Master of French electronica Lord Funk is warming up the globe (Includes interview)

Described as a “cornucopia of mid-’80s sounds, including disco, hip-hop, rare groove, deep boogie and foot-tapping funk,” Global Warming is the artist’s first full-length offering since 2012’s Ultimate Disco Breaks, a collaboration with fellow Frenchman Moar.

“After watching a documentary on ‘Planet Earth,’ I was thinking about the global warming coming time after time,” explains the founder of Boogie Butt Records, who cites “A Bad Day,” “With My Man,” “Real Fake MC” and “Blow Your Mind” as his standout tracks on the new record. “I don’t know what happened but at the end of the documentary I turned on my MPC and started to think about an LP with that title.”

And it’s a mixture of ’80s sounds? Yes, definitely… As a DJ I spin all around funk music from the 1960s to now, but on this project I went back to my first love: the ’80s. I used drum machines such as the TR-808 and synthesiser sounds from the period 1980 to 1985.”

“In 1981 I was 11 years old and at the time there were a lot of radio stations playing this kind of style – with funky sounds – and I was subjugated,” says Romain, looking back on the decade he chose to celebrate on this project. “I bought two turntables and a small mixer to start doing mix tapes. I didn’t need anything else.”

Lord Funk: ‘Global Warming’

Quite Great PR

Reflecting on his moniker, the musician states, “My first name was J-Funk (the J was for ‘Jazz’), but at a club in 1994 I heard a group from Belgium called ‘Lord Funk Super Funk Special‘ and was totally knocked out by them.

“One of my friends started to call me like this and the first time I used the name was on the first compilation I produced with a friend that same year: Underground Funk.

For a time, his Lordship lived in New York City where he supplied records and official samples to some of the biggest purveyors of electro and hip-hop in the world, including Fat Boy Slim, Warren G, DJ Spinna, Clark Kent, DJ Vadim, Kenny Dope, Kruder & Dorfmeister and Q-Tip.

“It was when I was in New York at the A1 Record Shop in the East Village, for Fat Boy Slim, Dj Spinna and Kenny Dope,” he remembers. “It was not only samples but also rare records. They have a large spectrum of knowledge…”

To finish, I asked the laidback Parisian to fill me in on his plans for the rest of 2016. “I’ve got a new radio show, L’Oreille Cassée, every saturday on Radiomarais from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m.,” he replies. “I’m also working on a compilation for Boogie Butt Records and doing some spinning.”

Global Warming will be available, on vinyl and digitally, from March 25.

For more information on Lord Funk, visit his official Facebook page or check out his profile on Soundcloud.