"I believe my innovation lies in immersion. It's like diving on a breath hold, and the breath-hold record is directly proportional to the progress you make. How you arrive at knowledge is not something you can choose. I don't dive for sport; I dive out of natural instinct, out of vocation. But you cannot feed solely on yourself; otherwise, sooner or later, you'll starve. The food is outside!"
This is what Francesco Librizzi, Architect and Art Director of Fontana Arte, told me during our first meeting. And how can you blame him? After all, everything we need is right there, just outside our doorstep; all it takes is a little push to get out and embark on an adventure. A backpack to fill with rare relics, a head partly on our shoulders and partly in the clouds to attract precious memories and wise notions, and a heart, skilled seeker of feelings and deep connections. It's not easy to put into practice, of course; I’m the first skeptic who has doubted it since a young age, when my mother would repeat to me, "Sow, then reap." And the encounters, those that change your life or career, can only happen out there, beyond the "barriers of communication", to quote Alexis Taylor, meetings that helped him build a web of coincidences. That’s exactly how Alexis and Lawrence—musician and founder of the English indie pop group Mozart Estate—met, solidifying their friendship right here at LaunchLeft! An encounter purely by chance, as they say, at a geeks' night, friends of friends, mutual acquaintances, because as we Italians say so well—but unfortunately often don't practice enough—the world is just a small village! "Dark and joyful", with this oxymoron, Rain defines Alexis's musical personality after a day spent at home with his tracks as loud background music, a true deep dive into the Hot Chip world! I approve and endorse this combination of traits. It's fascinating to hear how, step by step, without ever fearing to ask for help and hesitating to offer it, and following his guiding stars, Alexis built his project from scratch and his career took shape.
To conclude, three honorable mentions are a must, as Alexis, Lawrence and Rain remind us during their chat. First, the team of professionals—the people we don't see in the industry, those who work hard behind the scenes and often don't receive the credit they deserve. Remember, a chain is only as strong as its weakest ring! Their role may not seem crucial to the public, but it is decisive; their actions may not seem indispensable, but they are lifesaving, as Gandhi teaches, "Whatever you do will be insignificant, but it is very important that you do it."
Second, to quote Rolling Stone Italy, which in 2023 dedicated an article to Lawrence and Mozart Estate, "How much we love the magnificent losers of '80s rock!" Let’s, for once, tell fleeting careers, rampant success, and greedy popularity to go to hell. There is brilliance in what is more hidden; there lies the elusive, the original, not as "new" or "cool," but as authentic.
Last but not least, sometimes, even if we are already grown and cultured, we need to remember to see and listen to the world like children, unconscious and instinctive, to capture not only knowledge but sensations. Often, the magic is found in the most bizarre places, or better yet, sometimes when it doesn’t manifest, you have to create it yourself. Alexis recalls at LaunchLeft his first meeting with Peter Gabriel, the album "Us" from 1992, and the concert he attended with his father when he was still a young teenager, singing together "Come Talk to Me." Years later, he wrote "Ready for the Floor" for Hot Chip, inspired precisely by that song, but not by the literal lyrics, but by the soul it conveyed, and he says, "It wasn't really written in order to reference that, but I just had it inside of me as a song I loved." Just like when I was a kid who didn’t know English and listened to American music with my headphones walking down the street, now I’m listening to "Signed, Sealed, Delivered, I’m Yours" by Stevie Wonder with my eyes closed, pretending not to know the words. Stevie is telling me something completely different; he’s saying what I want to hear, he’s singing for me!
Alexis Taylor of HOT CHIP
LAWRENCE photo by Laura Ghezzi