Chris Joss is a French multi-instrumentalist, self-producer, and quite a success at bringing the funk. His work is very reminiscent of 60s and 70s dance, funky soundtrack music, and soul classics; where many artists would be happy to merely sample those classics, Joss creates entirely original music with all the cool and funkiness of those bygone dancefloor days. Chris Joss simply doesn't need the samples. His studio wizardry speaks for itself, on self-produced albums such as 2004's You've Been Spiked or the upcoming release, Teraphonic Overdubs. Gearwire's Joe Wallace asked Joss about the process he uses to create those tasty retro grooves.

One thing about Spiked that is really fun is the use of instantly-identifiable sounds associated with 70s action films like Shaft. The sounds are easy to spot, but the instruments that make them aren't so well known. Most people know about using a wah to make the "waka-waka" guitar tones, but what other 60s and 70s sounds/instruments did you use?

Favourites of mine are flutes, Rhodes or Wurlitzer electric piano, French horns, strings,and you mentionned the xylophones which work well on Wrong Alley Street (from You've Been Spiked). I'm not an expert in blaxploitation movies or soundtracks; in fact I just try different stuff and keep what I think sounds best.

Your work has that cinematic feel associated with a particular set of films of bygone eras. What do you do technically to give your albums the sonic texture needed to convey that cinematic quality?

What I like is having my master section with compression and limiting all the way through the recording so I'm always at the mixing stage in a way. This way I get to do things I wouldn't normally do. When bypassing the master section effects I realized I had some elements really loud in the mix, too loud in fact, but with the master effects back on it just plays with the pumping compression. I follow the two golden rules: "Appropriate rather than accurate," and, "If it sounds good then it is good."

I'd watched a Stax VHS and the "Respect yourself" video on my cheap TV sounded so good, I've always loved the sound you get through optical printing on movies although I don't know much about it. It is low-fi, but so warm sounding. I remember as a child being disappointed by the sound you got on vinyl compared to how it sounded when hearing a video of a song or music movies in the 70s on TV. I thought when buying a record I would get THAT sound but better and louder, but it was in fact very different. So I was more or less after that type of sound, big fat drums and bass, heavily compressed, like I've always been to be honest, but for the first time with the tools to do it. I actually just listened to the acetates of You've been Spiked which is coming out as a 2x12 at 45rpm and it sounds really good, the light distortion that can be heard in my mixes on CD is now discretely mixed with the vinyl distortion and I love it.

You don't have any performance dates listed in support of your latest CD, Teraphonic Overdubs. Do you plan to perform this material live?

No that's right, I'm not doing gigs anymore. I'm suffering from tinnitus and hyperacousia and exposing myself to loud sources of sound would cause more constant ringing in my ears and make me loose some more dbs if not deafen me totally. I have some custom made earplugs but the basses inside the body are amplified so much it is really uncomfortable, so I'm limited to studio work, which thankfully I love. I had to decide to definitely stop last year after a DJ set that has cost me some high frequencies. I had started getting a band together for a promo tour of the second album in 2002 but the costs of travel for a band on tour far exceeded the kind of money we could ask for. We discussed it again for Spiked but the only viable possibility was DJ sets on my own, a different thing.

Can you give any advice for people who might be suffering a lower-level version of tinnitus and explain how hyperacousia affects you?

Tinnitus in my case is due to exposure to noise for too long at a too high level. Hyperacousia is high sensitivity to relatively quite noises, in my case at a certain frequency that happens to be the one I've lost the most, 4000Hz, which is the one we're the most sensitive to as it's the speach frequency. A glass put on a table a bit strongly, a slamming door or any noise happening suddenly creates a long decay ringing in my left ear and is painful.

If you get ringings after a gig, rest your ears for a few days, keep away from headphones, there's a lot of stuff on the subject on the net, just remember that once you lose some frequencies for more than a few days it's likely to be permanent, there are some medications if you consult in the early stages.

I was aware of it, not as much as now, the first time I heard about it was about Pete Townsend and the use of headphones some 15 years ago, but that didn't help much because when I was gigging I wanted it loud and it didn't feel loud at all, it felt good ! For years it was whistling after gigs, sometimes a bit the next day and then it came back to normal, until at some point it didn't. Like for everything some people are more sensitive to noise levels than others. Some get it after one concert and it never stops.

What should people do on tour to avoid damaging their hearing? Hearing protection is the obvious choice, but is there anything you've learned that people can do to help themselves?

I honestly can't tell, other than lower the level but you only lower the level if it feels too loud, and it never feels to loud unless you're already suffering. If it's too loud, you're too old! Listening loud was part of the pleasure of listening to music for me as is the case for many musicians and listeners, so it's hard to give advice.

What about DJ work? Are the hearing protection issues different, or do you find them to be about the same? Any advice for DJs?

I didn't do many DJ sets and was already suffering from tinnitus when I started, but the problem is the same, the levels and time of exposure. I have DJ friends who've never experienced ringings in places I couldn't walk in anymore so again, depends on your sensitivity.