Most people my age in the US either have no idea what Italo Disco is, or they can’t stand it when they hear it. Understandably so, since 1) they probably didn’t grow up listening to it, and 2) it’s very corny.
If you grew up, like I did, in a foreign county during the 90s, chances are you ran across Italo Disco several times in a number of places: local supermarket, discotecas, friends’ parties, etc. Essentially, it was extremely popular at one point in time. People loved this stuff. I think it even had a spur of popularity in the US during the late 80s, although its roots date back to the very early 80s. At any rate, say what you want about the genre’s singers and the quality of production. Italo Disco is adored and loved by millions around the world, and I’m guessing that it’s going to surface the mainstream pop scene in a new form in the near future. I mean, my band, The New Division, is already heavily influenced by this corny, washed out and overrated genre. Can’t say exactly what it is, but there’s something about the combination of 4/4 beats, minor chords, silly synths, crappy drum samples, and cheesy lyrics that make this genre all too amazing for its own good. Sometimes, I can’t help but laugh when I listen to this stuff. Maybe its because it reminds me of good times, maybe I like it so much because it reminds me of my very early youth and childhood. Maybe because it reminds me of Uruguay. Whatever the reason, I feel its my time to bring this genre back to the plate. Young Americans probably won’t like it, and I don’t expect them to. But my overseas friends will remember the good times when these tunes were played over some obnoxious loudspeaker, and you couldn’t help but think, “Man, this is a great beat.” So far, the only person I’ve met around here that’s with me on this is Suresh. Then again, we both lived overseas where this stuff was played night and day, whether you liked it or not. I confess, at the time, I didn’t really enjoy this stuff too much. It’s merely pure nostalgia at the end of the day. Not art by any means.
The best of 80s Italo Disco.
Wow, this is a great video… Look at Grant’s moves.
