Italian Music Export

Italy continues to showcase young talented musicians shaping and redefining Italian music in the context of pan European and global music communities. Ready to make their mark on this year’s Eurosonic Noorderslag are 9 artists covering a diverse range of genres from neoclassical to shoegaze, Indie, rock, experimental electronic and tribal pop.  These acts should be on your radar for 2020.

BowLand is a trippy electronic musical project born in Florence who have already made a name for themselves on the Italian X factor 2018 and have amassed over 2 millions Spotify streams. 

Young neoclassical artist Bavota explores the possibilities and boundaries of the piano sound through improvisation and use of technology.

Born in Rio, raised in Miami and currently based in Milan, Emmanuelle has released two EPs produced and distributed by Deewee (the label of Soulwax / 2manydjs) with one track included in the soundtrack of the much acclaimed Dogman film.  

Started in 2017, Eugenia Post Meridiem produce songs tinged with indie, folk, soul influences mixed with 60s and 70s psychedelic flavours and 90’s sound textures. 

Bologna based producer and musician Julian Zyklus blends electronic beats with piano and synths crafting classical /ambient worlds. In 2017 he made a soundtrack for the Nat Geo musical contest Genius, receiving praise from the judges Lorne Balfe and Hans Zimmer.  

Meduza have spent the year leading the charge in returning house music to daytime radio, and succeeding in their quest. Their debut release ‘Piece Of Your Heart’ has clocked up over 600 million streams globally and reached at #2 in the Official UK Charts.

Ponzio Pilates performed at Glastonbury in 2019 bringing an addictive mix of explosive twists, rhythmic litanies and danceable rituals to honour the Earth and the Cosmos.  

Since the release of their self-titled debut album back in 2013, Rev Rev Rev have repeatedly been hailed as one of the finest new shoegaze bands. They received praise from BBC 6 Music, Drowned In Sound, Clash Magazine, Bandcamp Daily, NPR and played extensively across the UK and Europe.  

Last but by no means least are the Milan based post punk shoegazers The Gluts who have a formidable reputation for their intense, deafening but fun-as-hell live shows. 

More about The Artists…

Bowland 
BowLand is a musical project born in Florence by three friends who come from Tehran. They find their roots in a space where shifting sonic textures and unusual sounds merge with ethereal voices and groovy rhythms. In 2018 they captured the attention of Italian X Factor audiences making it all the way to the finals. In December they release their new EP ‘Bubble Of Dreams’ that includes the single “Don’t Stop Me” that has clocked up more than 2 millions Spotify streams.

Genre: Trippy Electronic
If you like:  The xx, Morcheeba 
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6wP8Zgqr5XdEcCPn97OBFl

Bruno Bavota
Bruno Bavota is a young Italian composer and multi-instrumentalist with seemingly boundless potential and an extraordinary gift for binding together intellectual and emotional aspects of life into powerful and profound songs. Although his early works attracted comparisons to the legendary Ludovico Einaudi, Bavota has increasingly found himself pursuing ways to distort and disturb traditional arrangements and melodies in pursuit of a more distinct resonance. Armed with a plethora of outboard effects pedals and processors, Bavota creates his songs through performance improvisation that infuses a genuine sense of tension and forward momentum and makes his work extraordinarily poignant.

Genre:  Neoclassical/Experimental
If you like:  Ludovico Einaudi, Ólafur Arnalds
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/22kkuXdiuYd7ISzXU5o7eH

Emmanuelle
Born in Rio, raised in Miami and currently based in Milan, Emmanuelle is a mysterious cosmopolitan musician, half producer and half chanteuse. Hers is a songwriting with an eclectic, nostalgic and dreamy approach, in a continuous journey through hypnotic landscapes away from the monotony of everyday experiences. Produced and distributed by Deewee (the label of Soulwax / 2manydjs), her two EPs have become instant classics with cult singles like ‘Free Hi-Fi Internet’ and ‘Italove’. The latter was included in the soundtrack of Matteo Garrone’s acclaimed film Dogman presented at the Cannes Film Festival 2018.

Genre: Italo Disco
If you like:  Giorgio Moroder, Daft Punk 
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1C2Gz0VQuVWtaLWd54ujI5

Eugenia Post Meridiem
The story of Eugenia Post Meridiem starts in the summer 2017 when Eugenia (voice, guitar) met Matteo (bass), Giovanni (guitar, keys) and Matteo (drums, percussions). Following three months of travelling and intense music sessions in Lisbon, Eugenia returned to the project playing both solo and band sets in Genoa and in Liguria and releasing a series of tracks that showcased her remarkable vocals and songwriting potential. Mixing together indie, folk and soul influences with  distinct flavours of 60s and 70s psychedelic trends, Eugenia Post Meridiem songs lean towards rough 90’s sonic textures. Their debut album “In Her Bones” came out in October 2019 via Factory Flaws Records. 

Genre: Indie Rock Folk 
If you like: Big Thief, Alice Phoebe Lou
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/47wCQih5a5wC9l3LqDRySE

Julian Zyklus
Bologna based musician and producer Julian Zyklus started playing piano when he was a child. After learning several instruments, he studied sound engineering and electronic music and later played piano and synths with various bands and artistic projects. In 2017 he made a soundtrack for the Nat Geo musical contest Genius where he received high praise from the competition judges Lorne Balfe and Hans Zimmer. His music blends the mechanical, cyclical nature of electronic beats with more organic classical and ambient textures. Pianos, loops, synthesizers and samplings come together in his melancholic soundscapes. His debut album “Four Dimensional Waves” was released in June 2019 by the Seattle electronic label Hush Hush Records.

Genre:  Electronic, Ambient
If you like:  Nils Frahm, Max Richter 
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3aw1DOxYfpTUVnttSsYufT

Meduza
Meduza have spent the past year leading the charge in returning house music to daytime radio, and succeeding in their quest. Their debut release, ‘Piece Of Your Heart’ has now seen 600 million streams globally. A million sales in the UK alone placed the single at #2 in the Official UK Charts. This show of popularity has given the Milan natives multi Diamond, Platinum and Gold certifications around the world. The follow-up track ‘Lose Control’ has already made an unprecedented impact, reaching the UK Top40 in its first week and notching upward of 50 million streams with 25 million YouTube views in just a month. These successes are also bolstered by an impressive catalogue of remixes for the likes of MK, R+, Friendly Fires and Ritual that display not only Meduza’s signature sound and energy but also their raw ability to create stand out releases in a variety of musical contexts. 

Genre: Dance
If you like:  Diplo, Black Coffee
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0xRXCcSX89eobfrshSVdyu

Ponzio Pilates
Ponzio Pilates started life as a music collective jamming and gigging at the old fish market in  Rimini. Their debut EP “Abiduga” came out of the collaboration with an artist Gola Hundun and was released in June 2016. In 2017 they embarked on the Pizza e Vongole Tour that extended into more than 50 shows in Italy and abroad. The band’s progressive stylistic presentation turned every concert into an addictive mix of explosive twists, rhythmic litanies and danceable rituals to honor the Earth and the Cosmos. In the autumn and winter of the following year Ponzio Pilates took spiritual refuge in isolation of the Romagna countryside and emerged with their first LP “Sukate” released in spring 2018. 

Genre: Crazy Funky Punk
If you like:  Fela Kuti, Tshegue
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/3nyjyChrh3AAItJquTrQb0

Rev Rev Rev 
Since the release of their self-titled debut album back in 2013, Rev Rev Rev – based in Modena, Italy – have repeatedly been hailed as one of the finest new shoegaze bands. They’ve received praise from BBC 6 Music, Drowned In Sound, Clash Magazine and Bandcamp Daily and taken their infamous live shows across the UK and Europe; sharing the stage with the likes of The Jesus and Mary Chain, the Brian Jonestown Massacre, The Telescopes and Ringo Deathstarr along the way. The band were invited at SXSW 2019, where their live set impressed Bob Boilen of All Songs Considered and earned them a feature on NPR’s SXSW wrap-up as well as airplay on the network’s radio stations.  Produced by James Aparicio (Spiritualized, Dead Vibrations), the new album marks their signing to the London cult indie label Fuzz Club Records.

Genre:  Shoegaze
If you like: The Horrors, My Bloody Valentine
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/0osv6JQzCfTjwPAOKZlSBP

The GlutsThe Gluts are a powerful overload psychedelic noise punk. Play to believe and play it loud.  The Milan based post punks are undoubtedly one of the loudest and most extreme bands in Italy. Over the past few years they have been playing packed out shows across the UK and Europe, building a formidable reputation for their intense, deafening but fun-as-hell live shows. The new album released on London’s Fuzz Club Records is a seven-track noise rock masterclass that can be  challenging but always rewarding. It is a sound of a band heading for the top spot. 

Genre:  Rock/Post Punk
If you like:  A Place To Bury Strangers, The KVB
Music:https://open.spotify.com/artist/13WOru4Cg1ZdszgnB1AU17

Contact
Nikki McNeill | Global Publicity
nikki@globalpublicity.co.uk

Italy’s fashion sense, cultural monuments, the beauty of its landscapes and art already have a global reputation. Now it’s time to get to know its contemporary music scene. In January 2019, the recently launched Italia Music Export (powered by SIAE) is heading to Eurosonic, bringing some of the most exciting new Italian talents to one of the world’s most important new music platforms.

The first thing you notice about the Italian 8-strong Eurosonic team is not only its diversity but also its unorthodox makeup that includes an electronic/jazz trombone experimental collaboration, a Mediterranean take on folk and Americana, LGBT + activist X Factor pop sensations and an energetic math/post rock trio. This is not a roster that bows to trends and conventions but proudly declares its special identity.

Already making waves is Any Other, whose recent LP and international shows have been gathering praise from the likes of The 405, The Line of Best Fit, Eclat Magazine, ByteFM and RadioEins.  Italian Rolling Stone proclaimed that her brand of emotive introspective rock would ignite the Italian scene and boldly called her “Best Italian female musician”. Her Skin’s 2018 debut release of bright minimalist folk ballads won her many press fans and culminated in a support tour with Cat Power. Variously compared to Norah Jones, Lana Del Rey and Katie Melua, Violetta Zironi’s sound and her new EP ‘Half Moon Lane’ was described by Clash as “a gentle, easy-on-the-ear selection that continually surprises.“

Having already played Reeperbahn and Waves Vienna, The Pier are no strangers to international showcases. Back home in the south of Italy, their special brand of punk-infused math rock has catapulted them to the main festival stages and secured excited critical reception.

But it’s not all about the younger generation. Davide Tomat is a Turin-based sound designer, multi-instrumentalist and band leader with over 2 decades of experience. Hailing from Southern Italy, Gianluca Petrella is one of the most celebrated jazz trombone players in Europe. Their collaboration, with a debut release via prestigious electronic label !K7, Tomat Petrella creates a world of intricate textures, intuitions, and complexities, where beats and noise join the melodies of the trombone, that are then processed and reworked by the synths and the computers.

Machweo is the name of another Italian electronic project. Started in 2012 by Giorgio Spedicato, Machweo released 2 critically acclaimed LPs. Following a period of extensive touring, he took a year out and returned with a redefined idea of music rooted in human bonds and rituals. His new LP Primitive Music released via Oregon’s Lefse (Anna Meredith, Ulrika Spacek, Beechwood) is described as “an intuitive score of improvised music painted on a sheet.” and has the seal of approval from James Holden https://twitter.com/mrjamesholden/status/1025701202586157056

Sicilian Alessio Bondì started writing songs as a teenager. During his time studying to be an actor in Rome, he became drawn back to his Sicilian heritage and began working on songs that would makeup his debut album “Sfardo” that was released in 10 countries, translated into 6 languages and received radio play across Europe, incl. BBC Radio3 and BBC Radio Ulster.

Completing this multifaceted roster are Sem&Sténn who captured the nation’s imagination as X Factor contestants. Although the flamboyant duo have known each other since 2011, it wasn’t until 2016 that they released their first single. In the summer of 2017 they became contestants on the Italian X Factor, thrilling the audiences and scoring glowing critical reviews. Following their premature departure from the show, the pair released an LP and set off on a nationwide tour. In May 2018 Sem&Sténn accepted the Diversity Media Award won by X Factor Italia for “Best TV Show” and contribution to the messages of diversity and LGBT+ values in Italian society.

Italia Music Export showcases at ESNS 2019

Wednesday January 16

20:00 – Her Skin at Lutherse Kerk Kerkzaal
22:15 –  The Pier at All Round Poolcentrum
23:35 – Sem&Sténn at News Café

Thursday January 17

20:45 – Any Other at Vera
22:40 – Violetta Zironi at Lutherse Kerk Kerkzaal
00:55 – Machweo at News Café

Friday, January 18

22:00 –  Alessio Bondì at USVA
23:00 – Tomat Petrella at Simplon (Up)

More about The Artists

Any Other
Following the release of her latest LP “Two, Geography”’, Milan-based artist Adele Nigro is ready to take her emotive leftfield project Any Other to the next level. Adele writes, sings, plays, produces and arranges all of her songs, which bear the traces of several different influences, from the American indie-folk of Phil Elvrum (The Microphones, Mount Eerie) to the guitar work of Jim O’Rourke and David Grubbs, spiritual free jazz and orchestral arrangements as well as classic songwriting by Carole King and Joni Mitchell, all filtered through a thoroughly contemporary sensibility. Any Other also played Reeperbahn 2018.

Website:https://anyotherband.bandcamp.com/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5RECxqPUWytzhwKabZ1lWx

Alessio Bondì
Alessio Bondì is an Italian singer/songwriter based in Palermo, Sicily. Singing in his native Sicilian dialect, Alessio brings his culture heritage to life with poetic and intimate folk music and primordial blues. His debut album Sfardo has been released through a partnership between Italian labels Malintenti Dischi and 800A Records in Europe and Brazil. Bondì released his second studio album, Nivuru in November 2018.

Website: http://alessiobondi.com/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/7wxtjKgJEIEs7ty2lZiEdZ

Her Skin
Her Skin (aka Sara Ammendolia) is an Italian folk singer and songwriter, with a natural, heartfelt voice and guitar-style all of her own. Born and raised in Modena, she started writing songs and performing acoustic shows in 2013. In 2016 she co-founded Italian independent label Tempura Dischi and released 2 self-published EPs. In 2017 Sara toured extensively and began landing support gigs with acts like Kele Okereke, ex of Bloc Party and Cat Power. In February 2018, Her Skin released her debut album “Find a Place to Sleep” via We Were Never Being Boring Collective. Her Skin is also confirmed for SXSW 2019.

Website: https://www.facebook.com/herskinmusic/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/6zdyc0Juu2p2uVVISAhOJe?si=QjSjyHRLT3a4CTIsL8jfqw

Machweo
Machweo started life as a solo project of composer Giorgio Spedicato. Over the past 6 years his electronic venture has given life to 2 LPs that lead to an extended national tour and wide critical acclaim. In the summer of 2016 Giorgio decided to dedicate his time to the investigations of human connections and rituals. The main idea was to keep a circular and obsessive, yet melodic-driven rhythm for a prolonged period of time. The underlying purpose was a total immersion in and improvisation on a slowly drifting reiterative pattern. The result was “Primitive Music”, an album composed by Giorgio Spedicato and played by the musicians Dario Martorana, Marco Vecchio and Antonio Rapa.

Website: https://www.facebook.com/Machweo/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/5Mr3g9Iu3I1jnGYi2ATlH3#_=_

Sem&Sténn
In 2017 Sem&Sténn introduced themselves in the Italian X Factor with ‘The Fair’, an overwhelming darkwave song and self-produced tribute to the world of clubbing. After their premature departure from the show, they were on the cover of Pride Italia, which was followed by a release their first LP “OFFBEAT”. Between deconstructing gender stereotypes, winning awards and paying tribute to the pop culture of the 1990s, Sem&Sténn enjoy breaking the rules with the sound at maximum volume.

Website: https://www.facebook.com/semstenn/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4urS4ezvKDRW6o0XQeRve5?autoplay=true&v=A

The Pier
Formed by Gabriele Terlizzi, Davide Pasculli and Danilo De Candia, the power trio comes from the south of Italy. Their repertoire includes both instrumentals and songs with English vocals. Often described as ‘indie math rock’, The Pier’s more accurate description involves a furious mixture of math, post-rock and post punk, with influences that include Don Caballero, Radiohead, Foals, This Town Needs Guns and Joy Division. Their New Album “Dead Reckoning” is released on December 7th via Kallax Records

Website: https://www.facebook.com/thepier314/
Music :https://open.spotify.com/artist/3zS3w4G232J242rCI9xmIh?si=R9oDVwx3RoW9JX2HwBK04g

Tomat Petrella
Tomat Petrella is the collaborative project between Davide Tomat ( aka Tomat ) and Gianluca Petrella. “Kepler”, their collaborative debut release on !K7 Records, is a musical beast that defies simple descriptions and neat labels.

Website: https://www.facebook.com/tomatpetrella/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/4PJBvk2Y2ZDNoGUxATE9Jl?autoplay=true&v=A

Violetta Zironi
Take folk, Americana and a mesmerizing voice, combine it with Mediterranean sensibilities, and you’ll get Violetta Zironi. Violetta started writing her first songs at the age of 16. After gigging with a country/blues trio in bars and festivals around the North of Italy, she decided to focus on creating her own music. Despite only being in her early twenties, Violetta’s CV already includes a stage duo with the legendary Ben E King and a European tour with Jack Savoretti. Violetta also performed at SXSW 2018.

Website: http://www.violettazironi.com/
Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/400WhVfB3ENcUBPUOkz0Qn?autoplay=true&v=A

About the Italia Music Export – SIAE
Italia Music Export is Italy’s first music export office, founded by SIAE in November 2017. Its aim is to promote Italian music worldwide, boost music export revenues and to support Italian music companies going global. While supporting the Italian music business, Italia Music Export also advises and assists international professionals interested in working with Italian artists and companies.

More info here: http://www.italiamusicexport.com/