For DJ and producer Ilario Alicante, all the recent successes come back down to one thing: he as a started clubber, still considers himself a clubber, and he will always maintain that vital link with the dancefloor.
Ilario’s rise has been nothing short of meteoric. A record-breaking Time Warp debut at the tender age of 20, acclaimed productions for Cocoon Recordings, Cécille Records, SCI + TEC Digital Audio, and famed DJ sets over the past two Ibiza seasons, have all established him as one of the scene’s most serious new contenders.
Born in 1988 in Livorno, Italy, Ilario’s journey began with his regional DJ community, resulting in a long-running residency with Pachamama Club. After the success of his first hit track “Vacaciones En Chile” (Tenax Recordings), Ilario had an incresing number of invitations from clubs around Europe, further honing his DJ’s ear and fine- tuning his unique production sound.
The string of productions that followed bolstered his reputation as the up-and-comer to watch, and his Living Near Africa EP (Cecille Records) struck a particular chord, finding its way into the record bags of Sven Väth, Ricardo Villalobos and Richie Hawtin. Like many producers before him, Ilario sought new inspiration – and found it – in Germany’s mecca of music, Berlin, which has become his home and production base for the last four years.
Ilario’s bookings all over Europe, North and South America escalated, leading to the most significant achievement of his budding career: receiving invitation to join the celebrated ranks of Sven Vath’s Cocoon agency. Ilario Alicante is now the Cocoon Heroes’ rough diamond, and despite his youth he radiates positivity and a deep understanding of his craft during his appearances around the world at the most important clubs, events and festivals.
With his label ‘Deep Moves’, Ilario has created another vital outlet: in three years he has signed cutting-edge acts such as ghetto legend Parris Mitchell, Ryan Elliot, Leon, Szare, Bleak and Matthew Herbert to develop out the imprint’s eclectic aesthetic, and he has explored a diverse range of sounds under his alias ILL-R.
With more releases and remixes, bookings further afield and label signings lined up for Ilario Alicante in the coming months, 2013 is sure to be the best year yet for this accomplished young talent.
