Tempelhof - Electronic Check-in

In 2009, Mantua natives Luciano Ermondi and Paolo Mazzacani, performing as Tempelhof, debuted with the album “We Were Not There For The Beginning, We Won’t Be There For The End” on Newcastle, England's Distraction Records. Back then, their music was generally filed under shoegaze, though the label felt too narrow for songs in which every element – guitars, pianos, synths, ghostly vocals – worked together to stretch and distance the material, live performances of which were accompanied by a collection of experimental early-20th-century footage. Last autumn Tempelhof released their second studio work, “You K Ep”, this time on Emilia-based label Hell Yeah, which steers the Mantuan duo even further into electronic territory.

On “You K Ep” virtually every rock element disappears in favor of a fully synthetic sound: why did you decide to take this route?

It wasn't really a deliberate choice, but rather the evolution of a sound that, in a sense, brought us to where we are now. After releasing “We were not there for the beginning, we won’t be there for the end”, our debut album, we felt the need to experiment more with analog machines, to explore sonic territories that fascinated us. It felt quite natural to set aside the elements we were more familiar with, in favor of others.

Rhythmically the two records are polar opposites: where before form was dissolved, now we're faced with tracks that seem made for dancing. How would you define your artistic trajectory and your current way of making music?

The idea of fixating on just one type of sound scares us. We prefer instead to follow the mood of the moment and let the tracks be what they naturally become, without necessarily forcing them in one specific direction. We love eclectic artists, the ones who aren't afraid to engage with different genres, especially when they manage to keep a stylistic unity. So, besides exploring the potential of synthesizers and drum machines further, we “raised the bar”, heading toward more uptempo material. I wouldn't know how to define our artistic trajectory except as a natural evolution. I'm sure some elements from the past will resurface in the near future.

Was the choice to release an EP dictated by the need to put on record a specific moment in your career, a certain stage of your artistic evolution?

There really was a need to figure out who we were today, and we did that through an EP, which by its nature is a limiting format on one hand, but at the same time effective for snapping a picture of a band at a specific moment in time.

What's your next release going to be?

We'll soon be putting out a collection of the remixes we made for Hell Yeah Recordings, and by next spring our new album will be out.

Being launched by a British label has let you play many times in the UK: is there anything in particular that struck you (positively or negatively) about audiences across the Channel? After all, the EP's own name points to Albion.

We're in love with England, with the English, and with their way of relating to music. The passion, curiosity and respect they show towards artists, and the absence of certain bad habits we have back home, where appearing is often more important than being, are the things that struck us most positively. One of the best shows we've ever played was actually in Newcastle last April, at a festival organized for Distraction Records' tenth anniversary, in front of about three hundred people. Feeling that warmth from the crowd was a wonderful experience, and we hope to repeat it again soon.

Beyond the two albums you've released, you're always extremely busy with a mountain of remixes: could you briefly list the main collaborations you've done - and maybe the ones still to come?

Did, Ajello, Crimea X, Maxime Dangles, Luminodisco, Margot, Confusional Quartet, Florian Meindl, Moira Stewart and others I can't remember right now... there have been quite a lot in a short time!

We know what Tempelhof sounded like yesterday and how they sound today. What should we expect in the near future?

I can tell you what our hope is: to build an increasingly personal sound, shuffle the deck as much as possible, and be ourselves.

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