The Bag Messenger BlogBag Design and Urban Living

A few months ago we here at Tucker and Bloom held a contest to find the perfect lazy afternoon mixtape. The rules were simple and open ended. The mixes were to be Brazilian, Soul, or Jazz based, not to long, and devoid of distracting drops ( for a good example of this google DJ Clue). The DJ with the best mix would receive one of our North To South Messenger bags,world wide acclaim, and all the parades that accompany it. We went through a lot of fine mixes before awarding the first place prize to DJ Hudson also known as Alex Moitt. Hudsons' winning submission was outstanding, and left us itching to know more about the man behind the mix. What did he eat for breakfast the day he recorded it? Who did the cover art? What is life like now that he's won? We recently caught up with Alex to find out more about his life, and to find out how the North to South bag was working for him. 

-THE BAG MESSENGER

THE BAG MESSENGER: Name, Where are you from? 

ALEX MOITT: I'm from Leicester which is in the Midlands in the UK. I'm trying to think of something Leicester is famous for... um, the Elephant Man (the deformed one, not the dancehall one) is from here. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: When did you first get into design?

ALEX MOITT: I've always had an interest in design which came from an interest in record sleeves at an early age but as a career I got into it when I worked in marketing for a website. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: How long have you been working as a graphic designer? Where do you look for inspiration?

ALEX MOITT: It's been about 8 years now. I work in the public sector so most of the stuff I do is quite conservative in the look and feel but my style is quite retro so my inspiration comes from going round second hand shops and getting old books, magazines and records. I do get inspiration from anywhere at anytime - if something catches my eye I often think about incorporating it into a future project. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: How did you first get involved with DJing?

ALEX MOITT: Like most DJs my age it starts with the family. My Dad has (or had as I've 'borrowed' the bulk of it) a large record collection which I took a massive interest in from an early age. Also I've got aunts and uncles who all had a lot of records and I was often going through what they had. I started playing out at places around the time I went to college and there I met like minded people who were putting nights on which led to me being involved in a hip hop and funk night which ran for a few years and led to sharing billing with a lot of good acts and DJs.

THE BAG MESSENGER: We're you always collecting records? What kinds of things are you looking for these days?

ALEX MOITT: Yes, I used to go record shopping with my Dad every other Saturday so I started buying records really early on. I think by the age of 8 I was buying good  records. Before then, I was buying records by people whose names I recgonised from the family's collection that were generally rubbish. I don't buy as much as I used to but I go to the second hand shops every now and then. I'm always on the look out for disco, funk, hip hop and anything that catches my eye. The last new records I bought was a DJ Platurn remix of Midas Touch and a GAMM release of an Erykah Badu track that's on the house tip. There's some good reissues out that I'm planning on getting, like the Soul Jazz reissue of the Roy Ayers Uno Melodic LP and the last few Jazzman releases. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: How are you liking the North to South Messenger Bag?

ALEX MOITT: The Messenger Bag is treating me very well. I use it mainly to keep my stuff in for work and there's been a few times where I've taken it out on a record finding mission and it's the perfect size for that too. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: Has Serato changed the way you get down?

ALEX MOITT: The obvious things such as not having to carry a back breaking amount of records and being able to play things that are not on vinyl, as well as virtually having doubles of everything are a plus. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: What do you listen to for fun? How has becoming a DJ affected the way you listen to music? 

ALEX MOITT: I'm into all sorts of stuff so for recreational listening I like to keep it varied so as well as listening to hip hop, funk, soul, disco and the stuff I play out I listen to jazz, old rock, reggae... anything good really. Recently I've been listening to a Jay-Z mix by DJ Ayres, The Aquarius album by Brazilian legend Joyce and Shuggie Otis' Inspiration Information. Because I've been DJ'ing since I was a teen I don't think it's affected how it's listening to music. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: Every DJ has a horror story or two....what is the worst thing to happen at a gig?

ALEX MOITT: Nothing too bad springs to mind. I've had nights where only one turntable is working, stuff like that and people making odd requests - recently someone asked me for some Bon Jovi and last week someone came up and asked if I play any 'you know, like, songs??' But recently a friend of mine, DJ BFG, was telling me that he was playing somewhere and he turned round to see a woman in the booth taking a piss. That's just wrong. 
One request I had from an overweight thug years ago was to play 'some fookin white music', I think I played either The Specials or Harry J's Allstars 'The Liquidator' in response to that and then I think he got kicked out the club.

THE BAG MESSENGER: What are you working on now? (design wise or dj wise)

ALEX MOITT: Design wise I've been meaning to do some nice bits to decorate the walls in my house (saying it here commits me to do it!) but I've not got any design projects outside of what I do at work. DJ wise I've got a regular weekend slot at a bar that I play at a couple of times a month which is trucking along nicely and when I get the time I want to get a couple of mixtapes done. I've done three breaks/sample mixes over the last few years so  I'm planning on doing another one in that series using only children's records. I don't know if it's going to work but keep an eye on my blog, toiletries.wordpress.com, as I'll be putting up whatever I come up with there. 

Click here to grab a copy of "Tickets Please" by DJ HUDSON

Here is your treat for the week, "Feeling Good" by Cosmo Baker. Perfect for those long summer days. Enjoy

-THE BAG MESSENGER

"Often times I'll wake up in a certain mood and I'll want to make a mix that will accompany me during the day. This is how the first "Love Break" came about - just a mix for me to listen to in my car during a road trip. Anyway, a few weeks ago, I woke up and it was a beautiful day, the sun was shining, the temperature was just right. It made me think of a certain sound that just means "spring/summer" to me, so before I headed out I made this mix to listen to while I ran around New York. There's nothing like New York in the springtime."- Cosmo

Click for a Download

TRACK LIST-

Benny Golson "I'm Always Dancin' To The Music"
Maze feat. Frankie Beverly "Golden Time Of Day"
Brenda Russell "In The Thick Of It"
SSO "Faded Lady"
L.T.D. "Don't Stop Loving Me"
Toto "Waiting For Your Love"
Harvey Mason "Till You Take My Love"
Eddie Drennon & The BSS Orchestra "Do What You Gotta Do"
Patrice Rushen "Feels So Real (Won't Let Go)"
Brass Construction "Get Up To Get Down"
Roy Ayers "Love Will Bring Us Back Together"
Roberta Flack & Donny Hathaway "Back Together Again"
Mtume "Love Lock"
Bernard Wright "Spinnin'"
Teena Marie "I Need Your Lovin'"
Stevie Wonder "Love Light In Flight"
Karen Silver "Nobody Else"
James Mason "Sweet Power of Your Embrace"
Donald Byrd "Love Has Come Around"
Chaka Kahn "Clouds"
Coke Escoveo "I Wouldn't Change A Thing"
Black Ivory "Mainline"
Change "A Lover's Holiday"
D-Train "Keep On"
Earth Wind & Fire "Runnin'" (Danny Krivit Remix)
John Paul Young "Love Is In The Air"
Norman Connor presents Aquarian Dream "Look Ahead"
The Isley Brothers "Harvest For The World"

Cosmo Baker with the North To South Messenger bag. 

Catch up with Cosmo on Twitter and get knowledge on his site

I was immediately attracted to the use of clean type and noisy photography in the album art for Brian Gossett’s, The Heist Series. However, the series goes deeper than just the pretty covers, it also has a great concept. Gossett’s love for the heist film genre becomes apparent through his vast knowledge of the films’ scores and his ability to compile the compositions in a cohesive manner. Check out his site, where you can download the mixes and read his wonderful accompanying descriptions.

- Nick Sigler

Here is an interview for earlier in the year that many of you missed. 

-THE BAG MESSENGER

Will Van Zandt is a man full of stories. Son of famous folk singer Towens Van Zandt, who is as legendary for his wild antics as his song writing; Will is a bit of a legend  himself. He was once run over by a tractor trailer on the interstate in Nashville, passed up by the responding ambulance, and lived to tell about it. He is about as genuine a person as anyone could hope to meet. I have had the pleasure of knowing him for some time, and share a few crazy stories with the man myself.  This interview won't be covering any of his wild past, or give you specific insight into his fathers song writing process (sorry Townes fans). Instead we will cover WVZ's obsessive passion for crusty old spray paint cans. Perhaps this will give you more insight into his father than a world full of unreleased demo tapes. Perhaps you will learn about the hunt for Jungle Green. Either way, while "there are two kinds of music. (The Blues, and Zippity-Do-Da"- TVZ), there are many can's of spray paint yet to be unearthed.

- Case Bloom

THE BAG MESSENGER: How did you first get into collecting cans?    

Will Van Zandt:  I got into it through graffiti. Back before all the specialty paint brands were around, you were very limited as far as colors and shades. In the mid nineties krylon had discontinued a lot of their more vibrant colors. My guy Verse, who basically schooled me as far as graffiti is concerned knew about some local mom and pop hardware stores who still had a good stock of discontinued colors, so we started cleaning those out, just getting paint to use. Every now and then I would find cans that were real old, they wouldn't even spray, little off brands I had never heard of, some with crazy graphics. I would stick those on a shelve to display. Over time it was less about finding paint to use, and more about the older cans themselves.

THE BAG MESSENGER: How long have you been doing it?    

Will Van Zandt: It started in 98' so around twelve years. I slowed down for a while until I realized people were paying good money online for some of these cans. I defiantly got a second wind after that. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: How much are some of these worth?   

Will Van Zandt: In this economy no one is safe... Stuff isn't going for what it was say, five years ago. At one point it was nothing to get on ebay and see cans going for a couple hundred dollars. I've seen single cans go for close to eight hundred dollars, that's unheard of right now. Most stuff isn't even selling. Right now it's more about trades with other collectors.  

THE BAG MESSENGER: What brands are you into? What types of cans are you looking for? How many cans deep are you?  

Will Van Zandt: Probably my favorite right now are what are called picture cans. They were made by a few different brands, and basically every color has a different illustration that describes it. Also I'm into Rustoleum  stuff 1965 or older. They sent out a lot of cool advertising stuff back in the day. Giant display cans, transistor radios that look like cans, I have a gold money clip, and a company softball team jersey from the early seventies. I'm looking for 1950's "grenade and soup cans", called this because of their shape. I don't think most people would even recognize the "soup cans" as spray paint. I'm into greens, avocados, limes, and aquas. I would say i have around a thousand cans that are worth mentioning, but I'm defiantly trying to downsize. It's gotten a bit insane, so a lot of stuff is boxed up these days.  

THE BAG MESSENGER: What is the furthest you have gone on a trip digging?   

Will Van Zandt: With Verse I've been down into Mississippi, on all back roads. We made it to Vicksburg Miss before we ran out of room in the truck and had to turn around. Same deal in Georgia, South Carolina, Kentucky. Those are forsure some of the best come ups.  There is not really anybody else in the South doing this. It isn't like in the North East where you have a lot of guys going to the same spots competing. It was all untouched old family owned hardware stores. You know, "Grandpa opened up after the war, then my dad took over, now it's mine."  These guys don't recycle, and they don't throw stuff away. Prime digging.

THE BAG MESSENGER: Can you describe what a digging  mission might look like? How do people react when you tell them you want to dig up their old paint cans?   

Will Van Zandt:  We leave at three or four in the morning, and by the time we get to the next state the stores are starting to open up. We map it out, then hit every little town. When they start to close we get a cheap ass hotel room, and figure out where to go the next day. Most of the time you just get looked at like a psychopath, " Your looking for what!?"  I've been called a "long haired paint huffing drug addict" and told to get out of people's stores. Sometimes you come across an old man who's happy to have somebody who's actually interested in his business, and wants to show you everything upstairs, in the basement, and tell stories about the "good ole' days".  You can spend full days in a place like that. I've been in basements where cans were literally stuck up in the spaces under the floorboards.  Then his buddy over in whateverville has a store so he calls him up and sends you over. These places are far and few between now, if they even still exist. 

THE BAG MESSENGER: What other kinds of stuff do like to collect?    

Will Van Zandt: I've collected everything at some point. Stamps, coins, comics, baseball cards. If I see a shiny rock I want that shit, but there's a fine line between a collector and a hoarder, and I'm trying to cut back. I don't want to end up on A&E! 

Get the simple messenger bag here , perfect for the daily grind, and stylish enough that you can avoid looking like a "long haired paint huffing drug addict".