This is a series of interviews with our favorite electronic music artists, celebrating the Arrival of Thump and made possible by the new Heineken Star Bottle. In this edition: Congorock. For more arrivals check here.Let's take a moment to remember the summer of 2010. Like a strobe light in the middle of those sticky nights, we had "Babylon"—the hot-and-heavy electro track that became that summer's party anthem. You pretty much couldn't leave a sweaty party without its tropical, coconut shell-like conga beats following you out the door.The man behind that anthem: Rocco Rampino, better known as Congorock, who went on to muscle his hard-hitting brand of electro-house onto dance floors everywhere after his first success with "Babylon." It's kind of a no-brainer that Congorock cut his teeth in punk and hardcore bands; the frenetic energy of all his tracks, like "Rombo" (which he produced with the Bloody Beetroots) or "Bless di Nation" (featuring Sean Paul) inspires more head banging than head bobbing. And along with fellow heavyweights like Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo, Crookers and Gigi Barocco, Congorock has become a poster boy for the hard-partying Italian electro scene.We got him to open up about how "Babylon" changed his life, what he saw on Rihanna's infamous 777 tour (which he was part of), and why ripping someone off might get you blacklisted by rock musicians—but not DJs.THUMP: What are your favorite memories from your early days as a DJ?
Congorock: I actually started out in the punk and hardcore scenes with my bands, La Quiete and DOAK. We had quite a following in the underground niche, but I quit to start DJing. Everyone was like, "what the hell is going on?" I probably looked like the ultimate sellout. But I was actually just really excited about what was happening to electronic music at that time in 2007 or 2008. So my favorite memories are probably the excitement of going solo and starting a new project from scratch.What made you decide to jump from punk to electronic music?
Acts like Justice and MSTRKRFT definitely helped bring the rock crowd into dance music, and back then I was part of that. I felt like electronic music was changing into something with an interesting approach and aesthetic.Who were some influential people who inspired you start DJing? How did they encourage you?
Bob from the Bloody Beetroots helped me a lot in the beginning. We randomly met because his previous band was signed to a label I was interning for, and we realized that we shared the same interests in the "new" wave of dance music coming from France and the US. When I showed him my first crappy demos on Ableton, he convinced me to finish those projects and release them on the Internet.When did you feel like you'd arrived at the dance music scene?
I guess when I got signed to the Fool's Gold label via MySpace. When I eventually had my own music that I felt was worth sharing, I submitted a demo and crossed my fingers. Later that day, I got a message from A-Trak on MySpace asking to sign me to Fool's Gold. I quit my job at the label and spent all my savings on a desktop computer and a decent set of speakers. Before that, I was doing everything on an outdated PC laptop.DJing and producing suddenly became something more than a part-time job to make a couple extra bucks on the weekend. I toured America that summer and met a lot of people I'd only read about on blogs. It felt like my Internet world had turned into real life.How did your song "Babylon" change your life?
That track was an unexpected success. After finishing it I thought it was the weirdest thing I had ever done, and I remember testing it for the first time in Milan and thinking it didn't go so well. But the demo floated into my circle of DJ friends before the official release, and I started getting great feedback.I also think the music video was crucial, because no one had seen anything like that for a dance music video. The video came out two months before the scheduled date, and it helped to build hype. When the song eventually came out it got support from a wide range of producers, both underground and commercial. It seemed to fit any set. I guess "Babylon" proved that I can't really judge the potential of a song—even my own.What were some important turning points in your career?
Supporting the Chemical Brothers in 2011 in my hometown in Italy meant a lot to me. Even though I was touring worldwide, not a lot of people in my own town knew who I was. 90 percent of people heard me play for the first time at that Chemical Brothers show, and I think they were blown away when they realized I was Italian and from the same area.What are some telltale signs that you've arrived at the top of the game?
When it comes to dance music, you can tell by how many rip-offs of your song you hear coming out everyday. That doesn't happen in rock music, where if you rip someone off, you're out of the game. In dance music it's more like a sign that you came out with a cool idea that is influencing a lot of producers. It took me a while to understand that. Also, when you get a lot of remix inquiries in your inbox, or when other artists ask for your beats to sing on, or when you get booked to play the biggest festivals around the world—that probably means you've arrived.
I was asked to remix her single, "Diamonds." It was one of the hardest remixes I've ever worked on because I had to speed up everything from a downtempo to a heavy house beat and avoid making her vocals sound funny. But everything turned out good, and I was offered to join the 777 tour as an opener.Did you see any of the infamous "journalist mutiny" that happened on that tour?
The tour schedule was crazy. We had international flights everyday. This meant flying into a city, going straight from the airport to the venue to set everything up and do sound check, and having about 30 minutes to shower and eat dinner. Then we'd play the show, repack everything and fly overnight.Most of the journalists were mad because they just couldn't keep up with this schedule, and at the same time, I think they were expecting a lot to write home about. But realistically all of us were just trying to rest in between gigs, so there weren't a lot of hangouts and random interviews.Looking back at everything, what was the most surreal high point of your career?
Watching all the DJs at EDC Los Angeles' main stage drop my tracks in front of 80, 000 people. I joined the throng because I wanted to see everything from the crowd's point of view. It was just one the best moments of my life.@MichelleLHOOQThe Arrival series is made possible by the new Heineken Star Bottle
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Congorock: I actually started out in the punk and hardcore scenes with my bands, La Quiete and DOAK. We had quite a following in the underground niche, but I quit to start DJing. Everyone was like, "what the hell is going on?" I probably looked like the ultimate sellout. But I was actually just really excited about what was happening to electronic music at that time in 2007 or 2008. So my favorite memories are probably the excitement of going solo and starting a new project from scratch.
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Acts like Justice and MSTRKRFT definitely helped bring the rock crowd into dance music, and back then I was part of that. I felt like electronic music was changing into something with an interesting approach and aesthetic.Who were some influential people who inspired you start DJing? How did they encourage you?
Bob from the Bloody Beetroots helped me a lot in the beginning. We randomly met because his previous band was signed to a label I was interning for, and we realized that we shared the same interests in the "new" wave of dance music coming from France and the US. When I showed him my first crappy demos on Ableton, he convinced me to finish those projects and release them on the Internet.When did you feel like you'd arrived at the dance music scene?
I guess when I got signed to the Fool's Gold label via MySpace. When I eventually had my own music that I felt was worth sharing, I submitted a demo and crossed my fingers. Later that day, I got a message from A-Trak on MySpace asking to sign me to Fool's Gold. I quit my job at the label and spent all my savings on a desktop computer and a decent set of speakers. Before that, I was doing everything on an outdated PC laptop.DJing and producing suddenly became something more than a part-time job to make a couple extra bucks on the weekend. I toured America that summer and met a lot of people I'd only read about on blogs. It felt like my Internet world had turned into real life.
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That track was an unexpected success. After finishing it I thought it was the weirdest thing I had ever done, and I remember testing it for the first time in Milan and thinking it didn't go so well. But the demo floated into my circle of DJ friends before the official release, and I started getting great feedback.I also think the music video was crucial, because no one had seen anything like that for a dance music video. The video came out two months before the scheduled date, and it helped to build hype. When the song eventually came out it got support from a wide range of producers, both underground and commercial. It seemed to fit any set. I guess "Babylon" proved that I can't really judge the potential of a song—even my own.What were some important turning points in your career?
Supporting the Chemical Brothers in 2011 in my hometown in Italy meant a lot to me. Even though I was touring worldwide, not a lot of people in my own town knew who I was. 90 percent of people heard me play for the first time at that Chemical Brothers show, and I think they were blown away when they realized I was Italian and from the same area.What are some telltale signs that you've arrived at the top of the game?
When it comes to dance music, you can tell by how many rip-offs of your song you hear coming out everyday. That doesn't happen in rock music, where if you rip someone off, you're out of the game. In dance music it's more like a sign that you came out with a cool idea that is influencing a lot of producers. It took me a while to understand that. Also, when you get a lot of remix inquiries in your inbox, or when other artists ask for your beats to sing on, or when you get booked to play the biggest festivals around the world—that probably means you've arrived.
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You were on Rihanna's infamous 777 tour. How did you end up with that gig?
I was asked to remix her single, "Diamonds." It was one of the hardest remixes I've ever worked on because I had to speed up everything from a downtempo to a heavy house beat and avoid making her vocals sound funny. But everything turned out good, and I was offered to join the 777 tour as an opener.Did you see any of the infamous "journalist mutiny" that happened on that tour?
The tour schedule was crazy. We had international flights everyday. This meant flying into a city, going straight from the airport to the venue to set everything up and do sound check, and having about 30 minutes to shower and eat dinner. Then we'd play the show, repack everything and fly overnight.Most of the journalists were mad because they just couldn't keep up with this schedule, and at the same time, I think they were expecting a lot to write home about. But realistically all of us were just trying to rest in between gigs, so there weren't a lot of hangouts and random interviews.Looking back at everything, what was the most surreal high point of your career?
Watching all the DJs at EDC Los Angeles' main stage drop my tracks in front of 80, 000 people. I joined the throng because I wanted to see everything from the crowd's point of view. It was just one the best moments of my life.@MichelleLHOOQThe Arrival series is made possible by the new Heineken Star Bottle