Vin Forte is VF_DOS_

http://www.facebook.com/MikeShanePhotography

Journalist, entrepreneur, DAPS writer, Indie Hulk, former DJ of the Mighty Vin Show, and artist?... Vin Forte just doesn't seem to get enough of taking advantage of everything the web and media has to offer. A personal friend of mine, Vin is definitely a great thinker and someone full of creativity. It's no wonder that his latest project VF_DOS_ has intrigued me so. In this project you'll hear many different sounds, samples, and elements of familiar things mixed with his own twist.

His new EP, Blue Shirts dropped on 4/20, but I assure you this is just coinsidence to "Weed Day." So if you are looking for easy to listen "vibe out" music that is both simple and creatively diverse, download your free copy of Blue Shirts on the Bandcamp below. Also be sure to check out Silent Scores and Dethroning Alex Kidd, with the later being a deconstruction of the music from Sonic 2, crazy stuff.

http://vfdos.bandcamp.com/album/blue-shirts-ep

VF_DOS_Facebook

VF_DOS_Website


How did you come up with the name VF_DOS_?
It's a play on the MS DOS operating system. I'm still old enough to have just made the generation that had to use a ton of DOS prompts instead of the standard GUI interfaces of today.

What's the inspiration behind your music and what started you on it?
My inspirations came from getting to know a bunch of bands on the SI scene and seeing how creative they were while still being very good. Creativity comes with a price and these guys were people who seem to put it all on the line. Bands like Les Vinyl, the Wahoo Skiffle Crazies and solo artists like Matt Wilson, Kilgore Trout Is Dead are only a scant few examples of the people putting it all out there in their own way, but owning their material of quality in a way that is so goddamn inviting and rewarding. So I guess my music, in a way, is an extension of the local bands who have influenced me; In some small way they created this. Sorry guys. 

Photo by Mike Shane

What are your musical abilities and how long have you been experimenting?
I will be the first to claim I have zero musical ability. I've been experimenting since 2008 and have thrown a ton of sh*t (and I mean SH*T) on the internet and up until very recently it's all just been me figuring things out, and seeing what I can really do. I found a nice groove where one day I just said "OK, I'm a subpar musician on any scale, but I feel like I have a knack for piecing together hooks and making it work, so I'll zone in on that." I knew that I had enough wherewithal to be able to create a decent hook, so I would do that and focus 100% on figuring out how this big bag of hooks could be made to work together. 

If you had to classify your genre, what is it?
Instrumental music for people to throw on and chill to. Not mood-music, per se; more something that I hope people will respond to with a gentle head-nod and a polite "this I like."

What are the tools/instruments you use to make your music?
Before the studio-produced EP, I just made stuff in my room at odd-hours with a lone guitar, samples, pieced-together drum loops, found sound, and a large collection of electronic loops and effects. I took way too long making [these effects] using just my mouth breathing into the mic or a handclap that I then warped into an electronic mess or a random widget in my room that I could get to make a noise and then altered it to my liking. 

With the studio EP I said "OK, the time seems right." I finally felt comfortable with whatever little ability I may or may not have and wanted to do something where I could go crazy, but in my new honed-in mindset. I wanted to play with the big-boy toys and have everything I could ever need at my disposal to work with and I got to; bass, guitars, organs, bells, keyboards, anything I wanted to play around and experiment with. Joe Pecora, an amazing producer who runs his own Red Room Studio out on Forest Ave in SI, really bought-in to what I wanted to do and understood the polished-but-frayed sound I was going for. Then Pat Given, from Les Vinyl, came in to lay down these amazing drum tracks after they were all otherwise finished and they both took everything I was looking to do and elevated it to a level of professional and awesomeness I never thought it would reach before.

Where do you plan on taking it, and do you have any goals?
I have no goals really. This whole thing is a giant vanity project. It's really just music for me. I just hope that enough people are like me and would appreciate such music.

Did you ever think of having someone use your beats for a song, like having someone rap on them?
Ever since I started calling on Pat to come in and lay down drums, I don't have any need to make beats. But, by all means, Pat is a great hip-hop drummer. If anyone wants to use him for a project, I'll gladly give you his info.

How does the song making process work? How long do they generally take?
It depends. I'm always adding and tweaking things. I might say something is finished and then keep toying with it for another 3 months. But I will say that this EP is the first thing ever where I'm like "This is IT. This is definitive."

Have you ever teamed up with anyone on a song?
Not yet. I'd love to team-up with someone on an instrumental, bring their ideas into the mix and make something crazy.

Anything else you want to add?
I'd like to cover the earth with a fresh-baked yummy dessert.