XENO



"The Space Traveler"

Interview with the excellent Italian composer and multiinstrumentalist Xeno

By Sergio Vilar

Before anything, thank you to grant us something of your time to respond this interview. Please, count us a little on your beginnings in the music... 
Well, a lot of time ago when I was young the first music I listen was an LP of the Pink Floyd, “The Dark Side Of The Moon” exactly, and the love for the music born immediately, in my home no one was musician but my grandpa have an acoustic guitar and me begin to play it, naturally listening the music and finding to follow it but I not have the minimal idea of what I’m doing. After some tentative one of my friend that play the guitar offer me of to learn the fundamental accord of the guitar.... and the world is changed, now, I have a little idea of what is the musical structure and what is the accord, in successive years I begin to see some concert and the idea of play live is come in to my mind, but I’m was not ready again to play with other musician and I need some time for complete the study, finally in the ’83 my first band! We play cover of Deep Purple and other, and after in a lot of different bands, but always cover. In the 2001 start my project “Brodo Primordiale” and the theory of the universal evolution is the main theme of the project, in my mind start a journey through the space and the time and I’m projected at the beginning of the time.

I would like to wonder who are the artists that influenced you in your formation stage like musician.
Maybe the first absolute are the Pink Floyd, but EL&P are a great part of my cultural baggage and many other like the Gong or Tangerine Dream, Franco Battiato, Kraftwerk, Brian Eno, Yes, and Genesis for example but I’m a hearer of all, and listen many genres from hard rock, to progressive, jazz, blues, classical, the music is always good and ever give emotion and feeling, ask only to be listened and possibly to be understand. All the music represent a feeling state, is a life tissue and expression of  personality and culture.

Musically speaking, would you cheer up to define the proposal of Xeno?
Something of different, something then go out of stereotype and schemas, something that say, Hey friend stop for a few time and look into yourself you are in evolution! Come with me lost your problems, we start for trip through the time.

Exist an artistic or aesthetic concept in particular that you want to express through the music? 
Well, maybe the fundamental concept is: Noting is static all is in evolution. This is confirmed form the universe that is around us, is in continuous evolution, all is in evolution, the men in sense of human race is the first what have evolved and the changing is not finished again, are many the forms of evolution, but the first maybe is the cultural, from the beginning of ‘900 to today fortunately are changed a lot of things, today we have medicine instructions food technology and many other thing when the people of  the first of ‘900 not have, is not passing many time in the universal scale, from we descend of the tree to the well discover, and minus again from the industrial society of the first ‘900 to the lunar landing, from the coke to the stars in a eye beat. And the evolution of our lifestyle and our priority confirm again the evolution in act and his speed, that is really accelerated from technology and his continuous evolution, the question now is: Where we go and we have the capability of preserve our planet and all the life inside? Or we destroy all for the business need?

Those are the question for the future of human race, we have really the capability to understaned that planet is alive and we are only a little part of this? This is my thought and through the music and the story of the universe I wish communicate to the people this simply begin, we are a little bit of the all.

Well, how if we speak of the CDs that you have published? Which are your current impressions about “Segnali di Vita” and “Brodo Primordiale”?
Maybe “Brodo Primordiale” is like the first son, or if you prefer the first love, is really the begin of all, but overall is the begin of my artistic expression, and “Segnali di Vita” is the logic consequence of it, the difference between them is the sound and is evolution, because my music not contain singing text but is based only on the vibration, and the emotion or feeling that music can give to the listener. I hope the message built in the music can sensitize the people to listen better the earth vibration because is same our interior vibration and this give us the exact perspective of how we are united with the earth and universe, and consider the earth like was our mother, and respect her like this.

Are they conceived as albums of the conceptual type?
Yes is a concept work, the narration of our history not alone like human, but like a little part of  the all around us.
We are a really little thing in the complex of the universe, but our value in all this is great because every thing we do here have a repercussion on the rest of the universe, all the forces are equilibrated for to give at this wonderful universe full of life the necessary energy for run. 

Were you looking for some sound in particular when you began to write the material?
Take a look in to myself and search to imagine the time and the location where the story start, for example in “Big Ball part two”, some instant before the big bang I have imagine the furious contrast of forces inside the substance and the suffering of it, to be pulled and pushed, and at  the end explode. This give on my mind the death and at the same time the life, a strange sensation, after this mental trip start the research of the sound that can give the idea of what i want say, and finally the harmony, that give at the sound his form and physical presence

Until point the fact of experiencing with new forms and sounds is fundamental in your music?
Is the most important thing for my sound because the concept of expressions is based on the sound only, and consequently the research of new sound is continuous, I pass a lot of time in the search of sound and use the synth for modify the wave form till I find what i search or something is near at what I want, the time have not priority important is find the sound when is exactly what I have imagine for the particular situation then I want to represent.

Do I understand that “Brodo Primordiale” is the first part of a project but ambitious… What can you be in this respect?
“Brodo Primordiale” is the first step in this concept work, and I’m write it with the awareness the work was be long and hard but at the same time fascinated, will be started from the empty universe and arrived at the men.

Is a hard and difficult job over all because pass through different eras of what we have limited knowledge, and another important question is give to the listener the idea of what I want represent in one particular moment, this is relative easy during the first phase of the universe creation but really hard with the comparison of human race and his evolution, because the men not have only a physical evolution but have over all an spiritual evolution, and this is the real difficulty of this job, to represent the spiritual evolution and his relation with the physical evolution that contain the brain evolution and consequently the different approach to the problematic connected to the survive for example, and the social development, and the creation of the first social tissue, and his connection to the primitive forms of religion, but, stop the discussion the argument is very long.

What process do you accustom to use to compose your music? 
Good question, depend, sometime I imagine the noise in the story and sometime I imagine an harmonic sound, maybe I not have a standard process to compose. Have a great imagination and live the story in my mind, normally the music flow from the heart to the brain and finally through the finger on the keyboard.

Are you already working in the material for your next study disc? 
Yes, after “Brodo Primordiale” and “Segnali di Vita” have finished “Hot Blood” my third CD and beginning “Del Corpo e dell’Anima” my fourth, I work on my music continuously and my mind is ever active in this sense, if I have no idea simply stop the work, in waiting of new ideas but however is use during the night open my eyes and go in the study because a new idea is become.

How would you say that the sound of Xeno has evolved along the time?  
Maybe is the consequence of a interior maturation and need of communication through the music because is my preferred art form.

Changing topic. What vision do you have on the music that is made at the moment worldwide in the field of the progressive rock, the electronic music and the experimental music? 
I have different vision about, maybe there are many valid artists, but maybe too the investing from the labels in this particular field are to much low, and this do not give the possibility to the artists of to be appreciate from the great part of the listener, the business is important but not ever, the most important thing is the art like communication way, the business is consequently of this but important also is to promote humanitarian initiatives to help through the music the unfortunately people, another vision I have is about the live events, maybe in a live show must be different bands with different genre and the events must not be reduced at only one evening, but must developed during two days, this give the possibility at the artists of speak with the listener and condivide the experience with other musician, and create a special wonderful atmosphere where the spirits and the feeling are extremely one closer another, I have experienced this sensation and at the end was more riched inside.

Do you think that today in day a genuine philosophy exists of to innovate and to experience with new forms and sounds?
I hope this, because in different way we have not a musical future, and we rest with the actual products maked on misure for the listener and shure for the major, this give a full stop for the new artists that cannot do new project or new forms of sounds.  

How other Italian musicians consider you tune to your compossitive or aesthetic approaches?
Fortunately, I have a lot of friend musician, and they say: You have do something of really original but very out of schemas something of not commercial but extremely artistic, maybe you have really difficult of sell many CD’s. But sell is not my first objective, sell is important not for money finally itself, in fact I use more of the proceed for help the children, I do music because have this sacral fire inside, is my passion, is my life and do this not for money but for love, important is what I have inside not what I’m outside, and maybe this is the most important thing for all we do this job, for the rest I have received good press review, and this is good, because is a demonstration then my job is appreciated. I am happy about this, and it’s sufficient for me.

Thank you Xeno, it has been a pleasure to dialogue with you. If you want this way it, you can leave some message like closing for our readers.
Yes have something to say, remember to help your brothers, respect the planet, live every day like was the last, smile to the people, live in peace. A great hug

www.xeno.mi.it

Nucleus interview: 22/09/06