Documenti di Didattica
Documenti di Professioni
Documenti di Cultura
Book Edition
We are family
says Sebastian Ingrosso
And that is why this book was compiled. A family album following an incredible journey by the Swedish House Mafia. From childhood, around the globe UNTIL they made their debut single ONE after signing a groundbreaking deal with EMI Records in 2010. So many of you on these pages made it all happen. THANK YOU
STEVE ANGELLO
FAVOURITE Restaurant: Teatre Grillen FAVOURITE THINGS: Snus Salt Liquorice
Sebastian Ingrosso
FAVOURITE HOTELS: Lydmar HotelStory Hotel. FAVOURITE Restaurants: TarantinoBeirut Cafe KungsholmenMster Anders Grill.
Axwell
favOURITE restaurant: East the best japanese fusion you can get in Stockholm. favOURITE hotel: Grand Hotel The real deal if you want to experience Stockholm in a five star way. favOURITE place: The Archipelago its a must to visit the islands outside of Stockholm. The further out the better.
STOCKHOLM
BLOODSHY & AVANT
Favourite Restaurant: El Diablo TATOO: aniela p flash fighters tattoo (Creator of the Miike Snow Jackalope logo)
Producers / Miike Snow
Jonas kerlUnd
FILM DIRECTOR
RESTAURANT : PA/CO its been my dining room for a life time. If those walls could talk... Another home run restaurant is Le Rouge in the Old Town. HOTEL : Hotel Lydmar, my home away from home. OTHER: Love the architecture of Sergels torglove getting drunk at Pub Anchorlove walking around SkeppsholmenHeavy Sound is the best record store.
AXWELL
Axwells steady ascent into clubland aristocracy began back in 1995, when the eager Swedish teenager began teaching himself the arcane science of drum machines, synthesisers and sequencers, and started releasing his very first tracks, as part of techno duo Quazar. By 1999, hed moved towards a housier sound, as evidenced by his debut solo single, Funkboy. An impressive calling card, it paved the way for a steady flow of increasingly confident underground hits, until Axwell struck crossover gold with 2004s glorious Feel The Vibe. An unstoppably uplifting and instantly memorable track, the original version of Feel The Vibe (featuring vocalist Errol Reid) dazzled every corner of clubland, before an overhauled version (with new vocals by Tara McDonald) gate-crashed the UK top 20. Axwell has recently once again joined forces with Errol Reid to create the gloriously infectious Nothing But Love currently climbing the charts the world over. 2005s Watch The Sunrise (featuring Steve Edwards) proved to be another unstoppable anthem, as was his 2006 collaboration with fellow Swedish House Mafioso Steve Angello, Supermodes Tell Me Why (released via Ministry Of Sound, it reach #13 in the UK and #3 in the Netherlands). But it was 2007s rave-referencing I Found U (#6 in the UK charts) that really cemented Axwells status as a producer who could marry artistic innovation with strong commercial appeal a rare thing indeed, in any genre of music. Axwells Midas-like touch along with his peerless technical ability has made him the go-to guy for artists looking to get their latest release reworked into a storming dancefloor juggernaut. Madonna, Nelly Furtado, Moby and Pharrell Williams have all come a-knockin, while productions such as his masterful reworking of Hard-Fis Hard To Beat, his sublime remix of The Temper Traps Sweet Dispo sition (along with Dirty South) and of course his unstoppable version of TV Rocks In The Air have gone on to become as big as or, in many cases, bigger than the original tracks. Part of what makes Axwell such a sought-after producer is his dazzling stylistic agility; he can switch between house, techno and electro (and everything in-between) without even breaking a sweat. You only have to take a look over the back catalogue of Axtone, Axwells muchadmired label, to see his enthusiasm for a dizzying range of styles and sounds. From the banging to the beatific, Axwell and his roster of artists which includes Dirty South, TV Rock & Prok & Fitch amongst others really have managed to please all the people, all the time. The latest chapter in Axwells career has seen him launch his spectacular LED Heart light show, debuting at Stereosonic in Canberra in late 2009 and currently touring festivals all over the world. Whatever direction the music takes Axwell in next, you can be sure that hell be closely followed by admirers and imitators alike.
How we met
I met Sebastian the first time in a Lebanese restaurant, it was his birthday and the launch party for a record they had done. He was wearing a red shirt which was the first and only time I have ever seen him in a garment like that... He invited me to his studio that day. Him and Steve had heard some of my early tracks. I got to know Steve very quickly. They even booked me on a rather cool gig I remember with Eric Prydz, and the rest is history.
STEVE ANGELLO
Armed with a slew of new CDs and enough confidence to rebuild Hadrians Wall, Steve Angello destroyed the Space terrace at the inaugural Ibiza opening on May 31st 2009. In truth, the momentum had been building for Steve Angello for some time - from his globe-straddling Moby remix of Raining Again, to the anthemic re-working of Tell Me Why with Axwell, to the now unmistakable Be with Laidback Luke. Be then returned in spirit as Show Me Love with original vocalist Robin S and Laidback Luke in tow, smashing clubs and Top Ten charts into tiny pieces everywhere it was dropped. Jump to November 2009 and Steve Angello releases The Yearbook a collection of his finest production work to date - including the devious Alpha Baguera and euphoric Monday. The Yearbook was an unforgettable milestone in Steves stellar career. Since this offers have flooded in and projects with Pharrell Williams, Cheryl Cole and Kid Sister have filled his diary. Steves ascent into the dance music elite continues with his latest remix of Magnetic Mans Perfect Stranger having just been named Hottest Record in the World by Zane Lowe and his latest solo offering, the bass heavy Knas having torn up every festival arena in the world this summer. Having now decamped to Los Angeles, where Steve spends at least 50% of his time, his creativity and inner confidence has reached new levels. When he wakes up, Angello is still very much the A & R supremo for his beloved Size Records. The label is now firing hit after hit with the most upfront talent in electronic music including releases from the man himself, his protg AN21, Kim Fai, Max Vangeli, Afrojack, Funkagenda, Tim Berg aka Avicii, Norman Doray, Tong & Spoon, Sunnery James & Ryan Marciano, Harry Romero, Junior Sanchez and Alexander Technique to name but a few. Steves hunger for success in both music and business is clear with producing for Interscope in LA and also the birth of Size Matters in 2010, an event concept bringing to life the ground-breaking label of the same name. Huge parties at WMC in Miami, Ibiza Rocks Hotel and smash US and UK tours, a merchandise range and now a compilation to boot Size Matters continues to go from strength to strength. Summer 2010 saw the launch of Steves amazing new Sizemic Jarag Light Wall, featuring lights that were used in the original Star Wars demonstrating once again that Steve thinks big in everything he delivers.
How we met
Me and Seb met when we were eight: we got into all kinds of trouble together! Sebs Dad had a label called Plumphouse and we got into music and did all kinds of weird things including lounge compilations and made music for shows. I even did music for a Eurovision Song Contest in Sweden We bumped into Axwell ten years ago now, when he was doing stuff on Sulphuric Records. We all learned from each other because we were young kids. Also, when it came to the music, me and Seb were more rough. I dont tweak a hi-hat for six hours! And then there was Eric Prydz. We all hung out like friends and started building a relationship. But no-one would give us shows we had to beg nightclubs to put us on! We begged them to let us play for one hour and everyone loved it. But since no one would touch us, thats why we worked so hard at the start. After that me and Ax did Superode and me and Seb did a couple of records as BuyNow. We never got the support until now.
SEBASTIAN INGROSSO
Sebastian Ingrosso is that rare thing in the world of dance music: a musician who understands the world of melodies just as much as he understands the power of the kick drum. Sebastians father owned two record labels, and from the tender age of 14 Ingrosso could be found in the studio producing music. His first official remix was released on Mega Records in 1999 and for over a decade Ingrosso has been releasing a steady stream of original tracks and remixes. In 2009, Sebastian, Dirty South and David Guetta produced How Soon Is Now with Julia McKnight, which has become a modern day vocal house classic. Other tracks include Leave The World behind on Axtone, Umbrella on Data, Laktos on Refune, an amazing re-edit of Swimming Places from Julian Jabre on Defected, Royksopp and Hard Fis Suburban Knights, the searing remix of Jack You with Steve Angello for Diddy and Felix which was approved by Sean Combs himself, MGMTs Kids and most recently Miike Snows Silvia. 2010 saw him co-write and co-produce Cupid Boy, one of the key electronic anthems on Kylies new Number 1 album. As Head of A & R for his label, Refune, Sebastian is constantly discovering and developing new talents such as Style of Eye, AN21, Max Vangeli, True Identity and his most recent signing, the exceptional Lune.
How we met
I met Steve when I was 8 years old I had a fight with his step-brother. Then I met him again in Stockholm when we were about 11. We both had turntables and we used to go back to Steves and play hip hop, house and practice scratching. We would make music together in my fathers studio. My father helped us a lot. He played us techno, he paid rent on a studio and generally pushed us in the passion that we had developed for music. When we heard Daft Punks Homework, we fell in love directly and the direction of the music we made became more electronic. We had done a Chill Out album for a restaurant called Beirut Cafe. We did a launch party there and a guy we knew of called Axwell turned up. Two days later he was at our studio.
Sebastian Ingrossos achievements as a DJ are no less impressive than of those in the area of production. From his first gig in a small pizza restaurant in small town Sweden, 2009s residency at world famous Sensation White saw him regularly performing to crowds of 25,000 all over the globe and 2010 has seen more smash gigs in Australia, USA and Brazil, not to mention countless countries throughout Europe. DJ Mags 2009 Top 100 poll placed Seb at Number 25, the highest new entry. After the amazing achievements of the past few years, some may be forgiven for thinking the future could not get any better for Ingrosso but his ambition, not to mention talent, show no signs of abating. He has recently launched his new live visual concept and rumours are rife that he is producing the new album of a hot young female artist.
EARLY BEGINNINGS
I met Sebastian in 2002 at The Rainbow Room (gay VIP club in Stockholm which was the craziest club in Sweden at that time, I was lucky enough to have a residency there thanks to my friend Tomas) I was djing and Sebastian came up to me when I played my track Mr Jingles and said that he loved Eric Prydz music... turned out that it was me. We met up the day after in his first studio that he and Steve were getting together. They were just starting out playing around with synths and beats at that time and they were working on a track called Echo Vibes that I ended up remixing a few weeks later! We all became really close friends and we just hung out all the time doing really silly stuff. A few years later we did a party together in Stockholm on the top of a tall building and we booked Axwell because we really liked the soulful house vibe he had going on back then. Axwell had just moved up to Stockholm from the south and we all clicked and became best friends. In 2003 the name Swedish House Mafia came about. Stockholm back then was a bit weird when it came to recognising its own talent. I guess it has to do with the Swedish jealousy (den svenska avundsjukan). If anyone tried to break loose and just go for it, the people in the local music scene would diss them. The ethos was dont think you are better than anybody else sort of thing. Who do you think you are!! etc. There was a heated discussion on a popular Stockholm forum and we got involved and ended up writing a long angry reply. Seb signed it with The Swedish House Mafia just to get the haters even more annoyed!! The name stuck.. The 4 of us became known as Swedish House Mafia locally. I think people used the name with a bit of sarcasm back then in Stockholms music scene, like tsss who do they think they are!! mafia what??. Well... look at us all now! The four of us actually did two gigs together in Sweden. Not officially under the name Swedish House Mafia but that was what people had started to call us. For jokes we all chipped in and got one of Ax friends to make a logo.. it was all just for fun back then.In 2004 I decided to leave Sweden and move to the UK due to me not flying and the huge demand from clubs in Europe for me. It was just a much better place to travel from to the rest of Europe. My management and record labels were also based in London and I was a bit bored of Stockholm so off I went! In 2005 - 2006 (I think) Steve, Seb and Ax really went for it and decided to use the name Swedish House Mafia and make it their own brand. People in the scene all knew about the name but it wasnt official until this point. They started out doing some shows together as a group at smaller venues and now a few years later they are in the top 10 in the UK singles chart with a track they made with one of the guys from the Neptunes!! Its mad! But I think they are just getting warm. As for me, I had a huge boost with 3 singles topping charts all over the world, and my own labels Pryda & Mouseville. I always had a different approach to music compared to the rest of the guys.They were really in to the sounds of DJs like Erick Morillo and Roger Sanchez etc, and I came from the darker side with influences and heroes like Depeche Mode, Front 242, Nitzer Ebb etc. We all had very similar taste in music, but it just sounded very different when we made our own music. So today 2010 I still live in London, Steve in LA, Seb in Malta and Ax is still in Stockholm. A lot has happened since we first met. A LOT! We are all still very good friends, but when it comes to the music we have our separate careers. Im so fucking proud of all of us today.
Eric Prydz
The first Swedish House Mafia party at Miami WMC was at Ink 2007. The venue held 400 people, the decks were on wooden tables and people danced on chairs until the gig was shut down. In March 2008 they took on Koko in London. Traditionally a live venue and theatre, the message from them seemed to scream that not only was the music the reason to go to the shows, but the show, itself was something to see. Fans were not disappointed. Secretly they had sent their largest club tracks to a 40 piece
orchestra to be put onto sheet music and half way through the show, which sold out in advance, the orchestra burst into a 15 minute live piece to a sea of camera phones. Flying from London directly to Miami to play SET, their first proper venue as Swedish House Mafia, rumours of the London sell out flew round and their guest list was full for their Miami show by the time the plane touched down.
IBIZA
Universally acclaimed as the party capital of the world, DJs flock in their thousands to make it big on this tiny island. But why? The islands history reads like a history of hedonism. The Carthaginians established a cult there to Tanit, their goddess of sex, around 650 BC and named the Island after Bez, their god of dance. Roman centurions in need of a rave between campaigns would go to Ibiza to get their kicks. And over the centuries virtually every culture around the Mediterranean has used the island as a playground. When Queen legend Freddie Mercury decided to fly to Ibiza with 80 of his closest friends for his 41st birthday and throw a lavish party that began with Flamenco dancers, a 20-foot long cake and fireworks spelling out his name... you knew this place was special. Widely believed to be one of the most magnetic places in the world, centred around the incredible Es Vedra rock, Ibiza has drawn the masses to its heart to party for centuries. Over the years the rich, the famous, the wild and the free have all travelled there to party and the music has been waiting for them... and so have the DJs.... Hugely accepted as a place where you can play to many nationalities in one place, clubs like Pacha, Amnesia and Space have long attracted the worlds biggest names to play there on a regular basis - despite for years being one of the hardest islands in Europe to get to with few flights coming in from direct airports. As Ibiza develops it never loses its charm, but the stakes for a DJ have become higher. A residency at one of the main venues can mean international recognition, publicity and marketing not to mention high fees, summer villas and increased record and merchandise sales. So many of the worlds biggest DJs have gone to Ibiza, created a residency which often means a new theme every year with colourful designs, costumes and beach parades. Through even the toughest of economic times Ibiza has stood strong as a must-go destination, a guaranteed good time whilst never losing its quiet side that you fall in love with like Formentera or driving through the forest near San Jose. The recognition of Ibiza on a global scale has seen the stars flock to perform to the packed clubs... Kylie Minogue, Grace Jones, Florence and the Machine, Kelis, P Diddy have all played in the last 12 months while Ricardo Urgell, Pacha owner, was given the Gold Medal of Tourism Promotion by the Spanish Government. The beauty of Ibiza is simply that the bigger it becomes, the more at ease the island seems to be with itself, constantly allowing you to discover one more corner, one more field, one more bay, one more restaurant. Like a good relationship, it never allows you to feel like you know it all, and as such, its relationship with you once you go for the first time, becomes a life-long love
AXWELL
Favourite hotel: Gran Hotel when this hotel opened in Ibiza it took Ibiza to a new level of service. favOURITE restaurant: Fish Shackthis place is so basic - they dont even have electricity, but they have the freshest fish in the world. favOURITE PLACE: Renting a boat and taking a day trip to all the beaches at Formentera.
SEBASTIAN INGROSSO
Favourite hotel: Gran Hotel. favOURITE PLACE: Inkadellic Tattoo Parlour.
STEVE ANGELLO
favOURITE restaurant: BalafiaBar BQ Restaurant. La PalomaBest restaurant in Ibiza bar none. Es Cavallet Beach & Restaurant. BAR: Mambo in San Antonio Javier, Alain and Christian make my summer worth it every year. BEACH BAR: Gecko Beach ClubFormentera.
TAKING OVER
SUMMER 2008
In the summer of 2008 Swedish House Mafia took on three Take Over shows in Ibiza. Hosting Amnesia for the Radio 1 Ibiza Weekend Show, PurePacha and Subliminal Sessions while their friend Erick Morillo took a week off. They were given their first billboard on the island and set about the designs and promotion for their Ibiza debut as a group. Would this be the start of something bigger? At the Pacha shows, Danny Whittle, Director of Pacha, decided to make 2009 the year they would come to Pacha full time. In December 2008 he made the offer.
MEETING IN PROGRESS
JANUARY 2009
Mondays had become available at Pacha...We agonized over the decision to take on a full season in 2009. We were so honoured to be asked, but the worst recession in our memory had just hit. It was far from certain 2009 was the year to be starting a huge production knowing we would not want to cut any corners... but then maybe that was the year we could make the most difference. We accepted and the Dark Forest was born.
Axwell
favOURITE restaurant: Sushi SambaI know its a tourist trap but who cares when their food even blows nobu out of the water. favOURITE hotel: W
ERICK MORILLO
favOURITE restaurant: Garcias Downtown, not fancy but quite simply the best fish in Miami. Period. favOURITE CLUB: LivGreat sound, great space, great lights, great people. SECRET LOVE: The beach on 6th Street. Its where all the hot Brazilian girls go and lie in the sun, topless!
CARLOS CORREAL
OPIUM GROUP PROMOTER Favourite hotel: Setai and Delanoare my two favorites equally. favOURITE restaurant: Ceviche 105 which is downtown Miami and the best Peruvian cuisine ever. Secret thing you love most about Miami: That you dont need a car living on the beach.. You just need a scooter and it costs you $2.50 gas every 2 weeks.
We packed our new track Leave The World Behind fresh from our studio sessions with Laidback Luke and returned to Miami. Our new film guy, Christian Larson, joined us on the road. We were starting to do more video from the gigs. This was the beginnings of our film although we didnt realise it at the time. We had two Swedish House Mafia shows. Ultra Festival and Mansion. Ultra was our first USA festival performance. An afternoon slot in an arena. We didnt think anything of it. ...until we arrived. To this day we
will never forget it. The people were packed in. On peoples shoulders, hanging from the tent. They knew every word, they knew every song and Leave TheWorld Behind washed over us all like we had written it for that exact moment. As we headed down to Mansion for our second show we were all just silent. Stunned. As we walked into a sold out Mansion...we were told Pete Tong had made Leave The World Behind the WMC Essential New Tune.
JUNE 2009
Swedish House Mafias first Ibiza residency in 2009 was a bold move. Amid a deep recession and against stiff competition the night was not a guaranteed success. They felt strongly that a weekly event would allow them to develop the production element of their shows, practising and experimenting weekly with fireworks, C02 and dancers... every boys dream!The booth at Pacha is almost on dancefloor level. Guests surround you, you party together, and so the delivery of the experience must feel like personal attention has been paid. And so it was. Special FX teams were
Dark Forest Guests: Florence and the Machine and Dizzee Rascal
AUGUST 2009
AMSTERDAM
We love The Dylan Hotel and stay there whenever we play. We connect through Amsterdam Airport all the time when we tour. If youre stuck there always go to Terminal 3 and eat at the Noodle Bar.
JAMES BARTON
CREAM
HotelS: Lowry, Manchester Hope Street, Liverpool. Restaurant: 60 Hope Street, Liverpool. Shopping: Flannels in Liverpool & Manchester.
BRIXTON
NOVEMBER 2009
STEVE ANGELLO
Restaurants: Hix in Soho Oysters, Steak and Rhubarb Bellinis. J Sheekysfish to die for. Nobu Berkeley Square. Zuma Hakkasan1 Lombard Street Sophies Steakhouse.
PETE TONG
Favourite restaurant: Riva in Barnes London, SW13 An unpretentious italian classic run by the same team for the last 20 years. A real black book secret.
AMY THOMSON
Hotel: The Connaught The BagglioniBlakes Hotel The BerkeleySt Martins Lane. Best Shopping: Dover Street Market. Favourite Place: Electric Cinema, PortobelloThe best way ever to see a movie.
I remember putting one of our event adverts out, I think it was for Miami, and I just put Brixton Academy 2009 onto it. I didnt say a date, because I didnt know the date. I just knew they could do it. A lot of people said it was a bad move, too risky, one step too far. We sold out two nights. EMI watched from the balcony. 2 months later we signed our global deal with Virgin Records. Amy Thomson, Manager SHM
L.A. BABY
FEBRUARY 2010
Ultra 2010 WE RETURNED, main stage, big show, full crew, new single.
MASQUERADE MOTEL
JUNE 2010
Masquerade Motel was the new concept for Ibiza in 2010. A mysterious world behind closed doors. Inspired by the LA Motels on the rides down Sunset Boulevard with Steve Angello and movies like Amadeus and Eyes Wide Shut. There was to be a feeling of a vacation within a vacation, of Do Not Disturb, of privacy in public. Masks were provided at Check In, the chandeliers banged with sparklers, the LA style neon flickered and those with the key knew the secret. The ethos was simple. Check in and be OUR guest. Let us take it from here...They welcomed so many amazing guests in 2010 including of course Kylie Minogue. She was genuinely one of the best guests we have ever had, both in how her and her team worked and how she held Pacha in her hand She launched her new album with us and the worlds media gathered. That was how the season began.
The Beach Parade, Florence and Grace Welch, The Key, The Costumes
Christian Larson directed the music videos for Leave The World Behind, One, Miami 2 Ibiza and the documentary Take One about the Swedish House Mafia.
Written by Amy Thomson. Compiled and Creatively Directed by Christian Larson and Amy Thomson. Book Design: Peter Chadwick/Popular. Initial Inspiration: Sebastian Ingrosso. A big thank you to all the photographers who have participated in this book - there are too many to mention. Thanks to Alice Penrose, Axtone, Ben Kreitner, Bloodshy & Avant, BPM SFX, Carl Lindstrom, Carlos Correal, Creamfields, Danny Whittle, Data, Defected, DJ Mag, Electric Daisy Carnival, Eli Booker, Eric Prydz, Erick Morillo, Frank Emous, Hannah Edds, Jonas kerlund, Kylie Minogue, Made Up, Mark Jackson, Ministry of Sound, Mixmag, Mystery Land, O2 Brixton Academy, Pacha, Pete Tong, Positiva, Refune, Sensation White, Size Records, Subliminal, Superstar, Tania von Pear, Taryn Cassidy Poole, The Opium Group, Tillate.com, Tomorrowland, Ultra Music Festival and Virgin.. For full Until One & Take One credits go to www.take-one-movie.com/credits P & g 2010 EMI Records Ltd under exclusive license from Swedish House Mafia Holdings Ltd (BVI). CDVX 3083