Severino started DJing professionally in Mantova, Northern Italy but at the age of 26 he made the move to London where his career began in earnest. His job as a record buyer for Italian Disco Label,Disco Inn lead on to him being heavily involved in the London club and party scene, including being a huge part of the gay scene with his residency at infamous Sunday night shindig Horse Meat Disco.
A long-term fan and supporter of Classic, he was the ideal candidate to helm the latest in their Classic Through the Eyes of... series. Here, we caught up with him for a quick chat about the project, Horse Meat Disco and his summer residency at Ushuaia, Ibiza.
Clubbers can expect anything from disco, house, electro and soulful vocal music with your sets. Is it a conscious decision to keep your music varied?
Well yeah, I like music – any kind – so why not? Let’s be open; as long as it’s groovy, fun, not moody and shakes the dancefloor it should be played.
You’re now an ex pat-what made you decide to move to London in the first place and what made you stay? What do you miss most about Italy?
I always loved London for the record shopping in the 80s and 90s. It’s such a cosmopolitan city… the whole world is here so I LOVE it. I live in Brixton which is especially crazy but I do miss the quality of life you can get over there and the weather in the summer and food I guess. But I still love it here.
You’ve promoted and had residencies at a number of events since moving to London. Which has been the most important to you in terms of building your career and why?
Well, Horse Meat Disco I guess as it’s been the main party and the most fun; I simply love it and of course it feels like a family. But so many other clubs and parties too...even DJing at Shoreditch House every week - it’s fun; I can invite a different type of crowd than I would to Horse Meat Disco.
How has Horse Meat Disco developed in the time that you’ve been involved?
It became such a big brand that’s given me the opportunity to travel a lot and meet people all over the world, which is so nice. It’s still super fun to play every Sunday in London though; it’s the best atmosphere around.
Tell us about your Ushuaia residency over the summer... did it live up to expectations?
It was such a great opportunity to play on that huge stage in front of 5000 dancers ...I LOVED it! Great team too; hopefully I’ll be therenext year again and it gave me the opportunity to meet some old skool residents over there(Charlie Chester) and also to see my name all over the island on those huge posters!
You’ve been DJing in London for over 15 year now – how would you say the scene has changed since you first arrived?
It’s still fantastic but maybe there was more things going on also during the week a few years back. I remember places like Bar Rhumba, Dog Star and Blue Note mid-week... I guess there’s less money now? Or too much going on online? It seems that people tend to stay in during the week now.
You are a long time Classic fan. Why has your interest and relationship with the label lasted so long?
I discovered Classic by going to Ideal Records distribution (RIP)… I was a promo records buyer for an Italian shop called Disco Inn and I used to go to Ideal every week and they used to give me all the releases. I loved the stuff, the vibe and the covers too, so i was super-honoured to be asked to go through their releases and make a compilation.
Tell about the brief for this project… was it challenging to make the selections feel personal to you?
Yeah...well it was a bit difficult because Matt Tolfrey had already picked some great gems for the first mix and unfortunately some tracks weren’t available due to licensing issues with the back catalogue, but it’s such a huge and great catalogue so there’s some good ones in there I think.
You’ve gone for quite an eclectic mix; some quite traditional house melodies with some edgy cuts. What were some of the specific reasons behind including some of the tracks you did? Are there any on there that have particular relevance for you?
The Matthew Herbet remix of Rednail Kidz is soooo upfront, so ahead of its time. ’I’m Satisfied’ that’s so sexy and pumpin’ and ‘Everything is Changing’ is so fun we just had to do a remix especially for the comp; it’s kind of Prince on acid.
Were there any tracks that didn’t make it into the mix but you wished could have?
DJ Sneak ‘You Can’t Hide From Your Bud’ because i remember the first time I ever heard it at a Basement Jaxx party and it was insane! Tieschwarz ‘Through A Little Window’ I’ve got great memories of and I would have liked to include more Rob Mello because he’s one of my favourite artists.
The mix itself is quite raw – was this intentional?
Yeah… we are all very sophisticated nowadays with super technological stuff, so I thought let’s mix it on the fly, like I’m still doing at every gig I do. Dunno, maybe it’s cause i started DJing when I was 10 in 1980 so that seems like the most natural way for me to put a mix together.
What else have you been working on recently? Have you got any new projects in the pipeline?
I have to admit cause of Ibiza and lots of travels I haven’t been in studio for a while. There’s going to be more Hyena Stomp action(w/Nico de Ceglia) and Up Yours(w/HiFi Sean) on Southern Fried Records and a punky, housey track called. ‘London’ with Feral!
Anything else you’d like to tell us about…?
I’m so happy to be part of CLASSIC family. It feels like it’s all about the music...which is great! Grazie.
Severino plays at Horse Meat Disco’s 8th Birthday alongside Derrick Carter Sunday 28th October
Classic Through The Eyes of Severino is out 5th November - listen & pre-order
