Boston boogie virtuosos Charlie "Cnyce" Levine and Eli "Elyte" Goldstein (AKA Soul Clap) are honorary Miamians by now.
For one thing, they've beenbbbWinter Music Conference regulars for a decade. For another, they spent this entire winter in the 305, holding down a DJ residency at the Electric Pickle with labelmates and regular collaborators Wolf + Lamb.
But it's not just work that has brought Soul Clap to SoFla. These two dudes have actually found a musical home in Miami. It's no surprise, given their penchant for the bass-heavy booty jams this city has exported since the '80s. Our town even helped spawn the pair's upcoming debut album, EFUNK.
New Times: So what's the concept behind your debut long-player?
Soul Clap: Well, EFUNK means "Everybody's Freaky Under Nature's Kingdom" — a call to emancipate the universal booties from the clutches of dance-floor repetition! It's our first album. Therefore, it's a sort of culmination of our lives so far in music. This album contains music that's totally different from what we would put on an EP. It's not just designed for DJs or dance floors, but we wanted it to be something we would have put on in high school while we were chilling with homies, cutting class, or trying to kick it to a chick.
You've been rocking WMC week in Miami for ten years. What have been some of the highlights?
One year, Charlie broke his leg the day before the conference started and was rolling around on crutches the whole week. It was a blessing in disguise because we got to cut the line at every party! Another year, we played records [at the Clevelander] to a grand total of two people: our friend who got us the gig and a guido.
By 2010, we finally got to shine as we opened the terrace at Get Lost and played possibly our best set ever at Sunday School. It also was the year we dropped EFUNK: The Mixtape, and our "Extravaganza" edit stole the show. Then 2011 was the year of the Clap — from the Wolf + Lamb/Soul Clap DJ Kicks release party at the Pickle to our second time kicking off the Get Lost terrace, the Liaison boat party, and dropping an all-vinyl disco set to close out the week at Hot Natured. We finally made it!
What is it about Miami that compelled you to move here and spend the whole season with us?
Well, Eli started spending some time in Miami during the winter months. Meanwhile, Gadi [Mizrahi] from Wolf + Lamb has a family condo that we started taking advantage of to beat the cold and come write music. Once we all saw the musical power of this climate, environment, and pace, we were sold. The musical energy is here — the echoes of freestyle and '80s electro, Miami bass, Latin music. Everything you write here sounds like Joe Satriani's "Echo." It's just so epic!
What's the future for Soul Clap?
This year is all about wormholes. Wiggle it, just a little bit.
