Untold Sequence Interviews Dino Sabatini

Dj, producer and sound designer. He gives the project "Modernheads" birth together with his partner Gianluca Meloni back in www.modernheads.net. Read and listen to the special material that Dino shared with Untold Sequence.

USQ: What did you used to make USQMX 024 and why do you prefered it?

Usually I use Traktor to do podcasts, it’s a very convenient if you aren’t in studio allows you to work anywhere but this depends on what kind of podcasts I want to do, sometimes I use some synths and some percussive module such a Jomox or Doepfer and I like to called this method "hybrid"

USQ: Tell us a little about yourself.

This question is very complicated also because I believe that talking about yourself is very difficult. However, I’ll try to be brief, I was born in Rome in 1969, it’s true I am 41 years old but I still have the energy of a twenty year old ;-) I studied music for many years and have worked as a professional guitarist in some Italian pop rock projects in studio and live, just for this profession I have found from a young age in many recording studios and have had the opportunity to learn the job the audio engineer. Then I worked as an engineer in some Italian underground clubs where I did a lot of experience. Then the decision to open a professional recording studio and a few years after the decision to use this professional background to make my music.

USQ: What is your music background? Do you consider influeced by your background music when creating and playing your music?

Having studied music my culture music is very wide, but I will tell you what were my main points of reference. In the 80” years I was totally lost for dark music, band such Cure - Sisters of Mercy - Joy Division - Siouxsie and the Banshees, etc. etc.. Of course in this same period I became aware of Krafwerk and Tangerine Dreams . In the first 90 years I have followed the progressive rock and I was totally crazy about Frank Zappa.

Then I had a great love for JazzRock, I was totally devastated by "We Want Miles" by Miles Davis and just follow him, I realized that something was changing in the music and at the same time the technology was making great strides and Italy is organizing the first rave parties and in one of these for the first time I heard Lory D.

Soon after came one of the most important techno labels of the period “ACV” followed by Sound Never Seen, it was run by Sandro Maria Nasonte who founded a few years after “Elettronica Romana”. And the rest is history know…..

In any case, all this background I have always poured into my techno tracks.

USQ: Which was the main reason that you moved to Berlin?

It’s really simple in fact, it’s mainly the approach that changed during the years, at the really beginning it was a game, many years after that, i was making music for releasing it, thinking too much to the record in my hands…

USQ: Tell us a little about the history of how you started editing in Prologue Music and how is your relatioship with Tom Bonaty?

This will seem like a fairy tale, I was coming out of a bad period of my life, I lived alone and only a few months I had lost my mother.
At that time I did a track which is rightly called "No More" and then published it on Myspace. A few days later Tom contacted me saying he was crazy for this track and that he was creating a new label called "Stemmatics" and I would be the first artist to be published on this. I immediately thought of a fake and I said "Sure, now I send you the master, wait and hope" but then he shows me he was doing seriously and after a few months left on my first solo EP on this new label called "Prologue ". It looks like a real movie? My relationship with Tom is very good although sometimes I don’t fully agree about some of his musical ideas and and his decision to focus all his interest in the usual celebrities, but this is his label and rightly so.
Unfortunately I recognize that my character is not the best, and rarely in my life I was able to share the ideas of others, but nobody is perfect ...



USQ: A few days ago we knew that you played in one of the best clubs in europe at this momenet, BERGHAIN, in a PROLOGUE night. Tell us about this experience and what did it mean to you?

Play at Berghain is always a great emotion because this club is now the symbol of Techno music. This was the second time I played on this console and I had already played twice in 2006/2007 with the duo Modern Heads at the Panorama Bar This time was different because now I am very sure of myself during my performances and that makes me able to transfer all my emotions into my music and was a huge satisfaction for me to hear from many people "You are the best".

USQ: When you are producing, how do you decide wich one of your tracks to edit under the name of DINO SABATINI and your a.k.a MODERN HEADS?

So, here we must make it clear that Modern Heads is a duo, Dino Sabatini and Gianluca Meloni. A pair of latest productions made on Stroboscopic Artefacts were made by me and that was my mistake against the duo because people now know my style and this has created great confusion.

USQ: This year you released the '001' version of your 'OUTIS' label, tell us about the initial idea of how did you create the project and the concept that is behind it.

I created this label to give more space to my productions and those of some of my dearest friends without anyone tell me what is right and what is wrong and, above all, I created this label to make good music without need to create strategies business between various labels to create a monopoly of Techno and unfortunately this is what is happening right now in our music scene. Good music does not need these kind of strategies, I hope .... Then at this label I'm trying to put a little poem which I think is often lacking in this genre, I'm also trying to share my experiences around the world through the Outis blog and comes out the rules for example, I don’t like to talk about the upcoming gigs where I'm going but where I've already done, whom I have known my feelings and my experiences in that club or that festival and I do this because for me music means communication and communication means knowledge.


USQ: What’s your concept about 'TECHNO' scene in South America and what’s your ideal country to show your work?

Honestly I'm not very aware of the techno scene in South America but I would be very curious to hear and know, believe me I have no idea about. South America is for me one of the first places in the world where great music is born and this applies to every style, if you can send me some promo, I'll be very happy to listen and I also enjoy playing them. Regarding the ideal place for my music I think is the place where people love Techno.

USQ: Top 5 of best tracks ever for you?

Leo Anibaldi – Fusion 1 – ACV
Lory D - EOC – Sound Never Seen
Byetone - .Plastic Star - Raster Noton
Massive Attack – Protection - EMI
Burial – Archangel - Hyperdub

Untold Sequence interviews Marcelus

French Techno Dj & Producer Marcelus talked with us and shared some words about his life, points of view and incoming projects and releases. Read the interview and listen to the USQMX 023 he recorded specially for us.

USQ: What setup did you use to record the USQMX?

I used vinyl and a Xone 92 mixer.

USQ: Tell us about you?

My name is Cédric Bros, i'm a french dj producer, i'm 25 and i live near Paris.

USQ: How long have you been involved in the world of Techno music?

Well I’m into techno music since 1995, i discovered techno and house music through radio, back then there were two radio stations in Paris (Radio Nova & FG) playing this kind of music and it was really exciting even if I didn’t really understand what it was all about at the beginning, I just felt in love with this music.

I remember it was the early beginning of the “French touch” thing, I didn’t know about clubs, about djs, labels, I really didn’t get it in the first place to be honest. Then i learned more and more stuffs about techno and house during the following years, I started to make beats around 98 with a little game for making music, i was really young and it was fun to do that, i wasn’t thinking yes come on i will release records or something like that, and then, years after years, i stayed tuned, the first times in clubs, first records bought and turntables, and my passion for music kept growing and obviously it became much more serious, it took up more and more space in my life until my EP1 on DRH. So i was around for a while.

USQ: How do you see the evolution in your music since you started until now?

It’s really simple in fact, it’s mainly the approach that changed during the years, at the really beginning it was a game, many years after that, i was making music for releasing it, thinking too much to the record in my hands…


USQ: What about the electronic culture and scene in Paris? Tell us the pros and cons for you.

Well this is not new that France is not THE techno country, for instance it’s nothing comparable to Germany, artists, labels or clubs, it’s obvious there is not the same enthusiasm for it, but I think we have some great places for electronic music though, of course in Paris you have the Rex Club and few other good clubs, i also had a really nice surprise lately, i played in a huge warehouse just next to Paris, a very great place, nice atmosphere, it’s rare to find this here and it was so perfect for playing techno.

USQ: Which are your biggest influences at the time when you do your own music, and how was the process to reach the sound that characterizes Marcelus?

I work until i find something that is really me, I mean personal, and interesting, it can be soft or hard, simple or more technical i don’t know, whatever, i want to feel something, of course there are producers i love which are very influential, and obviously people can feel my inspirations in my music I guess, but i have to choose, and to struggle a bit against myself to put out what i ve got inside me. I don’t listen to any other producers’ music when i m producing mine and i think that’s also important.

USQ: If you have to describe your sound, how you would do it?

I would say Techno...

USQ: Last year you released yourself very strong with your EP on DRH. Tell us a little of the history of how you finished editing at this important label and how is your relationship with Cyril Etienne?

I went to a deeply rooted night at the Rex club and DJ Deep was playing, he played very great tracks that night, i knew his name and what he did before but after that night i really wanted to give some of my tracks to him, and it’s what i did, he liked them and he asked me to come to Paris to meet him and discuss a bit about my tracks.

The “EP1” came out, and was well received yes, lots of DJs played it and i really didn’t expect that, because it was my first record so… anyway I just didn’t know what to expect I guess. I think we try to make interesting records, we take our time, it’s not easy to surprise him because he got an incredible knowledge about music, also when i saw his record collection, i was really impressed, but you know I do not pretend to reinvent techno or house neither and he knows that and that’s all so I just send him tracks and we talk about it and it’s really that simple.

USQ: You made a track on the last Ann Aimee compilation, how did that come together and what does it mean to you?

Yes, they were following me since my EP1 and they asked me a track for this compilation, it regroups producers emerging since 5/6years. It’s a great project, when I saw all the others producers involved, I was really excited because I love them all and it’s a pleasure to be part of it of course.

USQ: A couple of months ago, we read that you are planning to open your own label, how is that project going?

That’s right, i am planning to open my own label in the next months, I will start to manage everything, paperwork etc during the next weeks, I know I will be really busy with it but it’s exciting to be able to release what I want, my music and also some other artists, well I am working on it!

USQ: What’s coming from Marcelus the next month?

There is my track 24/7 on the inertia compilation #2 coming out very soon on Ann Aimee, I did a remix for Ascion and Davide Carbone’s label, Repitch, I am also working on a new remix and a new Marcelus record at the moment.

USQ: Top 5 of best tracks ever for you?

Well I can give you 5 tracks that I love very much if you want but no ranking.

The Black Dog - Cost 2
Vector Lovers – Future in Plastic (Claro Intelecto remix)
154 – Abrighterday
Robert Hood – Home ( I played it in the mix!)
Jeff Mills – Kat Race