COLUMNS COLUMNS LANDMARKS RECORD THE BRONX The places, spaces, MART and monuments of A column on NYC's musical past, the gear and present, and future. processes that inform in 1958, a young law student named Jesse Moskow- the music we make. itz wanted a job. A friend of his owned a chain of stores in New York’s underground subway system, and needed PAST FEATURED LANDMARKS 1 MAX NEUHAUS’ “TIMES SQUARE” anxiety, the debut LP from Brook- help running one of them: a music shop wedged into a 2 THE THING SECONDHAND STORE lyn experimental R&B artist Autre Ne Veut, sliver of real estate in the Union Square subway stop, 3 THE LOFT came out earlier this year to a great deal directly beneath the S. Klein department store on the 4 MARCY HOTEL of applause. The record is meticulous, but east side of the square. 5 ANDY WARHOL’S FACTORY 1 there’s a warmth and sense of play that isn’t At the time, the music industry was in its infancy, 6 QUEENSBRIDGE HOUSES often heard in sounds that snap to the grid. but records by artists like Elvis had primed the pump, 6 We spoke with producer Joel Ford about and when the Beatles hit, sales really took off. Moskow- 5 how he and his partner Daniel Lopatin re- itz and his business partners noticed many of their cus- 5 QUEENS corded the album. tomers were Puerto Rican immigrants who worked in 5 factories near the square, so they put up a sign soliciting RBMA: How did you get the ANV record to requests from passersby, and by the early ’60s the store 2 sound so loose and lively? was specializing in Latin music: salsa, Cuban, Latin jazz, rumba, merengue, and more. 3 Joel Ford: Arthur [Ashin, aka Autre Ne Record Mart’s success enabled Moskowitz to open MANHATTAN Veut] came in with most of the songs in a second, larger location in the Times Square sub- demo form and it was our job to bring them way station in 1961. The original Record Mart stayed 4 to life. I borrowed some V-drums from a in Union Square until the late 1970s, but by then the friend and we set up a full-on “MIDI band” square had earned the sobriquet “Needle Park,” so Mos- in the live room. Dan and Arthur had an- kowitz shuttered to focus on the branch in less-seedy alog and digital keyboard and sampler sta- Times Square. tions connected to my laptop sending and As Record Mart thrived, new waves of immigrants receiving only MIDI. We monitored every- from countries like Mexico brought a longing for mu- LOGOS WHAT: RECORD MART thing through a big PA setup—but really I sic from their homelands. Moskowitz was more than WHERE: UNION was only recording information. No sound. happy to oblige. SQUARE AND TIMES This gave us incredible sonic flexibility [and When Times Square underwent major renovations in SQUARE SUBWAY The origins of the ability] to change any sound at any time. the ’90s, Record Mart closed while the MTA spent a de- STATIONS Most importantly though was how the ar- cade scouting for a new home for the store. Moskowitz WHEN: 1958-1999; iconic images from rangements fell into place via our “live” jam- was determined to keep it a subterranean affair. “Why 2007-PRESENT ming. After we tightened up arrangements mess with something that works?” says his son Lou. WHY: HUGE NYC's musical history and settled on synth and drum sounds, I Eventually, the MTA called to say a new spot was ready, SELECTION OF LATIN would then bounce all the MIDI informa- and in 2007 the younger Moskowitz and his father, who MUSIC explained. tion to stems and create new sessions on the had retired by then, reopened the shop. main studio machine. From there I would The store currently carries what Lou believes is the STATEN ISLAND play back the entire track and record actual largest selection of Latin music in the world, though BROOKLYN every story about Def Jam begins options. I played with a few layouts before audio using the console and other outboard much has changed since the original Record Mart de- gear, room sounds, pedals, etc. buted over a half-century ago, namely its inventory. with how Rick Rubin started the label settling on the cap D and J, offset as you “Headphones are huge, and we also sell electronics and in his NYU dorm room in 1984; that his see them now, with lowercase letters RBMA: What are some specific moments movies,” says Lou. “We do well with the CDs but we can’t on the Autre Ne Veut record that, in your live on that.” Jesse died last summer, a fact that still first release was of his own punk band, filling out the name.” He was drawn to opinion, couldn’t have happened without brings tears to Lou’s eyes. “We still have a big following,” Hose, and the second was “It’s Yours” by Helvetica because “it’s not decorative in the live-jamming process? he says. “And that is our identity.” !ADRIENNE DAY T La Rock and Jazzy Jay, which Russell any way, and because of that, has a naked JF: I think it’s evident in extended instru- Simmons heard, thought was the freshest graphic and informational quality. It’s mental moments or outros where the music track going, and couldn’t believe had easy to take seriously.” Although his major cruises into the clouds. been produced by a well-off white kid was film, he says, “I took a design class RBMA: What kind of post-processing do you do on software synthesizers to make from Long Island. It’s all incredible and at Harvard in the summer between my them sit bigger or better? all true. And once Rubin and Simmons junior and senior years of high school. I JF: Anytime something is sounding too dig- officially joined forces, they put out one enjoyed it, but I’m not sure it was training ital or thin, we’ll run it through tape amps or genre-defining record after another, for what was to come.” As for the tone- tube-mic preamps. It’s all contextual though. introducing LL Cool J, Beastie Boys, and arm graphic that graced the label’s 12- Sometimes a harsh digital sound is desirable TOP 5… and makes the music unique. Public Enemy to the world at large. inch sleeves, Rubin enlisted a friend in ARTIST/STYLE RBMA: On the Autre Ne Veut record and 1 2 3 4 5 logo that branded this venture The the dorm: “I asked her to copy an image of the Ford & Lopatin record from a couple ALLEGIANCES A$AP ROCKY AND LE1F AND LIZA THORN OF MYKKI BLANCO AND BRENMAR AND HOOD BY AIR MISHKA NYC STARRED AND SAINT KTZ VFILES COLLECTION was also a DIY Rubin creation. As Dan the tone arm from my Technics turntable of years ago [Channel Pressure], you have While Rocky’s sworn Mishka almost seems LAURENT The post-gender "NASA# Charnas’ book The Big Payback: The a very distinct sound palette—sounds that, by everything from like a brand made for The New York Times rapper rocked a KTZ We’d be remiss to so it would look like a blueprint.” frankly, people might avoid. Rick Owens to Ann rapper Le1f. With profile of Ms. Thorn, jacket splashed with exclude our own line! PRESENTED BY Demeulemeester, it’s bright colors and “The Muse of Saint Illuminati symbols in Brenmar, a DJ with History of the Business of Hip-Hop When asked what he had in mind his unwavering alle- loud prints (which Laurent,” proved that the video for “King- an underground ethos recounts, Rubin’s aunt worked at Estée JF: I love exploring the worlds of sound in giance to Shayne always match his re- the brand’s creative pinning.” It’s a and an encyclopedic when designing the logo, he replied, “I both outdated and brand-new synthesiz- An artist’s image has always been important, Oliver’s niche volving door of hair director Hedi Slimane great fit because the knowledge of R&B, has Lauder, where they had the tools he ers. Dan is really good at staying on top of but in a post-Kanye-in-a-Givenchy-skirt world, streetwear brand Hood colors and styles), is fixated on the brand, like Mykki, is been seen in the NASA grew up with 7-inch singles. The logos staking claim to certain labels is, for better by Air that shows the it’s not surprising rocker dream-girl, bold, influential, Swoosh tee (a refer- would need to craft the Def Jam word new synth tech and he keeps me informed. or worse, a crucial element for success. Here’s rapper has more than he wears at least one and that Liza’s brand and, to our amaze- ence to the legend- on those, from all of the small indie There is life inside of every synth sound our list of current NYC artists repping innova- just a large clothing piece of Mishka at of psychedelia is ment, still under-ap- ary NASA rave parties mark. In an email, Rubin recalls, “In the though. I especially love when older key- tive designers and brands. budget. almost every show. an apt reflection of preciated. of the mid ’90s) all labels of the ’60s and ’70s, were the Slimane’s work. over downtown NYC. pre-PC days, the creative department boards clearly attempt to emulate real in- inspiration.