INTERVIEW: Berny from In Dark We Trust
The In Dark We Trust podcast founder is looking to the future…
Hailing from Italy, Berny is a producer who doesn’t adhere to strict musical boundaries. Instead, he stretches the main principles of house and techno, delivering more of an energy that eschews rigid structures. A quick listen to his discography, and a read of his bio, however, will confirm that the words 'deep', 'disco' and 'jacking' are concepts guiding his ears. As Berny tells us via email, it's three descriptors he grew into via a varied musical upbringing: hip hop (' I was brought up on it when I lived in the United States as a teenager.’), New Age music (through an 'Italian magazine that published a monthly CD containing ambient, jazz and electronics') before moving on to house music ('attending the first clubs here in Northern Italy'). Move things to the present, and Berny has found his sweet spot.
KitKatClub: It has a pool… 👀
KITKATCLUB
A DJ veteran of over 20 years, he is one of the current Electric Monday residents at the world-renowned Berlin institution, the KitKatClub. If you don’t know that name, it’s an (in)famous club which harbours a very open-minded clientele. It’s the sort of club with two floors and a swimming pool, one where you have to hand in all of your clothes when you enter the premises. And as Berny recounts, it is an unforgettable night.‘It's a special evening with free people from all over the world who respect themselves and have fun. I’ve met some crazy people there over the years.’ So how did you end up becoming a resident for a night at one of the world’s most notorious clubs? ‘I owe this to the undisputed boss and Electric Monday creator, Frankie Flowerz’, he explains fondly. ‘He is one of the people I have the utmost respect for. He booked me three years ago after I introduced myself and sent him my sets. He trusted me.’ Berny plays ‘115/120BPM, mainly Dark Disco with some cosmic traits’, which we can only imagine must go down a treat with a club full of sex-positive punters.
What’s That Sound
As Berny tells us, Dark Disco mainly originated from Mexico around 10 years ago out of a ‘nu-disco revolution’ into ‘a tense, heads-down mish-mash of guitar-heavy sounds and gloomy electronics’. However, it seems that ‘national movements led by specific artists’ are taking to this sound more than others, in the process all adding their take on it: 'I love the French school from Marseille; they are the most refined. Then there are the Mexican producers who are the most original and eclectic. Israeli producers of the genre seem more solid and incisive. I should also mention the Italians, however, because they often incorporate all of those qualities!' Its evolution might be through an international effort then: a sound birthed and fermented online. Nebulous reference points could be Andrew Weatherall's punk aesthetic and LCD Soundsystem's loose House, all cooked in fat-saturated techno and glazed with an 80's nu-wave sheen that rarely peeks over 122 BPMs. Indeed, it is that amalgamation of flavours that hooked Berny: ‘I will never abandon it!'.
In dark we trust
He has taken that same committed energy into his new podcast, IN DARK WE TRUST. It was a moment of COVID rumination that spurred him to start the project: 'At the beginning of the pandemic, there was a climate of despair among the DJs that made me react proactively. The idea came to me after reflecting on my future and the creative direction I wanted to take. I decided I wanted to reach the end of this period with a solid project and something concrete in my hands.' Well, it's safe to say his hands must be covered in concrete. In under a year and 100 episodes later, he’s turned the series into arguably the most consistent Dark Disco podcast out there. Its success is easy to parse: the appeal lies in Berny's curation. Each mix orbits the sound. It features the scene's brightest stars, exciting producers like Dino Lenny, Whitesquare and Theus Mago and even veterans like In Flagranti and Alex Niggemann. In fact, it’s been so successful Berny will expand the name into a branded record label plus club nights once society's back to normal - hopefully in Berlin.
The COVID EFFECT
Berny spends his time between Berlin and Italy (‘Padua, which is 30 km from Venice’) but is currently back in his hometown due to COVID: ‘I’m waiting to complete the two doses of vaccine to return to Berlin. I have a house there which has been empty for practically a year and a half now!’ The pandemic has created all sorts of global uncertainty and angst, especially amongst the performing arts sector. As an artist ingrained in Berlin’s clubbing system, he is well-positioned to report on the city’s current state of affairs - and his outlook is quite realistic. ’Berlin will return to its former glory, but it will take another year from when everything starts up again,’ he offers. ‘The reason being: During COVID, tens of thousands of foreigners who worked, studied or vacationed in Berlin left the city to return to their hometowns. It will take time for them to return.’ He also points out that many ex-pats might not return - or those that do might consider a lifestyle change that doesn’t include clubbing.
But it’s not all doom and gloom, and there are positives to be taken from the experience: ‘In Berlin, many clubs have taken advantage of the forced break to renew themselves - and this is an excellent sign. They had to ask support from their trusty patrons, and this has certainly strengthened the community bonds.’ Nothing like a crisis to find out just who your friends are. Thankfully, things are slowly getting back to normal. At the time of this interview being published, news arose that from mid-June, open-air events in Berlin are allowed to 250 people, and from July, capacity will increase to 500. So we guess if you are planning an August clubbing sesh in Berghain, it’s probably best you start queueing now.
The Future
Besides the IN DARK WE TRUST club night and label launch, he is also looking to the release of a healthy stack of releases: collaborations with Ukrainian producer ID_UA (on Theus Mago’s Duro label) and Frenchman Fred Berthet on Prins Thomas’ celebrated Internasjonal imprint, alongside a solo release on Quantistic Division. The latter, especially, has Berny excited: ‘It’s the label run by the great Italian producer Dionigi!’ Bernie’s trust in the dark seems to be working wonders. And if there is anyone out there who would love to start their IN DARK WE TRUST journey, which mix, in his opinion, would be the best starting point? 'Ah, I have no doubts! IN DARK WE TRUST # 1 mixed by Mystery Affair. She is from Guadalajara, the only Mexican female DJ to have played in Panorama Bar. That mix embodies the sound and sophistication I had in mind when I conceived the series. Also, there is a saying that states: 'those who start well is already halfway in winning the battle!'.
By the sounds of the mixes following #1, he has won whatever battle that might be.