As the project’s name suggests - (180-gram vinyl records are considered by many to have the best audiophile sound quality) – the whole idea comes from the vinyl itself and the love towards it, its history as well as its close connection with merchants through the time.

Thanks to the special 180gr community that was born in Italy, both experienced and upcoming disk jockeys are working together by playing records during the daylight at the street market, having as their goal to promote the vinyl culture and disco, funky & soul music, infused with modern house, nu-disco, italo-disco and deep sounds. The group also aims to bring out talented DJs that have a specific mixing technique involving vinyl players and mixer rotaries, historic tools that have been used since the 70s’.

As the project’s name suggests - (180-gram vinyl records are considered by many to have the best audiophile sound quality) – the whole idea comes from the vinyl itself and the love towards it, its history as well as its close connection with merchants through the time.

All 180gr sets are placed at street markets and are vinyl only. The market becomes the stage and it has a symbolic value: it is a benchmark, the heart of the city that is beating strong and gives life to it. At the same time, the market reflects the local culture, as it operates as a part of the collective consciousness, full of memories and traditions. Vinyl reassess the long-forgotten beauty of "original sound", while placing it in the "market" context, it restores values such as authenticity and quality of the products that one is looking for.

Read below the interview that 180gr team gave to USM regarding its actions, history, plans and thoughts about the future of the international vinyl community.

How did you manage to get your “spot” at the street market for the first Tme? What were the reactions of the local merchants in the beginning?

The idea came from the desire to rediscover the beauty of vinyl, of its pure and raw sound. The first rule in our performances is to use only analogical equipments. In order to this the music is mixed with a record player and a rotary mixer. 
To express in the best way the identity of 180gr we had to take the music out of the usual contexts and the local market was the best choice we could make. From the beginning, the market has revealed as a fantastic stage for the DJ sets because it is a lively ambient, real and rich of sonorites. The result we got was an extraordinary mix of complementary elements. Since the first step of the format, it was a success not only online but also among the lovers of music in vinyl. On the road, among the people who goes to the market every day for grocery shopping we found new enthusiastic followers.

How does 180gr achieve innovation through its actions? What are the positive effects of your movement?

The 180gr project lives among the stands of the markets and prefers the music and the analogical instruments. At the same time, we are aware about the role of the digital communication and social networks, from the beginning we have reserved a big attention to these channels.

In our opinion, analog and digital are parts of the same reality and they go enhanced without excluding one an another. In this way we have took our music over the space of the performances and nowadays the 180gr project is a movement that puts together people that, like us, believe in music as a factor of aggregation and culture. Showing to the local markets the life of Italy and all over the world, playing the sound of our music among the fruit and vegetable stands of the market, is always an great emotion.

What is it that makes it important for teams to stay in their own countries and support their local music scene?

Every steps of 180gr’s project is an opportunity to show places, to listen dialects, to know the traditions of the territory. More than a tour, 180gr’s project is a journey that allows us to discover places and to listen the sounds and the stories that they keep. The local DJs look like guides and give us the opportunity to learn about their culture. Our project is a mix of local and global dimensions: the content is related to the places and the stage and visibility are global.

Is there a way, in your opinion, for the international vinyl community to connect and promote its culture to a wider audience?

I think that we are already doing everything we can, everyone in their own way and according to their skills. I speak about artists, distributors, promoters and also anyone that in his own way, such as 180gr’s project, try to make of it a real "mission".

It will be difficult to expand further, my fear is that when this trend wave of interest for vinyl will pass somehow, we go back to archive it in favor of other. We need to have good projects and also to have the support of those, like us, who believe in vinyl.

What are your plans for the future? Would you be willing to visit street markets all over the world? If yes, why?

Every day we receive so many requests to hosting our DJ sets, not only in Italy but all over the world. The project management is very challenging but we have created a team that is occupied to plan the stages. After the stage of Barcelona, we would be visiting Greece soon: we are working hard to realize this and we hope in the collaboration of sponsors and partners to make our project even bigger.