How would you describe the Fort Knox Five sound?

The "Fort Knox Sound" is about bringing live instrumentation and funky electronic beats together. We are influenced by Funk & Soul, Reggae, Hip Hop, Go Go, DC Hardcore as well as modern electronic music. We come from a live music background so naturally we approach writing from that angle, even though we are editing and composing on the computer. We all play something in the course of writing a track. Rob is our resident stringer and is also the sitar and guitar player for Thievery Corporation’s live band. He is the man responsible for the Sitar on such hits as Thievery Corporation’s LEBANESE BLONDE and STEREOTONIC by Thunderball. 

When did Fort Knox Five get started? How did you guys get your break into the world of DJ’ing and music production?

We have all been good friends for a long time. Rob and Steve grew up together in Washington, DC. They have been friends and band mates since childhood. Sid was Steve’s room mate at RISD (Rhode Island School of Design). After University, They both moved back to DC. The three were involved in the DC indiepunk scene in the 90s and formed Thunderball (ESL Music) by the late 90’s. Around that time Jon H came into the picture. It was the heyday of the now defunct DC rave scene in the mid 90’s where we honed our DJ skills. When the four of us got together in the studio and combined all of our musical influences, that is when Fort Knox Five was born.

You also have a record label - Fort Knox Recordings. What’s the story/motivation behind setting up the label?

We set up Fort Knox Recordings in 2003 as an outlet for us to release dance floor oriented music and to explore all the various genres that we were into. 

How do you select/invite artists to record for the label? Is it more an outlet for the band and the various projects its members are engaged in at any given point of time?

Fort Knox Recordings is at heart a family affair. We have a very talented group of friends who we have collaborated with for years. As they developed their own projects it was a natural progression for us to release them.

Fort Knox Five has coined the term ‘reminted’ to describe their immensely successful remixes and productions of artists ranging from Kraak and Smaak to Louis Armstrong to Bob Marley. Tell us a bit more about how the process works?

We look at “Reminting” as our way of producing a track. It is our chance to take some one else’s song, and redo (it) in the Fort Knox sound. In a sense we consider it to be more of a collaboration with the artists we are remixing. Generally we try to limit ourselves to use one or two main elements of the original song, and then construct the rest using our own live instrumentation-guitar bass horns and whatever might make a tasty addition to the mix!

Where do you get your inspiration for your productions – while DJ’ing to rocking crowds or back in the studio?

We are equally inspired in both realms. Many times after playing festivals like Burning Man and Shambhala we have returned fully motivated and inspired from the sounds and vibes we have heard. We also influence each other in the studio where we always try to bring new sounds and ideas. And finally, its great to come full circle and see the audience react to these crazy ideas that we have concocted in the studio!

Your latest label release “The New Gold Standard 2” hits the shelves November 16 and contains four new tracks from Fort Knox Five as well as tracks from collaborators, side projects and more. What new territories are you exploring with this release? 

The New Gold Standard 2 is our upcoming release on Fort Knox Recordings. We feel this is the most solid representation of the present and future of Fort Knox. Our fifth CD release, features all of the artists from the previous TNGS (Fort Knox Five, International Velvet, Speedy Consuela, Liftoff), and new signings Nappy Riddem, Empresarios, and See-I. It really represents all the modern global sounds of our hometown Washington DC that we are exploring. The music covers everything from funk to hip hop, reggae to breaks,  bhangra to indie pop and dub to cubia rhythms. Out of all of the music we have been involved in, this is the project we are most proud of. It is a fine illustration of where we are musically and where we are to taking this label moving forward into 2010.

Any other new projects or productions in the works that we should be looking out for?

We are currently focusing on developing all of the artists that are featured on The New Gold Standard 2. We have new singles from See-i and Nappy Riddem  as well as numerous remixes in the works for the tracks on the compilation. With the Fort Knox Five, we are focusing on lots of new productions and remixing.

Fort Knox Five has been touring with Dutch electro-funk masters Kraak and Smaak this Fall. What has the experience been like? Do you see any differences in how the audience reacts to your music here in the States versus Europe?

We are currently on our first cross country tour this fall. We embarked on this tour with our funky compatriots from Holland, Kraak & Smaak. So far we are about 7 shows into the tour, and it has been a great experience. We have always had a mutual respect for each others music and have played many shows together over the past few years so we were psyched to put this us tour together with them. As far as the response in the US vs Europe, we have always had a great response from our music in Europe from the very beginning of Fort Knox Recordings. In our DJ sets we try to represent many different genres In any given set and this approach tends to work better overseas. However we are playing many new places on this tour and everywhere we go the reception has been very enthusiastic.

Could you tell us a bit about your DJ setup and the tools you use?

On this tour we decided to expand our usual DJ show. We have incorporated the use of 4 turntables and two mixers using Serato Scratch with lots of midi triggers and FX. In addition we have expanded the dj performance with a live video element. We do all our own design for Fort Knox Recordings and the visual aesthetic has always been just as important to us as the music. We wanted to be able to integrate those elements into the live performance.

Fort Knox Five plays at the Majestic this Wednesday, October 21. What can Madison party people expect to see and hear?

You can expect a Party Rocking DJ set in the Fort Knox Five style - hip hop funk breaks dub and everything in between - alongside eye-popping visuals! A total funk imersion experience!

That's what we like to hear at Madison Music Review... thank you for your time and we'll see you at the Majestic! Cheers, Ankur