Davide Squillace in Pacha Magazine

Posted on June 27, 2012

Davide is in this month’s issue of Pacha Magazine Ibiza. Read the article below, or check the full magazine on pacha.com

How did your love affair with Ibiza begin?

Well if you are an electronic dance music lover you know what Ibiza stands for, you hear the stories… Then you slowly get interested. What is this place that everybody is talking about, why does everybody get so excited by this place, why is there so much going on in such a small place?! Well you need to go there and check it out for yourself, because videos or articles can never do it justice to the beauty of Ibiza.

Who opened the doors to you to Ibiza nightlife?

Andrea, Antonio Ed Elliot were the key holders for my doors in Ibiza, they trusted my work. I still remember the first time I played at DC10 on New Year’s Day… what a night, what memories! I remember thinking “damn I fell really easy here”. I was right.

Where / what was your first club experience and with whom?

mmmmm….. the very first club experience goes way back, probably something like more than 15 years ago. I bet it was a classic situation, a bunch of kids trying to get in a club where they were not allowed whilst trying to look older than they really are. It was a kind of neighbourhood club with some “whatever music” playing in there and we just wanted to get in and feel part of the vibe. We managed with some tricks!

How important still is Circo Loco and DC10 to you?

Well as much as I travel, my genes remain Italian, so how important is the family in my life? Very much so! Circoloco is my family,Dc10 is my home. It is where I feel more comfortable ,they are the people I talk to for anything, personal and business. It is the place where I grew up as a person and as an artist, it is the place which took a lot out of me and put a lot back in me. I learnt and shared a lot with Antonio and Andrea and the entire extended Circoloco crew, from the funny door guys to the crazy guests.

How has Circo Love evolved since you joined?

Circoloco is the kind of brand that always seeking for new things, but more in the way of keeping things in motion. Every year they update the sound system and they look for new talents.. every year they try to give the guest an updated Dc10 experience, they never sit on their ***

What made it so special?

I always say that every DC10 has something special to remember of it, but in this case the list is very long. At the openings, people have a special energy, we all have a special energy.
At the end of the day you kinda want to set the mood for the summer season, you are telling people ‘hey this is what we do and this is how we do it, you are welcome to live it with us.’

You are headlining Amnesia opening. How important is this to you?

The terrace of Amnesia is one of the other amazing experiences you can have as a performer. You have a great quantity of people in front of you, I mean you are driving a “different vehicle”. You remember the opening scene of Lynch’s Mulholland drive, the crazy car race… well it s that kind of rush!

You live in Barcelona. What do you love about life there?

I kind of trick myself a little bit…It is like living in Napoli but with things running properly. Barcelona and Napoli have so much in common, historically, architectonically and emotionally that it makes me feel like I’m at home. From the food to the people to the understanding of an easy going life which sometimes is misunderstood by not being focused. UNTRUE.

Tell us about your life there…

I try to have a pretty “easy” life to create a balance from the weekend’s madness. I spend the day between the office and the studio, some tennis and some quality time with friends! I love to drive my vespa(from the fifties) around and go shooting pigeons with my catapult at sunrise… ehheh just kidding.

How did you connect with Dubfire?

I think we got in touch about some tracks, but I never thought it would develop this way. Ali is my big brother, one of my best friends and my private consultant. There should be a lot more people like him in the business as much in life. He’s the guy that will never turn u down and if he does, you’ll agree with his reasons!

Which Djs do you look up to the most / who has been your biggest influence?

Well I think on the strictly electronic dance music side, I’d definitely say the wave from Detroit, Windsor and Chicago from Mills to Saunderson to Model 500… But Richie still remains the guy who I musically grew up with, the man of the plastic..hehhe I remember when I was 15 and we booked him for one of our parties – he blew our heads off! But a part form them I could name some: Mille Plateaux,Orbital,Nobukazu Takemura,Daft Punk,Mouse on Marz,Roman Flugel,Arto Lindsay,Ninja Tunes,Howie B…and lots more ! No major influences, bits from lots of them.

Naples is becoming more and more important to the Ibiza scene – many players are doing big things.

Napoli, the volcanic city, Napoli the land of issues, Napoli my love…ok ok now seriously. Napoli has always been one of the Italian centres of electronic music from the late 80s. We literally grew up in a very healthy music surrounding. The range was very wide and taught us a lot about it. A lot of good music came out of Napoli, there was a bunch of us sharing thoughts and knowledge on it. And luckily most of us are the result of this “electronic childhood”, I wouldn’t swap my childhood with any other city

What happened in London on that trip where you fell in love with electronic music?

Well as I mention before I felt in love with electronic music way before going to London. But this was the city where my taste developed because I was able to see more acts and an even wider range of electronic music happenings. From the very experimental ones, like some crazy performances in a 15 people space basement to the more “accessible” ones in big clubs. It has been all part of my growth in taste and life. I miss London…

How do you see your position in the global electronic scene particularly now with the huge interest worldwide…

It flatters me being able to play all over, being able to share what I do in the coyness of my studio or while listening to new music. Being able to get in touch with so many cultures and see different reaction of crowds

Tell us about This and That Lab…

It is a lab, it s a joint venture, it’s a place where different people work on different projects.
The first “son ” of the lab is the record label. We joined with worldwide renowned Fonti contemporary art gallery and each cover will be done by one of their artist, reinterpreting the concept in their own style. Once we reach a satisfying number  of artwork we will collect them in a solo exhibition. Each release will have its own video concept developed by the lab.
Besides this we’ll ask different people to collaborate with us on projects – for example we have an upcoming jewellery piece designed by Beatriz Fabrez. We are also developing a This and That advertising department where we will create marketing campaigns.
We are very excited about all of this as it will let us use creative power in a full spectre of genres and forms, instead of only in music.
You also mention think tank combining music, art and culture … Tell us what this means?
Yes that’s correct, it is a think tank and we will also host a contemporary art blog by Boiler Advertising creator Ivan Maria Vele. A window on culture and creativity.

You seem to be a deep thinker about this genre. What do you see is its future?

I would really like not to think where we are going as a place, I’d rather live the process that takes us going to the next step.
The emotional factor is the winner over the creation of new music, the day life experience is also the important factor on our behaviour and our beliefs , that then fills our way of making music.

Who do you see as being the key players in the Ibiza 2012 season?

This is the year where things has changed a lot ,people developing new nights and concepts. Rich doing the Enter ,Marco doing Music On, Jamie with the party at Dc10.. they all seem to be strong nights. I will definitely go and enjoy each one of them.

You went to see Jay-Z and Kanye. Do you take inspiration from the performances and music of non electronic music?

I sure do, this show was unreal, and the production was breath taking. Everything is in the right place, video ,images, and lights. I was especially impressed by the laser show creating this 3d kind of shapes on the stage where they walk in and out of . You always get inspired by such an aesthetic beauty.
Not mentioning the power of their performance on stage… THUMBS UP to them!