FIBER Podcast 023 Ness

FIBER Podcast

An opening act of a club night could be interpreted like a carefully cultivated soniferous garden, that soothes the listener into a comfortable state, slowly building up the vibe for the forthcoming night. The 23rd FIBER podcast is mixed by Ness and is, according to himself, the essence of an opening set. With atmospheric sounds and the rhythmic undercurrent that presents itself from time to time, he gradually presents a fertile musical ground for the rest of the night.

Ness aka Andrea Deplano originates from Sardinia, Italy, has a background in sound engineering and attended the conservatory. He has released on labels such as Prologue, Synewave and M_REC LTD and set up his own label called Mono Records. “I used to listen to a lot of trance music before getting into DJing and music production. I think this has influenced me looking back at my musical journey.”

During years of research and experimentation he became inspired by several artists and developed his own distinctive style. “I really appreciate a lot of artists, but I especially have to mention those who came from Rome. Donato Dozzy is a big source of inspiration for me together with artists like Brando Lupi, Giorgio Gigli and Dino Sabatini just to mention a few. Then among my other personal favorites are Mika Vainio, Luke Slater, Robert Hood or the ex-collective the so called Sandwell District, they all played an important role in the development of my taste.”

Ranging between house and techno, Ness his DJ sets are characterised by dark atmospheres and rhythms that convey a magic spell. “I always look for that kind of hypnotism and uplifting feeling inside a piece of music.” It’s the same feeling you could get from looking at pictures of ruins of human civilization that are taken over by nature. “I really like empty ‘cold’ desolated places, they can be represented by nature, abandoned buildings or pictures taken from the outer space. I like the contrast to look at the emptiness of some images and imagine to fill them ideally with music.”

Consequently we could interpret this addition to the podcast as an audiovisual variation of Canadian musicologist R. Murray Schafer’s concept of the soniferous garden. “A garden is a place where nature is cultivated. It is a humanized treatment of landscape. […] If synthetic sounds are introduced […] care must be taken to ensure that they are sympathetic vibrations of the garden’s original notes.”(The Music of the Environment, 1973) As such, Ness his contribution beautifully inscribes the contours of a great night out. He builds up an atmosphere with ambient sounds and mechanical beats, just like the graininess of the picture adds nostalgia to the representation of nature. Together they form the balanced rhythm of elements (media, technology, and nature) that constitute our perception of reality.