We have had the pleasure of interviewing Gioli & Assia who publish Fire Hell and Holy Water.
How would you present your work to someone who doesn’t know you?
We are a duo of DJs / producers and live performers. Our music is mainly indie – electronic, but our Dj sets are also Afro House and Techno. In our live shows Assia sings, while Giolì plays various instruments.
And your last project? How was your last project born and where? And where do you want to lead?
Our latest project is our album “Fire Hell and Holy Water”. We started producing it in January of this year, in our home studio, and we are very satisfied with every single song that composes it. Our goal was to create something that could express who we truly are, both from the point of view of production and live performance, but above all also in the songwriting.
We would like it to reach the hearts of our fans and thrill those who listen to us for the first time.
What message would you like to convey to the public? What is the concept behind?
The key message of this album is hell seen as a metaphor to describe depression. We faced difficult times at the beginning of the year, after the death of Assia’s relative and other health problems, we wondered what the meaning of life is, and more generally if there really was one. We used Greek mythology, in particular the story of Orpheus and Eurydice to encourage people who are facing difficult times, such as Eurydice in hell, not to give up, and not to entrust their hopes to other people, who could betray us even unintentionally, but to base all our strengths and hopes on ourselves.
As for your studio, what is it currently composed of?
Our studio has a lot of equipment, bothas Dj / producer and live performer. We have the CDjs 2000 Nexus 2, mixer 900 Nexus 2, then iMac with Adam speakers and Apollo sound card, in the DJ / producer area. Then many handpans, Roland electronic drums, and a Yamaha electric piano.
What is the one instrument you would never get rid of, no matter what?
The piano. Everything started from it, and whenever we want to write new lyrics, we both sit at the piano looking for melody inspiration.
What was the last record store you visited? And what did you salvage from there?
Giolì: The last one I visited was in the UK, and I bought a present for Assia: “A Sky Full Of Stars” from Coldplay. We both love this band so much, and we are very excited to see them live next year.
Do you have hope for the future of music? How would you like the future of the music industry to be?
Yes we have hope. Although social media are changing the criteria of today’s music, they have given rise to more meritocratic mechanisms. Today, anyone with access to a computer and internet has the potential keys to success in tehri hands, so now it’s all about the public’s taste.
Can you reveal some future projects to us?
This album means a lot to us, so we wanted to give our fans something that would tell more of what is behind the inspiration, the lyrics, the ideas that made up “Fire Hell and Holy Water”. We have decided to work on a documentary that collects all of this and we are very excited to show it to the world.
What makes you happy?
The time spent in our hometown, with our family, friends and dogs
What bothers you?
Dealing with the falsehood and hypocrisy that pervades the music industry
