01/01/2015

The 2014 round-up

Dear friends of Boring Machines,
another year has come to an end, and I would like to share with you some thoughts on the days we left behind.

2014 has been a good year so far, not great but good. Labelwise I started the year releasing a great record by my great friends Father Murphy, teaming up again with the great Aagoo Records. An ambitious record which is demanding and asks the listener to be there, to be present.
Since January, when the record was released, Father Murphy toured incessantly Italy, Europe and then US, Canada and Mexico, releasing here and there some small gems on 7" or cassette. They also recorded the next album that will be released in March 2015 on The Flenser, another great label. Father Murphy is one of the best things that happened to music in recent times and I'm happy to share my personal path with them.

During the year I released other great records, from Maurizio Abate, La Piramide di Sangue, the "maestro" Simon Balestrazzi both in his duo with Monica Serra and with his collaboration with Z'ev. But I'm partial obviously.
One thing that it's unbiased and absolutely undeniable, it's the overwhelming beauty of a non(strictly)musical work that I've been able to release, the box of photographs from Adriano Zanni, titled "Red Desert Chronicles (Postcards from Ravenna). The story about it and behind it, the passion about it, the whole thing about it made me so happy.

Favourite records of the year have been:
first and foremost Paul Beauchamp "Pondfire". I listened to this so many times I can't count it. It was just my thing.
Then also Vessel "Punish, Honey", Heith "Silence Will Expire", Anjou, Earth "Primitive and Deadly", Hiss Tracts "Shortwave Nights", and really many many other, which sometimes I can't remember if they are really from 2014.

Looks like reprints flooded the market (market?) this year, and I'm just happy that italian masterpieces like The Group "The Feed-back", Lino Capra Vaccina "Antico Adagio" have been made available to the public again. There are a lot more that can help us understand our past and hopefully give us inspiration for the present, because ok, they've been great but now it's up to us.

I can't name my concerts of the year, I saw really too many. Some unforgettable occasions have been Auna Festival at Area Sismica in Forlì, Robert Turman at Path Festival in Verona, La Piramide di Sangue both at Thalassa and Dio Fest, Jackie O' Motherfucker both at OutsideInside Studio close to home and Occulto Fest in Berlin few days later.

pros: Thalassa, Handmades and the double edition of Roma La Drona festival in Rome allowed me to spend time with a bunch of people I love and who shares the same way of doing things. Also, the second edition of Thalassa coincided with some attention growing internationally around the so called "Italian Occult Psychedelia" movement of bands and labels. On the same wave, "Spaghetti Wasteland", shaped by Nero Magazine during Venice Biennale of Architecture, on the "secret" history of italian music from Morricone to Parco Lambro Festival has been extremely motivating in terms of realizing how influential some strictly italian sounds have been around the world.

cons: seeing those influential sounds "stolen" by foreign people with dozens of reissues of italian obscure music made by non-italian labels, while italians looked they discovered some sounds just after being tolds from foreigners. C'mon people, we don't need Not Not Fun or Death Waltz to teach us anything.
Having to waste my time, one more year, to read about Julie's Haircut being an "international band". Also, seeing that part of the italian music magazines and zines still didn't understand the times we live in.

hashtags of the year:
#sbirrimerde worldwide, especially in some US cities.
#gotogigs I love selling records actually, but I'd trade it for more people going to see musicians playing live.
#nogabisogno was hashtag of 2013 (thanks G.M.G.) but still valid. I see you there, punks with an Amex.

man of the year: S.R., you know who you are.

So the year is over, now onward to 2015 with lots of great news.
I wish everybody a great year, with your friends and favourite music around.
Onga