DJ and Producer Eleonora Cutaia is the driving force behind the record label Silnovo Music. Eleonora relases her own productions under the Stilnovo banner, alongside other artists including Atjazz and Opolopo. Eleonora’s sound focuses mainly on the deep and soulful side of House, with the events she organises and label output reflecting this style. Originally from Italy, but now living in London, Eleonora not only runs the Silnovo label, but is also one of the faces of Pioneer Pro DJ equipment, DJs all over Europe and beyond, has a regular slot on the London-Tokyo radio station Samurai FM, plus heads the music PR firm Ahead PR.
We met up recently in London – here’s the latest from Eleonora…
Q. Any new artists you’ve recently discovered and will be pushing on Silnovo?
A. I just signed a young Deep/Tech House new artist from Latvia, Artie Flexs, and will be releasing his debut EP for Stilnovo in the coming months. The next release will be from an Australian act called Foreigndub. Remixers include Raymundo Rodriguez – so expect some heavy club beats!
Q. Any releases or events you’d recommend in the coming months?
A. The new Stilnovo release just came out! It’s a single called The Third Sign from Modern Groove Assembly – super talented American producer. The original is a summery Broken Beat/Nu Jazz sound, while the remixes from Sona and Andrea Rango are more for the clubs. We’re getting very good reactions for that. On the events tip it’s all about Underground Soul Sessions on Friday! I haven’t organised a Soulful party in a quite a long time and I know the heads will be there!
Q. Which artists are you listening to and have influenced your productions?
A. I always listen to so much different music! I’ve been listening to a lot of Trip-Hop and Electronica recently…like Tricky, Thievery Corporation, EBTG. I’m also loving what the label Tokyo Dawn are doing (intelligent/futuristic Hip-Hop and Electronica) so I often listen to their releases. On the production tip I’ve just done a remix for German duo Monosolar, which should be coming out soon on 5000 Records – it’s a Deep/Tech remix with melodic, soulful textures.
Q. What direction do you see Silnovo moving towards in the future?
A. It’s difficult to say, as my music taste is very eclectic so it could go anywhere. However, I’m realising that not everyone is comfortable with something that’s not ‘labelled’. A lot of people still very much think inside the box and feel confused by something that doesn’t fit in a specific category. I would say Stilnovo will always be linked to House.
Q. Ever consider moving away from CDJs to more of a laptop/Ableton set-up?
A. I actually have gone the other way round – I was using on Ableton for sometime but with the new CDJs coming out, I found myself going back to those as I was missing the feeling of pitch controlling, the jog wheel and all that… plus with a USB function implemented, I feel I have it all that way.
Q. What are you currently involved with outside of music?
A. I do spend most of my time in music related activities, but I am getting more interested in charity work and I would like to start up a new project next year which would involve artists and musicians for the cause of animal rights. It’s a topic I feel very strongly about and I am hoping to help make a difference – I’ll keep you posted!
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