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Before he started his own record label, James Vance had already tried his hand at just about everything you would expect of someone who grew up submerged in hip-hop culture: graffiti, breakdancing, DJing. He even rapped—badly. But when the first shipment of records stamped with his Omega Supreme imprint arrived at his house, Vance was unprepared.
"I'm like, 'Oh shit. I've got 500 records,'" he says. "I have no idea what the fuck I'm going to do with these.'"
He
eventually figured it out. Three years and 23 releases in, Omega Supreme
has become a prime source of "modern funk," a sound typified by
thwacking drums, rubbery basslines and plumes of dry-ice synths. Willamette Week
asked Vance, a native Southern Californian who came to Portland over a
decade ago, about some of the favorite records he's put out so far.
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1. Turquoise Summers, "Never Can Get Enuff" b/w "Break You Down." "The single that got it all started. The essence of this single is what moved the conversation from 'future funk' to 'modern funk,' separating the sound from experimental synth arrangements to serious chord progressions in line with the elders of the sound of the early â80s.â
2. Sasac, Sasac. "Our first cassette release captures Sasac's flawless songwriting abilities with a deep range of multilayered melodic synth and hypnotic guitar arrangements. I didn't see anyone reaching out to build an official release around him. I couldn't take it any longer."
3. Raw Silk, Vol. 1. "Our first compilation, released a year after our first record. Most of these artists had released key songs prior to this release that helped establish the integrity of the sound. The scene was still a little shaky, and I wanted artists and fans alike to know we were dedicated to keeping the dialogue of modern funk in the conversation by bringing its key players together on one LP."
4. Sven Atterton, The Cove. "Sven was not on the radar until a funkster out of Amsterdam, L33, turned in a collaboration with him and blew our minds. A year later he flew to Portland and handed me The Cove, which answered a lot of questions about the identity of modern funk and its current state, proving that the songwriting can continue to break boundaries."
5. Is This the Future? Vol. 1. "We started this cassette series to provide tour support for modern funksters. Moniquea and XL Middleton of MoFunk Records had been moving crowds in L.A., and for a year I was trying to get Portland promoters to bring them up here, with no luck. So I asked if they had any unreleased demos we can put on a cassette and sell to finance a Portland show. The cassette sold out in three weeks, and we were able to fly them here to play for a sold-out crowd. Now we do the party every quarter."
SEE IT: Omega Supreme Records presents Is This the Future? 2 at the Liquor Store, 3341 SE Belmont St., with K-Maxx, Brian Ellis, Turquoise Summers, DJ Mama Bear and DJ Laroj, on Saturday, May 30. 9 pm. $10. 21+.
WWeek 2015