Italian singer-songwriter Claudio Conti has spent more than two decades developing a musical world shaped by baroque pop, psychedelia and a fascination with memory. Now, his forthcoming fourth solo album 'Kierkegaarden', represents a significant departure as the first full-length project he has written and recorded entirely in Italian.
The album's first single ‘Verità’ provides an evocative introduction. Built around the idea of life's “sliding doors”, the song considers how seemingly insignificant decisions and missed encounters can quietly redirect our lives, imagining what might happen if we could rewind the past and rearrange those moments.
So with the new single out now, we sat down with him to find out more about his origins and what has been inspiring him most over the years.
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What was the first instrument you fell in love with?
I have no idea, but certainly when I was 4 years old I was in love with my orange slot-loading record player (but it’s not an instrument).
What kind of music did you love when you were younger?
Ever since my adolescence, I've always had an incurable inclination toward psychedelia and baroque / jangle pop. I started listening to the Doors, the Byrds, and Jefferson Airplane at age 12, and I've always wanted to know more ever since. But I've always listened to many different genres, from Gram Parsons' country rock to Tim Buckley's psychedelic folk, though it was also the full-blown grunge era and I definitely didn't skip Nirvana and Mudhoney—most Seattle bands weren't really for me, but Cobain, when he wanted to, knew how to have a hyper-melodic Lennon-esque streak. However, there are truly far too many artists and musical genres to which I owe everything: Erik Satie, Gene Clark, Harold Budd, Bill Fay, Eno, Elton John, Tim Hardin, David Ackles, Ray Davies, XTC, Zombies, R.E.M., Miles, Chet, Judee Sill, Left Banke, Fugazi, Pixies, Lou Reed, the Smiths, the Zombies, Bach, Quicksilver Messenger Service... we'll finish tomorrow if I keep going, it's impossible to name them all.
What was the first album you remember owning?
My first physical record was a 7" of "Mr. Tambourine Man" / "I Knew I'd Want You" by the Byrds.
What is the one song you wished you could have written yourself?
The song I wish I could have written might be 'Andmoreagain' by Love, 'Two Sisters' by the Kinks, Beechwood park by the Zombies.
Do you have any habits or rituals you go through when trying to write new music?
The only thing I've figured out is that creation cannot come from command; it often happens that I keep a guitar in my lap for five hours and absolutely nothing good comes out of it, yet I might wake up at 3 in the morning because of an interesting melody that you maybe record on your phone and it turns into one of your best songs—it has happened to me several times. In any case, you have to provoke creativity and creation; if you light the fuse, anything can happen.
Who are your favourite artists you have found yourself listening to at the moment?
Phil Ochs, Eleni Karaindrou, Badfinger, Roy Harper, Robert Wyatt, Honeybus, Cass McCombs, Sam Burton, Angelo De Augustine, Alex Chilton, Maria Carta, Nico, Joni Mitchell, Lloyd Cole, Cleaners From Venus, Stephen Duffy, Cory Hanson, The Jazz Butcher, The Auteurs, Mozart, Luciano Cilio, Wim Mertens, Klaus Schulze, anything by Eno, a lot of Harold Budd, Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jonathan Wilson, Carla Bozulich…too many and sorry for the ones I forgot.
If you could open a show for anyone in the world, who would it be?
I would absolutely love to open a show for giants like Bill Callahan, Bonnie Prince Billy, Grant Lee Phillips, Lloyd Cole, Stephen Duffy; it would be such an inestimable honor.
What do you find is the most rewarding part about being a musician?
An unhealthy addiction to creativity and curiosity.
And what is the most frustrating part?
Not yet having managed (in my case) to reach a relevant number of people worldwide through my music, and obviously not yet having managed to turn it into a full-time job, I find it very, very frustrating. It's the goal of every artist, whether they act hyper-snobbish or not—all musicians would want their songs to matter to people, and nobody wants to keep their songs locked away in a closet. Fundamentally, people would just like at least crumbs, flashes of happiness.
And what is the best piece of advice you have received as a musician?
Hang in there and keep going, because there is no one more than you who can make you achieve your dreams and goals.
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Claudio Conti's new single 'Verità' is out now. Check out the new video for it in the player below.