In anticipation of the ‘Lost in Nightlife’ party this saturday 29-09-18 at The Studio (Antwerp), we asked Pietro Anton (director of the Italo Disco Legacy documentary) a few questions. You can also listen to his exclusive mix right here.
WAV: ‘How did the whole project started & when did it start.’
Pietro: “When I moved to Berlin about 10 years ago, I discovered a small but vibrant international scene of Italo enthusiasts coming from different countries, regularly organizing parties and events and sharing the passion for this sound. Soon I realised there was a global community of artists, producers and Italo Disco fans keeping the genre alive with their music, parties, radio stations, online mixes. I wanted to hear their stories and eventually find out what the Italo Disco Legacy was, how did this music survive. That’s how the idea of the film was conceived back in 2013, when I made the first interviews.”
WAV: ‘Were you always into the italo disco genre?’
Pietro: “I have always been a 80’s music freak in general, especially in love with synthesizer sounds. I was in my early 20s when I discovered again some of the tunes I first listened to as a child, almost subliminally, which were (as I found out later) Italo Disco songs. Then I dug deeper, losing myself into this huge untamed jungle made of underground italo sounds. I never came out of it and I made this jungle home.”
WAV: Tell us a bit about your collection.
Pietro: “I was a manic collector of Italo, Synth Pop, Minimal Wave and Industrial music records for several years, then I had to calm down a bit because I didn’t have much space left to store all the records.”
WAV: Was it easy to get people like The Hacker & Dj Hell involved into the documentary?
Pietro: “To my great surprise, most of the people I contacted for the interviews were really cool and cooperative. Many of them were quite enthusiastic about the topic. DJ Hell and The Hacker for example didn’t play the hard-to-get characters, despite their world-famous-DJ status: although I contacted them on really short notice, they were really open and happy to be interviewed about one of their big musical passions.”
WAV: What’s your dream line up for a night out?
Pietro: “Italoconnection, Rago & Farina and Sandro Codazzi will always be my dream team live line up.
Too many great dj’s, it’s hard to mention just a few, it would be magic however to finally experience a dj set from Flemming Dalum in a club. As for the tracks, I love to dance to De-De-Mo’s “Cause I need you, cause I love you” reissued a couple of years ago from Bordello a Parigi.”
WAV: Can you tell us a something about the cooperation with Private Records, the high reputated berlin based label?
PA: “I met Jay of Private Records through a common friend when I was already halfway of shooting the film, he liked the project and proposed to release the soundtrack on his label, and so we did. He launched a successful crowdfunding campaign for the Italo Disco Legacy 2LP+DVD set: it was sold out twice already, I hope it will be reissued soon again.”
WAV: How many cities organised the screening of the documentary already?
PA: “From the day of its premiere in Berghain last January, the film has been screened in 36 cities and 20 countries so far. From Melbourne to Mexico City, from Miami to Helsinki, Paris and Budapest, the film travelled around a lot!”
WAV: Any artists or labels you’re into lately?
PA: “Among the new artists, Sandro Codazzi is one of my favourite producers, I love his work very much and I had the pleasure to see him performing live several times.”
WAV: Can we expect a new project or documentary soon?
PA: “Yes, but I don’t want to spoil the surprise, except it will have to do with music again.”
WAV: What do you think about future italo disco?
PA: “Italo Disco paved the way to the future of modern dance music already 40 years ago, so in a way maybe we are already living in that future. It will keep inspiring the generations of producers to come and it will still be as influential as ever”
WAV: Do you have a connection with Belgium and the italo scene? And any favourite Belgian artists or records in your collection?
PA: “I know Rofo from the Italo days! Telex is definitely one of my favourite Belgian bands, along with Front 242, Neon Judgement, Absolute Body Control and Vive la Fête. I also love New Beat, which is perhaps the missing link between Italo and Techno.”.
WAV: Beer or wine?
PA:: “Depends on the mood and on the food. Living in Germany, 80% of time it has to be beer. In Italy it’s just the opposite.”
WAV: ‘Thank you !’
