Interview With AIM TO HEAD : « The club is in the DNA of electronic music. The Vampire party mix is just the sum of these aspects. » by Demona Lauren

AIM TO HEAD : « The club is in the DNA of electronic music. The Vampire party mix is just the sum of these aspects. »

 

Everyone knows them, but do they really? All Vampyres have already had the opportunity to listen to them, stream or enjoy their mixes at parties. Then there are people who are addicted to dark electro, mid-tempo and, especially, dark clubbing. These people know their name very well and find it difficult to listen to anything else. Their spectrum is wide and varied. To meet them, you’d have to go to Italy where the founders of Aim To Head, the number one label in dark clubbing, and the masterminds behind the all star « Vampire Party » mixes. In all simplicity, Matteo Della Millia et Simone Mastrangelo tell us about their beginnings, their vision of music, their recent collaboration with the video game Vampire : The Masquerade – Bloodhunt and their latest controversies. Between ethics and bribes, they reveal everything, and hide nothing.

 

⸸ Welcome to the Vault, Matteo and Simone! So great to have you today. How have you been these last weeks and months? 

 

Hello, first of all thanks for having us for this interview. 2022 was a year of growth in which we achieved many results. Even more than we expected! On the personal side, we both bought our first home, which makes us immensely proud but at the same time it’s keeping us very busy. As for 2023, we hope to achieve even better results.

 

⸸ My apologies to all who don't know you yet. Who is Aim to Head and who are the founders?

 

We are two old friends from the southern-most province of Rome. Coming from humble families, we grew up in a narrow-minded environment, void of stimuli and found socializing very difficult. Thanks to music, we have found a way to unexpectedly escape from a destiny that had felt already-written.

 

⸸ How was the project born? Did you already have an idea of the musical genre you wanted to cover? Was it a musical genre in particular at that time, or was it something heterogeneous, as is the case today?

 

The project was born in a totally different, (and above all, spontaneous!) way. Our first and only goal was to work in the music industry. Initially, in 2011, we were doing some acoustic guitars in parking lots since we didn't have the money and equipment to go to a rehearsal room. The project evolved in 2015 when we started using electronic music elements given the impossibility of finding valid members to form a band. At that point, we became passionate about industrial sounds, appreciating and drawing more and more inspiration from artists such as Disturbed, Static X and Skrillex.

 

⸸ I loved those as well. I get it now. Well, you are « the crème de la crème » of vampire clubbing music. Was this genre a niche for your channel or out of personal preference?

 

Our idea of sound has always been dark and that goes well with a gothic and supernatural aesthetic. The club is in the DNA of electronic music and it is also how we experienced it. The Vampire Party mix is simply the sum of these aspects.

 

⸸ Have you ever been to a Vampyre party, by the way? Not as producers or as DJs, but simply as individuals?

 

Not really. We've been to a couple of dark-themed parties but never to an exclusively vampire-themed one.

 

⸸ I'm curious about one thing. Matteo and Simone, are they clubbers in the first place? Or have they been huge clubbers in the past, maybe? 

 

We have lived the clubs and the parties but not that much to define ourselves as "clubbers". Our lifestyle has changed a lot in recent years, making us more and more busy and our priorities have also changed.

 

⸸ Do your musical creations necessarily convey messages or ideas that you want to share or are they only based on a melodic and stylistic appreciation?

 

Every piece of content we create aims to evoke scenarios and concepts through various melodies and musical styles, this goes for mixes and our musical production. We believe that technique supports artistic expression.

 

⸸ Is this a criterion for a track to be valuable?

 

Music is freedom. With it anyone can express themselves freely.

 

⸸ Before I forget, I heard that one of your recent releases was in collaboration with Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodhunt, a free-to-play battle royale game !

 

As for the collaboration with Bloodhunt, we have to thank Matteo Tura who had his track Elizabeth featured in the video game. 

 

⸸ Sure. And, Matteo’s doing well these months. I’m not surprised.

 

He asked the producers of Bloodhunt if it would have been possible to insert the song as the opener of the Vampire Party mix so as to promote the video game, the song and our network at the same time.

 

⸸ Amazing. Speaking of collaborations, how do you usually choose the artists or the projects, like Bloodhunt, you collaborate with?

 

Collaborations like the one with Bloodhunt are one-offs and not something we do so often. Regarding the artists, they usually send us demos and we limit ourselves to selecting the songs we like the most and those that fit the network's thematics.

 

⸸ You post a lot, sometimes every day, on your social media. But you remain kind of discreet about your ideas. When you express yourself, you usually talk about music and nothing else. That's why I was surprised when you posted a story some time ago that was kind of ,rant about some artists who tried to force some collaborations on you. What happened exactly?

 

Some artists, after a rejection, try to make us change our minds by offering us money. 

 

⸸ I see.

 

This often happens with our Spotify playlists. In our opinion, this behavior derives from a toxic interpretation of musical success that drives many artists to compete with each other by setting the challenge to who has bigger numbers. What's ridiculous is that these guys put appearance over everything, numbers over money. Isn't it crazy?

 

⸸ Was this the first time this happened to you? Generally speaking, are the artists pretty decent, or is the industry abysmal on this specific level?

 

Unfortunately it's not the first time. The music industry is nothing but the reflection of today's society in which people tend to believe that money can replace hard work and everything is expendable for the sake of appearance.

 

⸸ What's the craziest thing you've been offered in order to accept a project?

 

Nothing THAT crazy so far. If someone offered us tens of millions, we'd release an Italian neo-melodic mix, (if you don't know what it is, go look for it).

 

⸸ Not sure what that is exactly. I will for sure look into it as you’re getting me curious now. What can we expect from Aim to Head in 2023? Do you have any secret collaborations, any new projects, artists, or ideas with the current artists you have now?

 

Aim To Head is a constantly evolving project, so yes, there will be some very interesting news that will cover all aspects of your question.

 

Official links :

Aim to Head Official

https://www.youtube.com/c/aimtoheadofficial

Aim to Head Mix

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyI1D9N2OvZif9a2JhV_nrA

Aim to Head Release

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCAhGuBCzuMgH9yW5ezq8-EA

Aim To Head Instagram

https://www.instagram.com/aimtoheadofficial/?hl=en

Aim To Head Official website

https://aimtohead.network/