MDC.323 Primo

Captured in the woods at last year’s Dripping festival, Bay Area legend Primo Pitino treats us to a wildly transcendental ride through 20+ years of deep crate excavation, swerving between dizzy acid freakouts and deep progressive melters from the late ’90s. @primo-pitino
Q. What sounds/feelings did you draw upon when gathering inspiration for this set? Describe the setting + vibe out there while you were playing..
A. Dripping was wild, spaced out & transcendental, but also a moment to connect with friends, community, & even the earth tbqh. It was otherworldly but also felt very much like a family affair. I wanted to play a set that would bring us down to some oceanic depths, out into space, but also ultimately bring the dancers together.
Dripping takes place on a lovely mid sized campground in New Jersey with a lake, lots of foliage, & also many left over accoutrements of Ren Faire type events which take place during other times of the year. There are dance and art performances in various parts of the campground downtempo music on the lake, a big sound system in a large field, and in two indoor venues, the Inn (expansive, feels like a club but opens out to to the air) and the barn (bouncy wood floor, jam packed, hot and sweaty) I closed out the first night in the Barn, it was exciting, the energy was euphoric and infectious, at that point (3am) people had been dancing for hours but they fully seemed like they could easily go until dawn, the first record I played “No Command - Keim”, was meant as a sort of trippers clarion call, to answer their energy and bring it forward. When I started to play people really started to fizz, and it just felt like the best house party I had ever been to, so tripped out, silly, and also friendly.
Q. Are there any records in the mix that you were especially excited to share? What is it about these that resonate with you so much?
A. One of the tracks I was most excited to play that night was “Smiling in San Antonio” by Ed2000, it sounds so much like a 1992 UK hardcore piano rave “second summer of love” type tune but it was recorded in 2001 & has this crazy heavy bass, and almost post modern restructuring of that style, that I felt would make it go along with these heavier techy and acidic things I had chosen for the rest of the set, and at the same time bring that feeling of euphoria & togetherness that, for me anyhow, only raving has truly been able to bring out.
"The fight against oppression" - Pure Science 1997 ~I think I’ve been playing it for at least 9 years. It has a super heavy kick combined with some watery vibration & depth, the Dr Martin Luther King sample is played over itself again and again, also creating a tension build, so that when it is taken out again, the heavy beat of this deep track is brought into sharper focus. Definitely Two Billion Year Journey with the whale songs as synths, Reese type bass, and voice over suggesting whales as space traveling entities, is a big favorite. Also Analogue Bounce by Freak and Swank really stands out for me, very unique, and Bay Area, which I love.
Q. You made the big move from SF over to NYC a couple of years back, leaving after a 20 year long stint of running parties (including co-founding the iconic Club Lonely nights) and DJing around the Bay, tell us about how the transition has been + what new projects you’re excited about?
A. It was terrifying! I had lived in the same house for 14 years, and DJ’ed in some of the same clubs for 16/18 years. But I'm very happy to be here, I'm excited to connect with the Brooklyn dance community, and to make paintings again as well. Project wise, I just completed a fun painting on Mansions, & have been playing sets with my friend Kiyoshi909 which for me have been a few of the best sets I’ve played in all my 22+ years of djing, we both seem to bring out the freakiest possible tracks when we play together, so if you’re in Brooklyn this summer keep an eye out for us :)