Few artists in our scene have been in the game since the 80s and are still at the peak of their powers today. One such individual is Italian phenomenon Ivan Iacobucci. Having been present and correct since before the age of Disco right through the many musical movements that have graced our planet, a theme that runs through his long and illustrious career is that of unadulterated quality music regardless of the genre. His past musical discoveries continue to influence this celebrated creator and we have been lucky enough to sit down with Ivan to discuss his journey to date.
With Ivan entering this world at the tail end of the 70s, he has been privy to more music than most people operating in our scene. While he is widely known for his encyclopedic knowledge of music, this was not always the case, “I grew up listening to good music thanks to my family, my parents listened to artists like Nat King Cole, Ray Charles while my uncle loved Kraftwerk. On my parents’ turntables, records with piano melodies by Clidermann and Sax by Papetti were also often spinning. The latter made me fall in love with this instrument, so I decided to learn to play it. I was 9 years old. Unfortunately, the saxophone exceeded my small stature, so I therefore had to opt for the piano, which is why I only studied it for a year.”
Fast forward a few years and Ivan had already decided that music would be a major part of his life. What started with exploring the saxophone and piano would soon transfer to the world of nightclubs. Ivan begins by painting a picture of his hometown of Pescara, “In the early 1980s, Pescara was a vibrant city full of clubs. Dance music replaced disco while electronic music and the Afro sound spread into the most underground clubs.” He continues to note his early beginnings with the art of DJing, “It was thanks to a DJ friend of mine, who worked in a private radio station, that I became fascinated by the club world. Initially through his very funk-oriented records and later by going with him to various trendy parties in the city. During those outings together, I was fascinated by the DJ and the emotions he was able to convey to the dance floor by switching from one record to another. At the age of 13, I decided to buy my first sound system, which consisted of two Lenco L75 turntables; a 2-channel mixer of which I do not remember the brand; ITT amplifier and two Jeko speakers.“
With Disco being a big influence and for a very good reason. Italy during the 80s was the epicentre of the Euro Disco scene and Ivan was bestowed with a front-row seat, “During my adolescence, I was lucky enough to attend memorable disco nights. One of these was a DJ set by the great Daniele Baldelli, resident at Cosmic, a famous club near Verona. Moreover, in the 1980s Italy was going through a phase of great musical revolution: Afro-music became the trend of the moment in the underground scene. Every weekend young people went to discos like Typhon in Gambara (Brescia) where DJ Loda ranged from African percussive rhythms to electronic psychedelic funk and slow disco. Other visionary clubs worth mentioning are definitely the Boomerang in Calcinelli (Pesaro) and of course La Baia degli Angeli in Gabicce near Riccione and its legendary DJ Mozart with whom I had the honour of playing in 1984.”
Without question, the 80s were simply the most exciting time for Disco, perhaps even electronic music, and the tracks that were released during this time have stood the test of time. Ivan notes some of the tracks that would be pivotal in his journey of the time, “Among the first cult records I remember are records like “Ain’t Nobody” by Rufus & Chaka Khani, “Body Work” by Hot Streak; and then Giorgio Moroder, Shakatak, and groups with more sophisticated sounds like Tangerine Dreams and Azymuth. In commercial music, groups such as Human League and Yhazoo stood out. Italian dance music also went through a golden era thanks to record labels such as Disco Magic. My favourite labels, on the other hand, released more Funk and Disco records. I loved Street Sound, West End, Prelude and Salsoul for which I had the great privilege of remixing one of the most popular icons of the 70s/80s: Loleatta Holloway with the track Hit ‘N’Run’.“
The modern music industry and how content is consumed has meant, for some, that original digging techniques are lost to the ages. It is well documented that the 80s was such a pivotal moment in time for music as this was when the terms house and techno were first coined and so the first arrival of this music in Europe was such an important time. Ivan explains how he used to freshen up his collection, “It was 1987, I was DJ resident in a club near Pescara. I mainly used to buy my records from ‘Disco Più’, a shop in Rimini, which was one of the most avant-garde at that time. This record shop was among the first in Italy to introduce Chicago house, Detroit techno and later also New Beat and Acid House. I immediately fell in love with this new and catchy new musical era and I realised that this sound would soon revolutionise club music.“
Speaking with Ivan, it was almost as if his journey traced the lineage of the electronic music timeline and the respect he commands is well deserved as a result. We continue to discuss the early entry points of Ivan’s career and he explains how he came to prominence, “In 1983, after I bought my first sound system, I started playing for my friends’ birthday parties. At one of these parties, the promoter of a small club in Pescara noticed me and offered me to work for him. From then on, I started playing for various clubs in Pescara until the summer of 1988. It was during that summer that I finally had the opportunity to play at a club in Riccione, today better known as Cocoricò. So as soon as I was 18, I moved from Pescara to Riccione where I began my career as a professional DJ.”
There is not always a eureka moment when it comes to a DJ’s progression, but Ivan observed this current time as being one of these special moments in his career, “I certainly realised this when I played in the club in Riccione, mentioned above. The crowd was wonderful; colourful and cosmopolitan. They loved what I played and my sound was much appreciated. During that party, I realised that what until then for many was considered just a hobby, had become a vocation/profession for me. However, it was in 1992 that I started to get the first booking requests around Italy. This was thanks to my productions but also to my residency at one of the first Italian after parties “Club dei 99” in Gradara (close to Riccione).”
Now that Ivan’s DJ career was beginning to take shape, he began to concoct plans to take his first steps into production. This would soon become an all-encompassing part of his life that would endure to the present day. Ivan explains where this source of inspiration came from, “During the winter of 1988, after my summer experience in Riccione, I moved to Bologna to study at university. At that time I played regularly in a small club in the city centre. On one of these gigs, I met a pop music producer. We became friends and thanks to his teachings I learnt how to create a track. I bought a Roland D70 sampler keyboard and with various samples I made my first track ‘Electroshock’ under the alias Mysterious for the label Unlimited. As a result of this techno-house record, I later received several offers, including remixes. One of the first was ‘Is this real?’ by Juan Atkins (Underground Submission).”
Ivan’s early tracks were already positioning him in the room with some of the world’s finest labels and artists and this would only keep progressing skywards. With the impending success, it was time for an upgrade to his studio, “After publishing Electroshock I became passionate about music production and decided to set up my own home studio which consisted of: Roland 909; Emu SP12; Juno Alpha; Waldorf Wavestation; Novation Basstation; Roland JD800; Roland Jv 1080; Yamaha TXZ; Orbit; Yamaha FB01; Ensonique Sq2 keyboard; 2 Yamaha NS10 Speakers and 2 Mackie + various equipment mainly from Lexicon and DBX. Later I decided to start my own label ‘Hole Records’ with my partner of that time Nick Dragani. It was 1991 and the first release was ‘Saxample’ under the pseudonym “Anxious”.“
The rest, as they say, is history. With a glowing discography covering so many genres and labels, this is set to grow even further with the advent of new projects. Being known for a myriad of sounds is not an easy task, but one imprint that Ivan is indelibly linked to Perlon. The German super imprint that has witnessed some of the most influential moments in the minimal and micro sphere also comes with its own pitfalls. Ivan explains his stance on being linked to this benchmark-creating imprint, “Perlon has always been my dream label. However, I produced three EPs for it without paying too much attention to the style that has always characterised this label. This was probably what Zip appreciated the most. Even the latest EP ‘Triumph’ made with my partner Stella Fiore embraces various styles including rock and techno, certainly very unusual for Perlon. This departure from Perlon’s classic sound was highlighted and well described by Resident Advisor journalist “Henry Ivry”, but he also rightly pointed out that several times over the years “the German label has never been afraid to branch out.“
His dexterity in crafting different sounds or even perhaps the opposite in being better known for a particular sound is perhaps the biggest worry for an artist. Pigeonholing however, is something that Ivan doesn’t take too much notice of, “In my opinion, making productions of different genres, even under different pseudonyms, is essential to avoid always being associated with one style of music or a specific label. Personally, it comes very spontaneously to me, because as mentioned before, I like to play and produce what my mood and instincts suggest.” In turn, he goes on to explain how he is able to keep his performances and studio output fresh and relevant, “In music, I love innovation in structure, quality and style. I don’t like to fossilize myself, I always need new challenges because I tend to get bored easily. That’s why I try to keep up to date and renew my sound by always proposing what excites and entertains me. I listen to as much music as I can and I also draw inspiration from other DJs. That is one of the reasons why I moved to Berlin 11 years ago. So the answer to this question is no secrets, just a lot of passion for this job.“
Ivan Iacobucci is better placed than most to comment on the significant changes that the electronic music industry has encountered over the years. Having been involved in almost every new genre and subgenre as it has been coined, we ask the man himself for his opinion on the matter, “Electronic music has seen continuous growth and significant transformation in recent years, consolidating itself as one of the most influential and dynamic genres in the global music industry. We owe this phenomenon mainly to digital technology, which is fostering the growth of this genre. Especially in the underground industry, DJs and producers are using music platforms such as SoundCloud and Bandcamp to release independent tracks and mixes without the need for a traditional record label. While this phenomenon can lead to some confusion and saturation of the music market, it also allows musicians, DJs and producers to gain more visibility and good job opportunities.”
He goes on to give his thoughts on one of the most challenging periods for the industry since its inception, “Furthermore, I am very glad that the disco and club industry had a great economic recovery after the pandemic. However, I am disappointed to see that some clubs are very often entrusted to DJs who anonymously manoeuver booking agencies, which unfortunately are not always serious and competitive. This mechanism clearly works to the expense of some DJs who, not having the usual managerial push, do not get the right visibility.” While Ivan has become a much-lauded and successful artist he adds that there is no easy path to success and one thought that plays on his mind from time to time, “Throughout my life, I have not had any other profession apart from DJing. For the love of music, I decided to drop out of university to devote myself full-time to this profession. However, I have to admit that I regretted it a bit.“
Always looking to expand his musical knowledge and ultimately reaching for a better understanding of what works before, during and after the dancefloor we know Ivan would have something exciting in the works. We were not wrong, as he explains his current projects, “Currently I am very passionate about the work I am developing with Stella. We have many gigs planned around the world (a tour of South America is scheduled in December and January). We are also working on many discographic projects: we are finishing a new EP; we continue to select music from other producers for later releases on our label Klopfgeist. The label has recently been distributed in the underground music scene. The first Ep “Rock Da Foz” gives us great satisfaction. We take this opportunity to thank Trommel for the premiere of the record and their support. Furthermore, my remix of Acoustic Vision will soon be released on a new German label, Human Endeavour.”
Finally, we come on to the conversation of his submission for our Free Download series and with his undoubted standing in the underground community we knew before hearing it that it would be something to relish. With Ivan being a man who wishes to have his music doing the talking for him he was able to give us a brief insight into the track which can be downloaded below, “I created this track with the idea of combining different styles, especially among those that have characterized me in recent years, but still maintaining an old school vibe. The rhythm and the three basses are mostly reminiscent of the electro style. The ref is raw and is played with an intentionally distorted synth. The whole thing is softened by pad turns, reminiscent of my early recording experiences.“
You can now download “Night Shift” by Ivan Iacobucci for free from our Soundcloud page.
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