any problems with people complaining that somethings ‘not funk’ or ‘not soul’?

UnstableFlux: Not really. Always some funk or soul playing unless a troll takes the helm
$$mailman$$: just when i play barry manilow
$$mailman$$ started playing “Superman Lover” by Johnny ‘Guitar’ Watson
TheCaptain: The room plays are pretty on point actually very few lames.
HumpDayFunk: we have a broad definition and the lane button exists for a reason.
TheCaptain: Soul and Funk have similarities but they are two distinct genres.  They compliment each other very well.  It depends on who is on the stand and what time of day it is as to what is getting played.  We have a very active day shift here and the music is always varied and lively.  
UnstableFlux: Doc and jess: http://www.gifsoup.com/webroot/animatedgifs4/1713424_o.gif
victrolacola: I try to dig deep for tracks I play, thanks to the high level of DJdom in the Cave.
HumpDayFunk: and trolls find out we’re well-modded quickly. :)
GBATTLE: I love being kicked
Dr. Otis: i love kicking you G :)
GBATTLE: haha

jessipedia: What’s better received here classics or deep cuts?

Dr. Otis: i think it has to be a balance
victrolacola: Fortunately, I’m old enough to pull out deep selections more often than not :)
TheCaptain: Deep cuts get lots of love  and lots of hearts.
Dr. Otis: the regulars tend to try to outdo each other with their deep cuts
HumpDayFunk: me? I dig the deep stuff. I know the classics already. give me the deep stuff.

jessipedia: Where do you find the deep cuts that you play here? Do you all have massive home collections?

TheCaptain: there are many DJs uploading here.
GBATTLE: I only spin uploads
$$mailman$$: not yet
HumpDayFunk: I have a large collection yeah
Dr. Otis: i think a few of us do, yes
GBATTLE: hdf likes it deep and hard
TheCaptain: I run around and grab music from restaurants, music stores, anywhere I can.
Star Time: mine grows every time I join the cave
victrolacola: The room ends up reflecting more than what’s typically thought of when ppl  think of funk.
TheCaptain: I have a good vinyl selection but it’s a pain to upload.
Dr. Otis: yes, true star time. i’ve discovered, and purchased, so much new music because of being in here

jessipedia: Where were you the last time you heard a song and thought ‘I have to play that in the cave!’?

TheCaptain: In a restaurant. I have Shazam on my phone.  I grab the song then find it to play later.
Dr. Otis: in a restaurant too
GBATTLE: power hour is a great time to shine
$$mailman$$: i owe a huge collection of my funk to this rrom!
TheCaptain: Me too.  I am constantly learning from the people here.
HumpDayFunk: Jess… new baker brothers album immediately hit my cave queue after I heard it.
GBATTLE: put it this way Jess. I spun in here forthwith hours on funk songs about chickens
UnstableFlux: Haha. Oh the animals theme
Dr. Otis: forthwith? who the hell says forthwith??
GBATTLE: two hours of chicken music
TheCaptain: There is a large chicken collection
jessipedia: wow
UnstableFlux: Doth ye have a problem with that word?
TheCaptain: We did a few hours of muppets and cartoon music a few weeks ago
Dr. Otis: we tend to break into spontaneous themes
victrolacola: The chicken is the official bird of the Funk and Soul Cave (says I)

jessipedia: ok, What’s the best song that you heard for the first time in this room?

$$mailman$$: too many to mention
TheCaptain: Betty White.  He’s a big freak. Never would have heard that anywhere on radio. way too deep.
b3playr: I got turned on to Leroy Hutson.
Dr. Otis: too many to mention, but Nothing But The Water (II) by New Mastersounds is one of my faves right now
TheCaptain started playing “Nothing But The Water (II)” by Grace Potter & The Nocturnals
victrolacola: Sam Huff’s Flying Ragin’ Machine, by Lettuce. I shake my fist at Doc for that one!
UnstableFlux: Seen Through Your Disguise by Cookin’ On 3 Burners
Star Time: the Fantastics! was played in last week’s power hour. that blew my mind.
Dr. Otis: anything by CO3B
TheCaptain: Johnny “Guitar” Watson.  Playing now.  Totally forgot about this guy until the Funk and Soul Cave.
HumpDayFunk: someone played a psyedelic afrobeat cover of hendrix’s crosstown traffic that floored me.

jessipedia: ok, I think that’s it. Any last comments?

TheCaptain: The music is amazing and the people here really are great.  Doc has made this a wonderful place to hang out and share our love of music.  We’ve managed to find a great group of people and we are drama free around here.  We’re about the love of the music and friendship with like-minded souls.  
Deep_Fried_Guyute: without the funk and soul cave there would be great bands out there right now i had no idea existed,… i thank the cave for my musical growth
Star Time: it’s a friendly competition. nobody wants to disappoint.
HumpDayFunk: yes. doc’s sweatshop mod conditions are deplorable. ;)
D-Dubs: Jess.. thanks for taking such an interest in this bunch of hooligans.
gr8fulgruv: thanks to the mods!!!
jessipedia: it’s been lovely hanging out
TheCaptain: with you as well. you are always welcome.
jessipedia: thank you all for participating!
victrolacola: Thanks Jess!
jessipedia: thanks everyone
jessipedia: later!

Hang with the funky freaks here. Follow them on twitter here.