Labels
Subdance Records
Some Bizarre
Truckstop76th
Gigolo
Plasmek
Nature Recores
Disco B
Hot Trax
Prodam Key
PSI49ne
Hot Elephant Music
7b Records
Electrix Records
Geometrik
Star Whores Records
FourMusic
ElectRoma
artists . max durante . max durante biography
Max Durante Biography
Technic, scratch and eclecticism:these are the words to describe Max Durante, veteran DJ and music producer of the Italian electronic music scene.
He started his career as professionial dj in 1987, he is one of the most highly appreciated Italian djs.
Respected for his mixing-technic and for his ability to mix groove and experimentalism…
His first impact with electronic music was in the 80's with the Kraftwerk music.
Electro was Max’s first passion, this was his first step into the music.
Hip hop/electro was important in his dj experience, in the 1985’s he started scratching and cutting, and this has influenced his way of mixing today as a good turntablist too.
Considered one of the best European electronic dj’s, his dj sets are brilliant, and for this reason he has been named "the wizard of the decks"!!!
He started his dj profession after his radio experience in 1986 in a private local radio in Rome. From 1987 he began to work in clubs, mixing underground music, in the 88/89’s, especially acid house (another old passion of Max) and electro/ freestyle of Brooklyn. From the 1987 to the 1990, he worked in particular in clubs in Rome : Histerya, Mithos, Bolido' ( Black Out ) , Luxuria , Nisida (this was his first club, he was the resident DJ in 1987). From 1991 he dedicated himself completely to big parties mixing good technogroove( UR / Plus 8 ). Here he gained the experience for taking part in important Italian festivals / raves. In september 1992 he released his first record "Roman's Attack" for the Roman Hot Trax rec (Acv sublabel). The record was co-produced in 1991 with the D'Arcangelo brothers (today on Rephlex rec.), together they built up the project called Automatic Sound Unlimited; under this name he released 3 records on Hot Trax label between ’91 and ‘94.
From 1994 to 1998, Max was busy performing his DJ shows around Europe.
In December 1999 he built up together with three other friends the label project called ‘’Prodamkey rec.", where he released a limited 500 copies Ep which immediately sold out. The label in the near future will be a net-label, you will be able to buy records only by Internet. In 2000 he produced together with Anthony Rother a track for Psi49net records released in March 2001 and in the same year he started to produce together with Keith Tucker (Aux 88) a record project called Fuzion, from Detroit to Rome. In 2002 he co-produced with Dj Hell and Tuxedomoon some new tracks of the group, one called '' Lether Bliss'' was released on ''Gigolo Compilation 6'' and on the SonarFestival compilation, the others tracks unfortunately will be momentanly unreleased, for problems of the band. In 2003 he did a Megamix for Gigolo records, released as a bootleg format, an EP for the Swiss label 7B. He released on Electrix records UK the record with K. Tucker (FUZION , from Detroit to Rome), etc… This record collected good critics from the most important djs/producers and music magazines:
DJ Rolando (Los Hermanos/UR) - “Digital System is slammin’.”
Laurent Garnier (F-Com) - “Beautiful stuff on both sides - great release.”
Plump DJs (Fabric) - “Very competent electro - late night rather than mid-set.”
Tiga (Turbo) - “Amazing record…manages to stand out even in the over-saturated electro genre. Fusion Theme is a killer old-school techno jam. Digital System - electro hit. Love it. The Hacker (Gigolo) - “I love it, especially Digital System - I play it and put it in my monthly playlist in Trax, the biggest French techno magazine!”
Glo3 (Trust, Austria) - “My favourite is definitely Digital System -
gritty, funky, old school Detroit-tech. Excellent. B2 is nice as well.”
Events
Max took part in the most important central European events:
+8 records tour. 1991 Roma
'Xtc',1991 Roma
Total Confusion, 1992 Sulmona
Energy 92, 1992 Zurich,
Energy 93, 1993Zurich
Cubik 94, 1994 Roggwill
Cubik 95, 1995 Roggwill
Supernova, 1995 Basel
Balelec 96, 1996 Losanna,
Atlantis, 1996 Neuchatel
Freaks, 1996 Ginevra
F.M.P., 1998 Bordeaux
Grey Planet Festival" '98 Zurich
Kozzmozz 21, Gent
'Electrobuzz, Zurich
Distorsonie 1999, Bologna
Distorsonie 2000, Bologna
Mix 2000, Belgium
Bios Festival 2002, Athens
Distorsonie 2002, Bologna
Dissonanze 2002, Roma
Electro_experimental club 2002, Madrid
Distorsonie 2003, Bologna
Bit:z Festival 2003, Roma
Synch Festival 2004, Athens
CCC Contemporary Culture Convention IV, 2004 Bern
Electroma,2004 Roma,
Stereolized 2, 2004 Paris
Pixel 04, Strasbourg
etc…
He also performed together with Prefuse 73 at Dissonanze 2002, great show!!! As well as his brilliant performance with the father of italo disco Alexander Robotnick at Distorsonie 2003, side by side with Blaine Reininger from Tuxedomoon at Distorsonie 2002, and during the same festival showing up with Anthony Rother too!
In 1998 Lilian Fellmann journalist from the Swiss newspaper, Neue Zuercher Zeitung wrote about him: “his hands are so fast that it’s hard to follow his movement, his scratches are balm for the eyes and the ears”.
In 2000, the Italian fanzine Orbeat, described his performance at the festival Distorsonie 2000 @ Link in Bologna: “his dj set with 3 turntables was amazing, keeping the crowd 'till 6.30 clapping all the time"
He was considered by “The Wire” one of the best acts at the “Bios festival“ in Athens,
where he performed in 2002.
Italy Akab - Rome
Link - Bologna
Sputnik - Napoli
Classico Village - Roma
Forte Prenestino - Roma
IT - Roma
Ex-Magazzini - Roma
Goa - Roma
Juno' - S.Severino Marche
