My new Album 'SEROTONIN' is out now: https://armada.lnk.to/Serotonin

Listen to our latest release: https://orcd.co/rpm278
Other labels: @southofsaturn @north-of-neptune

At midnight, on March 13th 1991, a basement door opened at Leipziger Strasse 126, Berlin. Through this door, many passed, on their way to defining new terrains in electronic music. There they found a dance floor in the vaults of a closed-down department store, with a unique sound bound to dense fog, building night after night a history that was also a vision of the future. 

This history has seen in Jeff Mills’ first sets on three turntables, Underground Resistance's first live appearances in Europe, grandiose Tresor Park parties, to various chapters of the Loveparade with Sven Väth in the 90s and since then countless generation-spanning parties. These moments represent the highlights of infinite personal clubbing experiences. It is the manifestation of the Berlin spirit, emerging from its considerable strife. This history is not without its complications - from temporary closure by the authorities and several raids in the early years to closure and demolition of the old location in 2005. What followed was years of wandering in exile and, finally, resurrection in the new home in Kraftwerk Berlin.

These stories, conversations and shared experiences within our walls forge a resilience that drives towards a shared ideal, the Tresor sound: community, resistance, and the world to come. This was observed in the newly re-unified German youth, who danced and celebrated together from the club’s inception, and into the present day through ongoing community work in Detroit. 

Tresor Records was founded in the same year and began to serve as a platform for exporting the new sounds associated with Tresor all around the world. Emergent musicians from Michigan, such as Juan Atkins, Underground Resistance and Drexciya, were pivotal in shaping these early years. Their visits to Berlin would kick-start dialogue between the youth movement in Europe and these musicians. This story is one of friendship and community-building, inextricably linked with cities like Detroit, Birmingham or Edinburgh, where like-minded friends built something truly special, where revelatory rhythms soundtrack decaying industry in corrupted metropoles. 

Tresor Records has been the fertile soil for dozens upon dozens of creative minds, from the very luminaries of the scene who developed electronic music over the last three decades through to contemporary protagonists who are currently defining the sound of the future -  A more than 300 strong catalogue displays an unmistakable identity - the Tresor spirit.

To those that have danced before, and to those that will dance in the future: the light at the end of the long Tresor tunnel is a signal. A flicker amidst the fog. This is our future. This is our place.

Massimiliano Pagliara was born in Tricase (Lecce) in the deep south of Italy. Already as a child he listened to diverse types of music: rap, classical, reggae, dub and 60s rock'n'roll. Coming from this small village, he and his friends created a small musical world for themselves, spending a lot of time every day playing records in his basement and at private parties.
Upon moving to Milan in 1997, Massi embarked on an academic career and eventually earned his diploma in theatre, dance and choreography at the Civica Scuola di Teatro Paolo Grassi in 2001. While discovering the fashionable and alternative club scene of the city, his imagination was captured by experimental electronic music such as Aphex Twin, Boards Of Canada, Autechre and Mira Calix. Naturally these avant-garde sounds eventually found their way into Massi's original body of work.
After finishing school he ventured to Europes underground capital Berlin, where he continued his studies in contemporary dance, but also dived into the city's explosive techno nightlife, particularly the renowned OstGut club. Massi's interest in electronic music found its peak in 2003 when he finally began to pursue DJing with a passion. Ever since he's been spinning records across the world as well as some of the most popular underground venues in Germany – among them Tape Club, SchwuZ, Tresor, ://about blank, Robert Johnson, and of course Berghain / Panorama Bar, where he holds a residency.
Massi describes his style as an eclectic mix of house, disco, electro and techno – one may call it current-yet-classic. DJing has since led to productio. These days Massi lets his obsession with analog synths run wild – usually he's holed up in his apartment studio, working on his latest productions. 2011 saw the release of his debut album Focus For Infinity (on Live At Robert Johnson), followed by his sophomore LP With One Another in 2014. February 2017 saw his debut release on Ostgut Ton with the EP Time And Again. Since then, Massi has worked on various EPs, remixes, single track, all culminating in the late 2018 release of his third full-length solo album, titled Feel Live. February 2020 saw his debut on Munich's label Permanent Vacation with his new EP Nothing Stays In One Place For Long, in 2021 he's added the third part of his Uncanny Valley label trilogy with the EP Connection Lost Pt. 3. His latest album See You In Paradise releases in October 2022, once again with Permanent Vacation.
But he’s not always alone: Massi has been collaborating with luminaries around town such as gui.tar, Snax, Daniel Wang, Lemercier & The Lala By, Discodromo as well international artists. This lead to several side projects over the last decade, such as [sic!] with the two members of gui.tar, The Rimshooters with the Brazilian DJ and producer Rotciv, Egyptian Nipples with the multi-instrumentalist Jules Etienne, Banana Moon with Luigi Di Venere, Couple Looking with Chris Cruse to name just a few.
There's an ongoing lust for dialogue when it comes to Massimiliano Pagliara – be it through his collaborations and solo productions, during his DJ sets, with his own music label Funnuvojere Records or on a personal level. The world of dance, movement and communication is deeply rooted in Massi's life – when you know how to move yourself, you easily know how to move others.

resident @ Eos Lounge 
Santa Barbara, California

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