Although he hails from Washington D.C., Fort Knox Five frontman Steve Raskin is both well-acquainted with and passionate about the Sea to Sky corridor. Whistler was the first place he lived outside of America's capital, and he's likely spent more time touring the area than any other region of Canada.
Raskin returns to his old stomping grounds on Aug. 15 as Fort Knox Five Live joins the local Summer Concert Series. He's bringing an all-star lineup of West Coast talent, including Mark Woodyard of the Lazy Syrup Orchestra, Neighbour Music's Matt Dauncey, vocalist Emily Molloy, percussion man Chris Cuoto and Danny Fernandez, a.k.a. DEF3.
Together, they'll aim to fuse electronica with live instrumentals in a way that few other groups do.
From D.C. to B.C.
Fort Knox Five emerged some 20 years ago as a collaboration between Raskin, Rob Myers, Sid Barcelona and the late Jon Horvath. All were involved in other projects at the time, but linked up to transcend conventional limitations of genre. They asked: why not throw a pinch of rock and a dash of reggae into a blender with electronic music and see what happens?
Most of the outfit's content was produced in studio but performed live, causing the men to joke that they were their own cover band. It was also logistically easier for Raskin and Horvath to tour as a pair of DJs than it was to take the whole show on the road, relegating Fort Knox Five to annual or biannual performances at specialty events.
The initiative withstood the test of time, and Raskin was approached this summer about a gig at Whistler Olympic Plaza.
"As a band, I think we performed in Washington D.C. and Whistler more than anyplace else," he said. "We did the Whistler Ski and Snowboard Festival and all these things. There was always a big connection between D.C. and B.C., especially the Sea to Sky community."
And what have the Washingtonian's overall impressions of Whistler been?
"I moved there probably seven or eight years ago [for a stint]," Raskin recalled. "I have tons of friends there, and by the time I ended up moving it already felt like home. What I've noticed over the years about the Sea to Sky in general: people are genuinely fans of music. The energy at shows that I've played is usually unmatched in terms of enthusiasm and appreciation."
'The magic moment'
Raskin himself appreciates what can happen when he and his peers get into their creative laboratory.
Pre-recorded or looping material is ripe for experimentation. Contemporary editing software allows one to remove any part of a given song (i.e. the drums or bassline) while leaving the rest intact to be mixed with other ingredients. It's an endless realm of possibility for the right mind.
"Anytime you add a live element—instrument, voice or whatever—to an electronic thing, you're already creating something more than pure DJing allows you to do," said Raskin. "The magic moment to me was always where two songs overlapped and created a third song, and when you add another layer of live instrumentation, it has that effect."
Mash-ups have long been integral to DJ culture, especially two or three decades ago when Raskin got his start. A Bob Marley acapella plus a house beat can equal a live remix that gets a crowd going, and Fort Knox Five brings its own spin to that approach.
"If you're doing a Fort Knox Five song instrumentally and you start singing another lyric on top, then all of a sudden you're creating something new there," Raskin said. "I think that's what's exciting about this type of format, and I'm really excited to bring it to Whistler. It's been a long time since I've done a live set with a band up there."
Dunks from The Funk Hunters will kick things off next Thursday at 6:30 p.m. with a 45-rpm vinyl set before Fort Knox Five takes the baton at 7:30 p.m. More details at whistler.com/events/concerts.
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