Alex Neri Interview

Alex Neri is one of Italian house music's biggest exports, releasing music since the early '90s and DJing for even longer. Perhaps best known in the UK as part of Planet Funk, who hit the Top Five in 2001 with 'Chase The Sun', the group are currently back together with an album predicted for this year.

As a solo artist, however, Neri has a long-standing relationship with Tenax, the Florence club who host the Garden at all Italian night, Cafelatte, on Saturday 19th March. Neri plays alongside Fabio della Torre, Mia Lucci and Francesco Poggi, with a live set from Minimono, heads of Bosconi Records. Read full details of the party, which also includes rooms run by Guendalina, Unusual Suspects and Under My Feet, and buy tickets here.

Ahead of his headline appearance, we caught up with the Italian maestro to find out about his connection with Tenax, his DJ roots and why Italians do it better when it comes to parties (just not political ones)...

Hi Alex. Can you tell us about your connection with Tenax. They've been around since the late '80s, so when did you get involved with going to and playing at the club?

I’ve been a big fan since the mid ‘80s because of their great concert line-ups, so when I had the opportunity to get involved in the Nobody’s Perfect project [one of the club's flagship nights] it was an honour. This happened in 1997 and since the very first party we've been able to connect with the best DJs in the world.

You're involved with their label. Can you fill us in on what your role is there. What spectrum of music does it cover?

Founding Tenax Record was one of my ideas, with the aim to always be searching for new talent to get involved in the club too. I could name a few like Marco Faraone, Luca Bacchetti, Ilario Alicante, Minimono, The Clover and Federico Grazzini. Over the years I have always been focused on it, except during the last two because of physical problems. I’m actually back on it now and I’m glad to announce that we are coming back with some really hot stuff. We are investing a lot in it again.

You began by DJing at your father's club. What kind of music were you playing back then?

My father was a DJ, so for me it was easy to get in touch with music all day long. My first influences as a DJ came from Afro and funk music. After that, I discovered DJs like Larry Levan and DJ Harvey, who have been my real mentors during my career.

What was the plan when you started out with Planet Funk? Did you ever think it could become as big as it did.

To be honest no, but we felt from the beginning that we had something different compared to the other music back in the day. Our success was thanks to the balance in our crew, the mix between my DJ background and the musicians that we worked together with.  

What are some of the opportunities you had after scoring a UK top 5 hit with 'Chase The Sun'? Were you chasing the sun yourself and playing around the world at that point?

I've always divided my personal career as a DJ from the Planet Funk one. To be honest, I actually started playing around the world earlier than that thanks to hitting the charts, especially in the UK, as one half of Kamasutra and many other projects/remixes.

For those who haven't heard you play recently, can you give us an idea of your current sound? Who are some of the labels or artists that you're feeling these days?

I’m actually buying mainly vinyl and have discovered so much good talent making great music that way. But in my sets more then 50% of the music is mine, so I'm trying to create a set that represent me 100% without any compromise.

We've been spying on your Facebook and saw you were working with Mark Yardley from The Stanton Warriors recently. Does that mean there are some breakbeat involved in your new stuff?

No. Mark is a very talented producer but I’m working with him with the Planet Funk crew.

What vibe will Tenax be bringing with them from Italy?

In Italy we are not able to govern a nation, but we are really good at making parties! That’s all.