Having seen previous success as one half of the renowned Audiofly pairing, the announcement of Luca Saporito launching a solo career caught the attention of a lot of people, and his first few productions have more than lived up the hype.
Now several releases and a new record label deep, Saporito kicks 2024 off to a flying start, with a consistent stream of tour dates planned, and a release schedule on his Super Sapiens imprint that includes music from some of club music’s best.
We spoke to him quite recently, where we got to talking about his reasons for launching a label, what the near future might have in store, and what his time as Audiofly taught him about releasing music. Read the full interview with Luca Saporito below.
Hey Luca, I hope you’re doing well. How are things in Spain for you at the moment?
Hi there, thanks for having me. Just got back to Spain after a long tour that brought me from fabric London, to Zanzibar, Dubai, and back to Madrid’s Lula Club. I’m now enjoying the last days here in Ibiza, sneaking in some studio days as well as getting some rest and a last show at Akasha with my buddy Matthias Tanzmann.
You recently announced the launch of your new label, ‘Super Sapiens’, why is now the right time for you to kickstart a new venture?
The label has now launched in full force, we basically had 4 successful events in 4 months, we had some really great artists with us along the way, and recently debuted our first release with Xinobi. It’s really a great start. 2023 marked the beginning of my solo career, so it’s really the perfect time to venture into new horizons on all fronts.
It was previously just an event series as you mentioned, with parties in Europe, Africa, and further afield, did you always have plans to add a label into the mix?
It wasn’t planned to be honest. When we did the first party, we just needed a name for it. Once we started to work on Super Sapiens we quickly realised the potential and its strength as a brand. And then it suddenly felt like a natural habitat for the music I was going to produce as a solo artist. It’s all coming together quite organically and feels very exciting. The quality of artists who are reaching out to join our ranks is astounding.
The first release was a 2-track EP from Xinobi, which includes one original track from him, and one remix from yourself, what can people expect from this one?
Xinobi came onboard quite naturally. I didn’t need to convince him into this new endeavour; He sent me a track, I loved it, and proposed to him to join my newly born label. He agreed. Once the full package came together (concept, music, and visuals), we realised what we had in our hands. Something, that in my opinion will stand the test of time and will have a certain impact on the scene. It’s such a great track to start the label with, so I was 100% motivated to create a remix that is of the same quality as the original, which was no easy feat. The feedback for both tracks has been incredible so far.
And who else might we see release on the label in the coming months?
Funnily enough we have the release schedule roughly outlined for the next six months already. The next one will see the light of day at the beginning of February, an original by me, including my own vocals (which is an absolute first). It also includes a remix from Adrian Roman, who I “discovered” a while ago. I can’t get enough of his stuff at the moment, and this particular remix is really next level. We might work on something more than an EP in the near future. I will also have a remix of an older track from Rony Seikaly finally coming out in 2024 on Super Sapiens, as well as an absolute gem with Re.you. That one blew my mind when I first heard it just recently. Then we have another one coming with my buddy Sam Farsio, a real oldschool funked up trip. I’ll keep some names for later, but I promise it will be top notch. That’s what we are going for: real, honest, no-frills house music.
You’ve previously released on some of the biggest labels in club music through Audiofly, what are some of the lessons that these imprints have taught you, that you’ve carried over into Super Sapiens?
The main thing I have learned in the past is that every track needs to stand the test of time. It should sound fresh now, but ideally still be somewhat of a classic in a few years time. Not every track will be a hit or climb the charts but it’s important that each release will be 100% percent authentic, of high production values, and made with soul. A certain “cool factor” is always welcome too.
Will you be releasing with other labels as Luca Saporito going forward? Or keeping your tracks exclusively for your own imprint?
That’s something I have thought of a lot. When Frau Blau approached me recently to release my original track ‘Sonder’, the decision was made to venture out. Ideally I would like to keep a good ratio between releasing on Super Sapiens and on other imprints as I’m looking to spread my wings in the scene again. As much as I believe in Super Sapiens, I don’t need exclusivity here. Some tracks might be a better fit on other labels and that’s beautiful. I did a remix for Get Physical for their ‘Africa Gets Physical’ series a couple of months ago for example. Definitely new territory for me, yet it turned out to be a really cool symbiosis with my own sound. Check it out, if you haven’t yet.
Is there anything else you want to mention before we finish up?
Yea, I’m looking forward to a great 2024 and some fresh musical perspectives. Don’t believe everything you read on the Internet kids.