Smelly Feet Records Is A Music Platform Which Showcases Both Established And Up & Coming Artists.
No Specific Genre, Just Real Underground Music.
Smelly Feet Records Is A Music Platform Which Showcases Both Established And Up & Coming Artists.
No Specific Genre, Just Real Underground Music.
Exclusive Mix & Interview
June 6th, 2020
Livia
City: Italy
Country: Rome
Genre: Ambient / House / Electro Breakbeat / Acid
Welcome. Introduce yourself to our audience. Anything special you would like them to know?
I’m very bad at introducing myself so I prefer to let the music to speak for itself.
Take us back to where it all began. What was the moment that sparked your interest in Electronic music?
As far as I can remember it has always been there. I grew up as a child of the 90’s where even Pop music was merging with Dance music. Elements of huge synths and powerful basslines. Even when I was 6 years old, I remember looking for the “Electronic” moment in a Michael Jackson song. It was also a time where raves were so popular that you would receive a CD of Dance music together with your Happy Meal (I certainly don’t get that anymore!).
I grew up between France and Italy. Both countries were massively influenced by Rave music at the time. In Italy, I remember that at the bar where we use to hang out all Summer, there was a Jukbox where you could select any Dance music CD. Later on when I was around 10, I got massive influence from my dad's cds. I had a very young dad that was listening to Massive Attack, Portishead, Kruger and Dorfmeister, Bjork, I:Cube - Music that was pretty chill but with every element of Synth, Breakbeat, Acid, and drums - that are still today relevant to me in Electronic music.
As a teenager, it really got me by the radio. Most of my friends in school were listening to Rap music. In France it was very popular. I discovered a small radio station called “FG’” which stood for “Gay Frequency” that only played Electronic music all day and night. At the time, Laurent Garnier, D’julz, Dj Fex, Francesco Farfa were playing there. I used to record the best mixes on tape and just play my favorite moments of that mix on repeat. I already remember thinking there was always a piece of a track or pieces of a mix I would prefer and I wanted to edit it one day.
"...I prefer to let the music to speak for itself."
When it comes to searching for tracks - How does the process of selecting Vinyl differ than selecting from Digital?
I’m not a purist but it is obviously very different. One is an object that you can hold in your hands that has cover art and cost money and the other is just a name of a file on your usb stick.
I only had turntables at home so I've dug Vinyls for a long time now. I also started to sell them because once it's there for many years, I prefer them to continue their life with an other DJ instead of receiving dust at home. I actually really enjoy knowing that one of my Vinyl's will go to someone else's collection :)
Talk to us about your current residencies/favorite places to play - Favorite dance floors and which cities show you the most love?
Iceland without any doubt was my biggest surprise and my favorite gigs. I played there four times during the Winter, when most of the day is dark (for Sonar Reykjavik) and two times during the Summer Solstice (for a festival called Solstice festival). Both were pretty incredible, but if you asked what was my favorite? It was the time when I played in a very small club called Dolly. The night before the festival when only Icelandic people were there and the club went totally nuts. I prefer to play for a small club audience. There is less pressure and I feel much closer to the crowd.
With the Covid pandemia, I also think small clubs are going to become more and more the standard. People are far from being ready to go back into big clubs.
Let’s talk producing. Take us through your production process. Are there any strategies that you have which help in achieving your particular sound?
I barely produce honestly. Everything I did so far was jamming in my friends studio and sometimes I got the luck of a starter. I did a collaboration with other artists that were also friends. For now, I m just an amateur that loves to hang out in my friend's studio.
"I prefer to play for a small club audience. There is less pressure and I feel much closer to the crowd."
What is your favorite piece of equipment? Hardware vs Digital - Any thoughts?
My new portable mixer DJR 200.
When you are not working on music, what are you doing?
I work on Audio/Visual projects. At the moment, I'm an Assistant Director on a 90 minute documentary on volcanoes. I am also working on the development of a TV series based on the industry of Electronic music.
Are there any upcoming projects or collaborations you wish to share?
I was supposed to go to Lisbon to play for a party of my friends, Appolonia - but with the pandemic situation, a few days before the party was supposed to of happened - everything stopped. So at the moment we don’t know when the nightclubs and festivals will reopen so it’s hard to predict how it will be when they do reopen.
A lot of clubs lost a lot of money (especially in country like Italy where they got zero help!). Maybe when they will reopen, they will book DJ's that won’t cost so much money. Probably all the "superstar" DJ's fee's will have to drop out. (which is not a bad thing) Maybe there will be more space for new Dj’s since we can always see the same headliners throughout the year. Anyway I think it will be fresh start for the scene and I hope to always have the opportunity to play my little part.
Livia, in a few sentences. Tell us about this mix you made for us. Where did you get your inspiration. Is there anything special you want the audience to know?
I did three mixes (streaming and podcast) during this last lockdown and I wanted each one of them to be different to represent a different mood and state of mind!
The first one was very melancholic and electro. The second one was very positive going from Jazz to House music. This one is the most diverse one. It start with Ambient tracks and goes to Techno, Electro, House, Breakbeat and to Progressive at the end.
A classic moody day and night during the lockdown in Paris !
