NYC loft vibes from one of the best in all the boroughs.
Just in time for his latest visit of our large island, Proibito Recs boss and all round chiller Anthony Naples turns in a floor friendly hour full of bumping 80s and 90s club jams, live and direct from his record filled bedroom in Queens. After following his evolution as an up-and-coming artist / DJ / record label guy, Naples’ finger never really seems to leave the pulse. With a keen ear for discovering fresh NYC based talent and sharing it with the world, local producers like Huerco S., Hank Jackson and Austin Cesear have all helped to forge his Proibito label’s unique NYC identity. As a DJ Naples doesn’t disappoint either, regularly playing all night long to sweaty dancefloors round the globe, weaving together countless tempos and styles. If you get a chance to catch him over the next couple of weeks, we highly recommend it!
Hey Anthony, what’s happening man?
Hello Myles, I’m just hanging out and getting started on the day. It’s a nice one here in Ridgewood, NYC (and also – Happy International Women’s Day!) – I hope you are well too.
Your newest EP Us Mix is just around the corner and sounds to be channeling various 90s US house vibes with your own unique twist on things. Was that the general idea behind these four club tracks?
I’m not sure if I go into anything with a general idea, for better or worse. These are just a few songs I made in fall 2016 that were definitely inspired by my experiences over the few months prior. It was a very melancholy, but chill time for me when I was making them, and I guess you just can’t help what you are, hey!
2016 was by far your label Proibito’s biggest year to date, with Huerco S.’ brilliant ambient album plus a handful of EPs from NYC artists DJ Python, Hank Jackson and yourself alongside some interesting new names. What else might we be able to expect from the label this year?
Thanks for all the kind words! I’m actually taking a break from ye olde PRB after Us Mix comes out to check out some new routes. One of which is starting a new label with my girlfriend. Just like that old Australian saying goes “two heads are better than one, especially when they’re in love!”. The first release is actually coming from an Aussie we all know and love, so stay tuned for that!
Your music feels like it’s evolved quite a bit in recent times, with your EP for The Trilogy Tapes dealing in what Ivan Berko sums up as ‘slo mo electro for neon lit life’. Hearing you play in NYC late last year with CZ Wang it felt like these kind of slower, more suspenseful tracks were really key to laying the foundations of the night. Was this kinda where your head was at approaching that record?
Haha, shout out to Ivan, what a guy! and CZ!
Hmmm, it’s again just a product of my environment I guess – going to the Loft and it’s sort of affiliated parties definitely rewired my brain a bit, and you can’t help that sort of thing can you? I’m just going with my flow – I was worried how people would take to it, but in the end, one of the DJ’s who influenced this record, Takaya Nagase, told me he liked it a lot, so it always comes full circle. Shout out to Takaya as well!
What can you tell us about this little mix you’ve gone and done for us?
It’s just a quick live recording in my room. I just played some stuff I pulled from the shelves without planning it out at all. Once and a while Jen would come in and give me a “woo” – so lets say the title of this mix is “In the pursuit of Woo”. A few records skipped, and nearly all of them have moments where they fall out of time, but I catch them! And as I always say, “What is life without mistakes?”. Also I must say that 1/3rd of these records are Jen’s so of course I couldn’t have done it without her influence.
You’re back in Australia again in a minute, was there anything you didn’t get to tick off the bucket list last time you were out here? Where can people catch you this time round?
I didn’t get out of the cities either time I’ve been to AUS in the past, so I’d like to check out some Bush, and some DOOFS hopefully. Also some wildlife. I know it’s stereotypical, but to hold a sweet little koala bear in my arms would be a dream come true. If I wasn’t a DJ I’d definitely go to Vet school to take care of my furrier brothers and sisters.
I’ll be in Melbourne, Perth, Adelaide, and Sydney. Doing a few off-the-table surprise parties as well. Still waiting on that Darwin connect to come through!!