If you want to know more about us, read carefully the interview we made. Well, actually it is in italian, but you can always ask google to translate it! Enjoy

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to listen to a sneak preview of his new album and I was positively impressed by his work. The album is very eclectic, full of interesting and obscure grooves and samples, very enjoyable from the start to the end. It definitely reflect the experience and the musical knowledge of the producer. You got 23 tracks of beats, grooves, orchestral samples, prog riffs, library-esque interludes and widescreen sounds.

I also had the chance to have a short conversation with him about his new project, and that’s the result of our talking:

Q: What is the main idea behind your new work?

There are a few main ideas: the first was to combine beats with orchestral sounds which was definitely influenced by the Suite For Ma Dukes tribute to Dilla released by Mochilla. Watching the film of this concert had a huge effect on me, reminding me of the power of a big orchestra and taking me back to the days of my youth when I used to listen to the Rite of Spring by Stravinsky almost every day. I’d get home from school and put it on the stereo at full blast and just let it take me away. This led to a desire to also revisit some rock and prog rock styles from my younger days. Which was also informed by listening to a lot of Andy Votel’s DJ mixes (eg. Vertigo Mixed), where he will play about 60 different tracks over the course of a CD, so it never gets too self-indulgent or up itself. Just lots of nice breaks and riffs, quick changes for the short attention span!

I also took inspiration from library music from the 60s and 70s, which I once heard described as “music written by the yard” – ie music written to order and put in a library for film or TV producers to use off-the-shelf when they needed a bit of dramatic tension or a funky theme tune. So my method was to work fast, keep the tracks short and the ideas flowing.

Q: I have found the album very smooth and easy, perfect music for chillin’. Where did you get the inspiration for these kind of atmospheres? Do they reflect your actual mood?

I think it must just be the way I am – I very often make a track that I think is not at all chilled and yet people always seem to think my stuff is all laid back. I consciously made some more aggressive sounding tunes on this album (Cyclogyro, Gentle Glurgen for instance) but if you can chill to it that’s fine with me.

Q: Alright, those are banging tracks, no doubt about it! Now, what kind of equipment did you use to record and edit the tracks?

Technics SL1200 turntables, Cubase, Fender bass, Fender and Gibson guitars, Burns 12-string guitar. I’m big into vintage keyboard sounds like Hammonds, Rhodes, Wurlitzer and I got a lovely RMI electrapiano which was a big sound in prog groups and library music of the 70s.

Q: In creating your new album, where did you start? I mean, did you start with a sample, a drum beat or what else? And how did you proceed? Talking about samples, as you probably know, we are really into it: can you tell us more about your choices?

After selling about 2000 records when I moved house last year I felt justified in going out to buy some new vinyl which was great fun. I started going to car boot sales and second hand shops and finding lots of interesting and obscure things to sample which gave me the basis for a lot of the tracks. I usually listen through an album and look for an interesting little change that happens maybe once in the whole track, then loop it up and start building other ideas around it. At the same time I’m always digging for breaks, trying to find ones I haven’t heard before or chopping them up in fresh ways. I also like to put a breakbeat through Recycle, then just use the midi with completely different drum sounds to create a new break. I was really digging an album called Beat Dimensions that has crazy uneven rhythms and of course Dilla and Madlib are peerless in the way they manipulate beats, although their work was created on MPCs which is something I’ve never tried. I got into just moving things around onscreen without quantising, just fiddling around till the feel was right.

Q: Do you have any funny or interesting anecdote about the album?

As soon as I had a few tracks together I would always listen to them on shuffle (ie random play) and as the album grew I realised that this was definitely the best way to listen to it, so you are always surprised by the running order and the juxtaposition of tracks. So I have included an advisory note with the album to always play on shuffle, keep it fresh!

Q: Finally, tell our visitor where they can get more information about your music.

This is my website and you can get hold of all my BiggaBush and Lightning Head releases there as well as read up on my regular blog posts and previous projects like Rockers Hi Fi plus my band the Magic Drum Orchestra.

Thanks a lot and keep in touch!

Do you want to know more about him? Check his biography and the interview we did a couple of years ago!

Sometimes edits are so good that they become more famous than the original track. And sometimes the DJ adds some elements to the original, blurring the line between an edit and a proper remix. But we don’t want to be boring, in both cases we’re still talking about DJs modifying tracks to impress the audience, ok?

Today’s guest is Mr. Tal M Klein. He was brought to my attention when i heard (and immediately bought) this track from his label, Aniligital Music Records:

Dope, isn’t it? Well, let’s start with a few background history:

Tal M. Klein is the founder of San Francisco-based Aniligital Music records and has been DJing and producing his trademark “drunk funk” style of disco-influenced funk since 1996.

He has played every where from the legendary Club Yellow in Japan to Fabric in the UK, playing alongside acts such as Grandmaster Flash, LCD Soundsystem, Kraak & Smaak, Fort Knox Five, Mr. Scruff, Nightmares on Wax, and Ursula 1000. Tal’s remix repertoire includes names across the entire musical spectrum, from Coldcut to Cut Copy. His most recent album is “Plastic Starfish”.

Currently working on collaborative projects with Anthony Mansfield, The Hardway Brothers, and “The Sly Players” with Slim Goodgroove.

And here’s Tal Describing himself in a few word (from his facebook page. Yes, the guy got some humour):

Hi. My name is Tal. I like to party.

Somewhere around 1996 Dave Marino (whom I met while doing a late night talk show called “The Saturday Night Hangover” at our university radio station) made the tragic mistake of letting me into his recording studio in Belmont, New York. Since then I’ve been an auditory menace to the world at large, forcing my records, mp3′s, and cd’s down everybody throats like it was cod oil and the asian flu was going out of business.

I’m all about drunk funk, that’s music which inspires one to both chill and shake their ass at the same time. Finding that perfect funky record, to me, is like winning the chocolate, money, and sex lottery.

I used to record under the moniker “Trancenden” but decided to shed it after people kept thinking I made trance music. Now people just know me as Tal M. Klein. But you can call me Tal. I consider my love affair with music a hobby, not a career.

I’ve been fortunate enough to work with my friends on many musical projects ranging from country blues to 80′s synth pop. On my spare time, I compose background music for TV shows, you’ve probably heard my music while idly flipping channels on the telly.

Got it? Ok, we asked Tal a few questions on his job, his musical tastes and his career, so enjoy this interview while you listen the sound snippets we selected for you along this post. Let’s go!

1- What is the first piece of music ever you can remember listening to?
The first one I remember is definitely Peter and The Wolf. I love the idea of stories intertwined with music.

2- Tell us a little bit about how you started doin what you do, and how your love for music was born.
I took an electronic music class in high school and fell in love with the process.

3- In your opinion, who is the best ever in doin disco edits, the one who inspired you most?
I think those are two separate questions. The disco edits I play out the most are from my boy Anthony Mansfield -- he knows just the right sounds that I’m after and he always makes his edits super tight and sleazy. As for inspiration, well -- I think I’d probably credit my friend and partner in the Sly Players -- Slim Goodgroove for inspiring me by always digging deep into his collection and sending me the sickest cuts for our disco breaks records.

4- What grabs your attention when you hear a track for the first time? Do you ever come across tracks that you don’t like the first time, but then hear again and change your mind?
I’m looking for a good thwacking beat -- something that really makes the dancefloor breath. A good track should feel natural and fit perfectly into a variety of sets. I learn to love a lot of stuff…It’s a cliche but I usually buy a record for the A-side and then end up falling in love with the B-side.

5- When a DJ creates an edit, we can assume the aim is making the best
DJ tool possible. What else? What other characteristics are important
in your opinion for an edit to be a killer one?
The original song has to be killer and I think the edit should be an original interpretation of the song. I don’t think there’s a magic formula, but ultimately the idea would be for an edit to be respectful to the source material and attempt to make it more digestable to a modern audience.

6- What is your relationship with new technologies? How do you think technology has affected the job of djs making edits for the dancefloor?
I’m a vinyl junkie -- I think it’s nice to force myself to choose 100 records that I absolutely love rather than 1000′s of songs on a laptop. I don’t really have an opinion in general on the subject -I’ll do my thing and you do yours. As long as it’s about the music and not the ego, we’re cool.

7- Do you listen to music that you might not play in the club? If yes, what are you listening now?
Yeah, I listen to a lot of stuff I don’t play out. I’m a big fan of outlaw country music, Billy Joe Shaver and Tony Joe White.. people who have “Joe” as a middle name apparently fascinate me.

8- Tell us a little bit about your creative process in making an edit, like where do you start from and how you decide the job is complete.
I always look for songs that other people haven’t done yet. I quantize the hell out of it. Then I try to cut out the boring bits and extend the interesting bits. Then I put in some disco lasers and delays. Then I send it to a couple of friends. If they don’t write back that they love it then I delete the file.

9- When you play, how do you choose the balance between what the crowd wants and what you want to play?
I always see myself and as opening DJ even if I’m the headliner. I draw people in with stuff they know and then try to blow their minds with stuff they don’t. I like to surprise and educate, but not annoy and pontificate.

10- What is the release you’re most proud of? Tell us a little bit about how it was born.
Probably the release I’m most proud of is my first 12″ called DJ’s Delight -- back in 1996 under the name Trancenden -- which was me and Dave Marino. We did this killer edit of a Trouble Funk track and it really lead to the creation of my record label -- I attribute a lot of my success to that first record.

11- Tell us about the stuff you’re workin on right now, and your future projects as well
I’m doing all sorts of stuff, mostly focusing on originals. My newest 12″ is called “Deep Dark Place” and it’s by far some of the weirdest but funnest stuff I’ve done. Slim and I are working on new Sly Players madness, and Anthony Mansfield and I are doing some crazy villainy.
Life is good.
Peas!
-Tal

And finally, here’s a nice funky ass mix to download, offered by Tal and his partner aka the Sly Players….enjoy! And don’t forget to go to his page and give him props.

Damn! After Grandmaster Roc Raida another legend has passed away: Mr Magic!

What a bad year indeed! We want to remember a true pioneer with this old mix posted almost two years ago and with this interview:

Jay: What year was that?
Magic: Hmmmm, ah, ’77?
Jay: Wow, that long ago? And what other hip hop was on the radio at that time?
Magic: Wasn’t no hip hop.
Jay: So yours was the first hip hop show on the radio?
Magic: Even when I first went into radio, it wasn’t really called hip hop, it was called disco.

Read the rest here:

Part One: How it all started

Part two: Why we dissed KRS

Part three: The state of the Union

Ladies and gentleman, boys and girls, can I have your attention please? Today I am very pleased to introduce to you our second interview. The man in charge to answer our inquisitive questions this time is DJ Nes from the considerable Dirty Waters blog. Some of you might already know him: he is a very skilled DJ (as you can see from this video), he has an impressive vinyl collection, he got knowledge…but most important thing, is a cool guy, we definitely love his attitude. To cut it short: enjoy this chat and don’t forget about our previous exclusive interview with Tony D – Legendary Poor Righteous Teachers producer!

Hey DJ Nes what’s up? Welcome to Martini & Jopparelli!

Chillin, thanks for the invite.

Let’s start from the very beginning: Where were you born and where did you grow up?

Born and raised in Rahway, NJ

Growing up in “The Garden State” who were the big New Jersey DJs at the time?

I’d say DJ Juice, DJ Lord jazz, DJ Kaos, Junior Sanchez, they were all Jersey people. I paid more attention to New York DJ’s though.

When did you start to get involved in Hip Hop? How and when did you start DJing?

I always liked hip hop from a young age, but I would say around early 1994 during high school is when I really started getting involved with it through DJing. A lot of good hip hop was coming out at the time. House was really big then too, and a friend of mine had turntables and a bunch of house records. I played around on his setup, just blending and stuff, and it was really fun, and came pretty natural for me. Seeing him with turntables gave me the inspiration to get my own. So I saved and got with a set of 1210’s and a Gemini Scratchmaster and it was on from there.

We are really into your mixes, my favourite one is “Dirty Waters Brakes”, very cool. There are so many breaks mixes around but most of them tend to use the same tunes. Yours are very original indeed! Tell me more about your collection of vinyl…

Thanks I appreciate that, I’m trying to put together some more. My boy DJ Force invited me up to his radio show so I put that dirtywater breaks set together for his show, when I came home I still had the records lined up, so I just played it again and recorded it, all in one take. I tried to go with records I haven’t heard on other tapes, because one thing that annoys me is hearing the same breaks on a hundred different tapes. There are so many good records, so much good music, everyone should have different stuff to offer.

I have about 5,000 records I would say, mostly hip hop, jazz, rock, funk/soul. People who see my collection tell me I have a pretty sick Jazz game, and my Hip Hop LP collection is pretty thorough.

Your “Drum Crazy” videos are dope. I like them because the concept behind them is at the roots of hip hop, but still sounds fresh and original. After watchin those videos, our readers might be askin: did you make a mixtape out of them? Where can we found it?

Thanks, I saw a lot of youtube videos with guys playing samples and stuff, but noone was mixing them, so I was like maybe I’ll just throw a quick 4 minute mix of all drums, and from there I made 13 of them, working on 14 right now. It was fun to do. Unfortunately I uploaded a bunch of stuff that was deemed ‘copyright infringement’ so my youtube account got suspended, twice. I’m about to upload them back onto youtube soon though. As far as a mixtape, I might make an all drum mixtape but I don’t have one right now

Which DJs are the champions of cutting drums in your opinion?

I’m not sure about that one, I think Kon & Amir mix the breaks pretty well. I just heard DJ Revolution’s ‘Hi Fidelity mix’ and he cuts a lot of drum records on there real nice.

You said most records you play in the ” Drum Crazy ” videos are rock records with a heavy drum break at the beginning. Did you collect those records only for the break? Or are you into other kinds of music besides hip hop, jazz, funk & soul ?

Some of those records I did buy just for the drums, like The Mickey Mouse Club record isn’t really something you’re gonna let play front to back. But a lot of records that have drum breaks have good music throughout. If I’m going to buy a record just for a drum break, I’ll try to pay less than $5 for it. A lot of rock records have hard open drums, most of the ones on Drum Crazy are rock records.

When I first started digging, all I cared about was buying samples that other people used, I would copy all the sample credits on the linear notes of hip hop LP’s and seek them out (this was before all the info was on the internet). The more I was digging, the more I got into different kinds of music, through researching different sampled artists, you start to appreciate their music, and it opens you up to all genres. I’ve always liked all kinds of music, I could never just sit and listen to hip hop all day every day. Nowadays I try to buy records that I can listen to throughout, and I never look for specific records anymore. I let records come to me.

Which hip-hop era was “the golden age of drum sampling” in your opinion? Which hip hop producers are the best for drums?

People might disagree, but Tribe Called Quest was the best for me as far as how they had their drums sounding. Aside from them, all the usual suspects, Diamond, Pete Rock, Primo, Showbiz, Buckwild, etc., that was my favourite era, early/mid 90’s.

Speaking of hip hop producers, who was the most original in sampling drums? The one that came out with the craziest and unexpected ideas?

Marley Marl is the originator of sampling drums from a different record and adding it onto a sample, so he gets his props. Like I said I always liked the way Tribe Called Quest hooked up their drums, with mad compression, overlaying two different snares and making it pop. Premier had the good drums too, he made all his tracks real bouncey, and he always picked the right drums to flow with the sample. Anyone who made or makes beats utilizing all vinyl gets props from me.

Where did you start collecting records, and when? What was the first record you ever bought?

I started out buying hip hop records mostly from Downstairs records when it was around, Fat Beats when it was on 9^th, also a few spots in NJ, this spot called Planet X that was mad overpriced, and Princeton Records had the good deals. The first couple of records I bought were hip hop records, Souls of Mischief 1^st LP, De la Soul Breakadawn 12” (around 1994). The record that got me into buying samples and stuff was Grover Washington’s ‘Feels so Good’ LP. It has two samples on it, the sample for Black Moon’s How many MC’s (which was a big record at the time), and a K-Solo/King Tee sample on the other side. A friend of mine had a roommate that collected Jazz records and stuff and he played it for me. I was hooked right there. It was such a good record with two samples, and he bought it for $1!

What’s the most extreme thing you’ve ever done to acquire a record?

One time I saw this guy buying a lot of good records that I wanted, so I waited for him outside the store. When he came out I stabbed him and took his records, shit is mad real. Nah, just playing, haha. I don’t know, probably just paying ridiculous prices for some records, or travelling all over to find them. I’ve been in some pretty dingy, dirty spots for hours trying to find records.

As far as I know you were Djing on Radio a few years ago, tell me more about that. Are you still doing this?

I was doing radio shows in Princeton (for those that know) and New Brunswick (radio ruckus) here in NJ, and I’ve done guest spots on a bunch of others, but I haven’t held it down as a resident since like 2002. I’ll still spin a spot here and there but I’m not really interested in that anymore, I’d rather spin a bar or club and get paid for it. Honestly I’ve lost a lot of interest with the music changing as much as it has, and I still don’t have serato.

Did you use to plan out the music you were going to play on your shows?

Yeah I used to put sets together, whatever was hot that week, or throw it back to some old school, and even do the breaks and samples too.

Tell us about your current and future projects…

I’ve just been working, and soon I’ll be going back to college, so I haven’t had that much time to work on music stuff. I’m working on a hip hop mix, and a mix of all Jazz. Otherwise I’ll be resurrecting old cassette tapes on my blog. I found out about the blog thing last year and I’ve been having a lot of fun with it.

Thanx very much for your time and for hittin us with such good music! Peace

No doubt Marty & Jopparelli, thanks for the support. Let’s keep the real hip hop sound in peoples ears. ez.

Listen to DJ Nes – Make It Funky

In case you did not notice all the links in this post :

Check his blog – Dirty Waters, and show him some love!

Check his guest post here @ Musicselections (including an exclusive mixtape)

Check his crazy mix – Dirty Waters Brakes

Check his Drum Crazy Mixtapes Video

Some people may come up with Kid Capri (well, he’s half afro-American and half italo-american… but the name says it all and he’s the best mixtape dj ever..) and that’s it (I don’t count local Italian mc’s because all they did was copy American mc’s…).

Well, Kid Capri it’s not the only one in the hip hop history who left an heavy mark on it: have you ever listened to a Poor Righteous Teachers album or Yz ‘s “Thinking Of A Master Plan “? If yes and if you were wondering who produced those gems, here’s the answer: Mr. Tony Depula a.k.a Tony D.

Tony D has produced so many classics and it will take too long to name them all: if you want to know more about him, here’s the interview he kindly agree to do for Music Selections

Dj MP45:First of all, thanks for letting us have this interview. We should start from the beginning: what was your first exposure to hip-hop? I read that you started as a DJ, so which were the songs you were playing at that time?

Tony D: Grandmaster Flash and the Sugarhill stuff but Run DMC and the Def Jam early 12′s really were my favs.

Dj MP45: How did you switch from DJing to production and which equipment were you using when you started?

Tony D: the Mantronik album cover with roland 909 made me go buy one. So back then I had that and a 4 track cassette. ..

Dj MP45: Did you do a lot of crate digging in the past and do you still do it these days?

Tony D: Of course, but the record stores have dried up so it’s more of a challenge. I find myself digging in my own stash more than going out and breakhunting I have gathered so many old records that I still have fresh stock to go through…digger for life.

Dj MP45: Which are your top 5 non-hip hop records?

Tony D: I like the funky people James Brown lp’s, Monk Higgins, Andy Bey, Children of all ages: dope lp!

Dj MP45: Who are other producers that inspired your work and why?

Tony D: Marley Marl: he was the first to samples drums……

Pete Rock : trademark sound with horns and he pioneered the raw remix. .

But Paul C was the best on the SP1200 which I still use today. . . Plus he was ahead of time. . .

Dj MP45: Which songs do you wish you had produced yourself?

Tony D: Give The Drummer Some by Ultramagnetic Mc’s, T.R.O.Y. by Pete Rock and C.L Smooth and DWYCK by Gangstarr

Dj MP45: You produced a lot of politically-charged acts such as Poor Righteous Teachers: were you comfortable with their message or was it just music to you?

Tony D: Sometimes I felt a little odd hearing all the anti-devil stuff but I was pretty much accepted into the hip-hop urban community because I been down since day 1 . . .

Dj MP45: One of my favourite songs you produced is the Blvd Mosse “Move to something funky”: I tried to find more info on this group, but I couldn’t find any: how did you start working with them and do you have any interesting anecdotes about that time?

Tony D: Actually with the explosion of random hip hop, BLVD MOSSE unreleased is in demand as I have other material from them as well as other artists from Trenton that never came out.

I met them in North Trenton. They were from that area where I was already scouting acts.

Dj MP45: Let’s move to the present: what do you think about the state of hip hop at the moment and do you think there are producers who can still carry that flag?

Tony D: It goes up and down. Sometimes I think Hip-Hop’s dead then Kanye or Lupe Fiasco comes out with something dope.

But overall, crunk, bling and gangsta rap have put a dent in the culture of Hip-Hop

Dj MP45: Many thanks for taking the time to answer our questions, it is very much appreciated , I know readers of our blog will be happy to find out that a fellow Italian gave such a great contribution to hip hop.

Tony D: Thanks paisons…peace.

Check out one of his former groups, Crusaders For Real Hip Hop. Dope production here….

Check out also this YZ video… respect for the necklace

…NOW GO TO TONY D MYSPACE AND SHOW HIM SOME LOVE!