As this mile high music man prepares to switch his jump seat for a dive behind the decks next Saturday (2nd Feb), Pier Morrocco sure to marvel many with his masterful & magnificent music at Matinee, we thought we would pre-empt his performance with a look back across this engaging individual’s illustrious career playing the clubbing circuit both home & abroad, while sharing our pick of his podcasts including his hot off the press “Pervert” production.
There can be no doubt that clubs, clubbers & clubbing has played a prominent part in the proceedings that we call life, fabulous friendships formed, some of which have become our nearest & dearest, while the weekends we have lost as we found ourselves captivated & consumed in a catalogue of clubs, reach to top end of the three figure range. And along the way we having counted ourselves fortunate to have acquainted ourselves with scores of scene faces & club promoters, but moreover a deluge of D.J.’s, the real passion behind our clubbing cavorting, the music that these marvellous music makers mastermind, both behind the decks and in the recording studio. Yet while we are equally passionate about following & propelling new talent, the list of our protégé players evidence enough, in the end analysis, there can be no substitute for experience, many of the music men that still continue to float our beats boat, having been in the game (some at the very top) for many moons, exceptional examples of these being Steve Pitron, Leomeo Carandang, Jamie Head, & Paul Heron, while a handful of others also fall into the brilliant bracket but, with career commitments elsewhere, seldom show themselves behind the decks of the clubbing circuit.
Pier Morrocco is one such star of the scene that we now seldom see, an engaging individual that we find mainly in the mile high club rather than the clubs we are used to associating him with, a career carved out in aviation now his primary occupation, while when on terra firma here in the capital, he is still the party animal that he was when we first met him, his passion for clubs & clubbing part & parcel of the Morrocco make up. And this passion stretches back to 1991 when Pier moved to London from Melbourne, Australia, throwing himself into a scene that, at the time was dominated by the legendary club Heaven, he soon landing a job behind the bar there, this giving him the appetite to emulate some of the players at the time, so what started as a simple interest, quickly turned into a hobby and then a full blown vocation that would see Pier play for some of the biggest clubbing brands on the global circuit. However, it would be in London where his first big break would come, in 1994 to be precise and to none other than the legendary Trade which, at the time, was at the top of the clubbing tree, Mr Morrocco thrilled to be working alongside the likes of the late Tony De Vit, Alan Thompson & Tall Paul, this exposure setting Pier on a course that would propel him to futher playing pinnacles.
While Trade was huge for him, the amazing Action was as much a big break too, Pier part & parcel of the line-up that made him a household name in Vauxhall & beyond, while there can be no doubt that Salvation was spectacularly massive, Pier’s dear & close friend, the now also late & so sadly missed, Steve Elliot, adding Mr Morrocco to Salvation London’s residency list, this at a time when Luke Hope, Gonzalo Rivas & Per Q.X. were team torre de forces that saw this brilliant brand rule the monthly Sunday waves at Cafe de Paris. Yet in Salvation there was much more to come for Pier, as the following years would see him tour with the brand right around the world, Salvation’s international status soaring, with gigs across the globe, far flung destinations including, Cape Town, Rio, & Sydney, while Europe became a huge playing field for both Salvation & Mr Morrocco, Amsterdam, Berlin, Moscow & Paris among the long list, The European Gay Ski Week also a Salvation special that ran for many a moon. But Pier’s clubbing repertoire extended to many more, both here in London and internationally, well known’s including A:M, DTPM & Matinee, the latter a particular Pier playing ground, especially in the capital when the London franchise was managed by Salvation co-resident Oliver Mohns, while virtual weekly appearances in the heady days when Barcode Vauxhall would be rammed solid, he often playing with pal Pagano, also pepper Pier’s playing portfolio. More recently, with the sad loss of Steve leaving Salvation struggling to find its feet, Pier has put his energies into his mile high career along with the new(ish) love in his life, meaning that he is rarely here in London, rather either 30,000 feet up in the air, or over in Moscow, while gigs internationally remain a feature. But the big & latest news is his organisational involvement with Salvation Global, the powers that be looking to Pier to steer the ship out of its struggling stretch, he having been at the centre of hugely sucessfull parties in Antwerp & Paris during December last year and with more to come in 2013 we are sure.
However, his associations with Matinee continue and when commitments allow, he plays for the brand here in London, the return of the brand to the capitals clubbing circuit in January last year seeing Pier as part of the line-up, while he was back in September for the Spanish super club’s “Utopia” event at Fire, his progressive style of sound intermixed with the occasional vocal & uplifting house neatly balancing the beats scales of his tech infused Matinee music makers. And with his hectic schedule securing a space for the latest Matinee meet, Pier a welcome inclusion on the “Pervert” player list, we reckon he is set to steal the show, despite the likes of Javier Medina & Pagano playing, his devoted podcast a good indication come vindication of our prediction, so one well worth listening to by heading to direct link http://piermorrocco.podomatic.com/entry/2013-01-26T04_45_56-08_00. However, as good at the “Pervert” production is, we still look back on Pier’s days with Salvation with fondness, his podcast page propelling three full length compilations, his “South African Mix” from 2009 one of our favourites (partly for obvious reasons) as it is so representative of the more uplifting & vocal side to his sets, the “Icing On the Christmas Cake” offering right up there too. But with devotions to clubs A:M, Revolver, TTD & PSP, along with his own inspired incarnations such as “Last Minute Ibiza” & “Anthems For Summer” you have plenty to choose from in sinking into the splendid progressive come uplifting musical world of Mr Morrocco, a trip to http://piermorrocco.podomatic.com/ allowing you to choose your own favourite from the fourteen on offer.
So, podcasts aside, next Saturday is an outstanding opportunity for you to witness the wonder of this mile high music man at work, while if like us, your commitments mean you will be missing out on “Pervert”, fear not, as you can sink into his superb sounds this very night when he plays alongside D.J. pal Brent Nicholls at new Soho meeting spot, Manbar , while if you are in Milan, watch out for him featuring at The Farm. Failing all those, with his services still very much in demand, you will certainly catch the seasoned pro that is Pier Morrocco somewhere on the global clubbing circuit sometime very soon, while keep peeled right here for more news on his Salvation steership . (DISCO MATT)
