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Massi DL
The young Italian DJ is crafting the future of electronica
I remember Detroit techno godfather Derrick May commenting a few years back—in genuine surprise—that although “this stuff has a shelf life,” techno was still huge in Europe and Asia.
In May’s native country, techno may never have made it aboveground, but in places like Naples, it seems to have spread like genetically modified corn. Witness, for example, the 2 million hits for young Neapolitan DJ Massi Di Lena’s MySpace page. Massi DL, as he’s known, arrives in Japan for the first time to front domestic techno crew Local Motion’s eponymous event at Shibuya venue Module.
The die was cast when Massi DL first heard Richie Hawtin’s productions as a 12-year-old; by 14, he had his own decks. Soon turning his efforts toward production, he notched up his first hit with “Minimal Mushrooms” in 2007. Since then, his tracks have found their way into the crates of leading DJs (including Hawtin himself), while recent efforts have charted an evolution away from brittle minimalism toward warmer, more melodic textures.
Massi DL will be performing live along with a host of Local Motion laptop demons including Cherry, Gonno and Saekicks. Together they look to bring Module back to its roots as a club named Cave, one of the very first venues to play techno in Japan back in the early ’90s…
Another DJ’s forthcoming Japan debut is causing a bit of a stir. For the first time, Ben Watt of Everything But The Girl fame arrives here in his DJ/producer incarnation as honcho of London house imprint Buzzin’ Fly.
Watt helped launch the ’80s alt-pop and ’90s downtempo movements with his spacious productions as one half of EBTG, along with singer and partner Tracey Thorn. The group were propelled to international club icon status in 1995, thanks to Todd Terry’s seminal remix of their song “Missing.”
In the same year, at the ripe age of 32, Watt turned his focus to the nightclub arena at the behest of friend and dance music icon Howie B. Before long, he had established a club and compilation series, Lazy Dog, focusing on deep house, churning out acclaimed remixes for the likes of Sade. Watt then dipped into promoter/impresario work, becoming founder and part-owner of London clubs Neighbourhood and Cherry Jam, the latter of which was the venue for the official debut of rock enfants terribles The Libertines.
In 2003, Watt founded Buzzin’ Fly to return his focus to underground house and techno. Scoring a number of acclaimed compilations as well as providing a home for his own productions, Buzzin’ Fly was in 2007 joined by his Strange Feeling imprint, which he has used as a platform to sign indie acts like Denmark’s Figurines and Brooklyn’s Tigercity.
When Watt isn’t behind the decks at smoky holes such as Tokyo’s Loop and Air, he somehow finds the time to play festivals like Sonar and Coachella, as well as looking after partner Thorn and their three children.
Local Motion@Module, July 31. Buzzin’ Fly With Ben Watt@Loop, Aug 13 and Air, Aug 15. See club listings for details.
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