STONE ISLAND SOUND
curated by C2C FESTIVAL
STONE ISLAND SOUND is the curatorial project by C2C Festival and Stone Island that supports contemporary independent artististic production and features an harmonious set of curated playlists, record releases, in-store soundtracks and live events. Born in July 2020, the project sees the current music scene as a multi-coloured and chaotic combination of genres and it is inspired by cultural independence, avant-garde and new pop, irregular sounds and original music productions.
The primary goal of the project is to define the musical identity of the brand’s stores, conceived as an expression of Stone Island’s own DNA, through a series of regularly updated playlists which represent an ideal world sound map: YELLOW, MAGENTA, CYAN. With over 80 hours of music compiled so far, the playlists are available to listen to and enjoy on digital platforms Buy Music Club in addition to streaming services including Apple Music, Spotify and Tidal.
Starting from 2022, the STONE ISLAND SOUND project has been enriched with an additional element: every six months the selection of the tracks is carried out by three curators selected by C2C Festival; the first were Bill Kouligas, Elena Colombi and Kode9, chosen for their extraordinary curatorial skills (as demonstrated by their label-artistic platforms: PAN, Osaré and Hyperdub), which allow them — each with a unique and contemporary approach — to move nimbly between different references and musical subcultures.
The project also includes STONE ISLAND PRESENTS: a series of events born in 2015, which landed in Italy in 2019 — for the first time with C2C Festival on the occasion of the Milanese preview of the festival. In 2021 STONE ISLAND PRESENTS landed in London at the iconic Roundhouse, before coming back to Milan at Fabrique. The next installments of the events series took place in 2022, in Berlin at the brand new venue Willhelm Halle; in Amsterdam at Muziekgebouw aan ‘t IJ, one of the prominent concert halls in Europe; and again at London’s Roundhouse.
These events featured artists such as Arooj Aftab, a Pakistani artist recently awarded as “Best Global Music Performance” at the Grammys 2022; the Salford choreographer, MC, poet and performer Blackhaine, artist that probes the limits of rap machismo, street poetry and experimental dance; the British duo Jockstrap, rapidly rising for their eccentric electro-pop formula; Gambian-born MC Pa Salieu, one of the hottest new voices in the burgeoning British hip-hop scene; the Kenyan DJ and producer Slickback, whose original stylistic code blends the local rhythmic heritage with a pure and abstract electronic sound; or the superband Sons of Kemet, led by one of the brightest stars of the British jazz scene, Shabaka Hutchings.
24.10.2019 MILANO
13.10.2021 LONDON
10.11.2021 MILANO
19.05.2022 BERLIN
14.07.2022 AMSTERDAM
4/5.11.2022 TORINO AT C2C FESTIVAL
As part of the project, three record releases have also been released by the C2C Festival label: “To Be Banned From Rome” by the artist Bienoise, “Invrs Solaria” by the Italian composer XII and “C0C”, a mixtape curated by the founder of the historic London label Hyperdub, Kode9, featuring the music of Artetetra, Bienoise, Caterina Barbieri, Lorenzo Senni, Mana, Ninos Du Brasil, Silvia Kastel and spime.im.
C2C000: Bienoise — ’To Be Banned From Rome’ [digital +vinyl]
C2C001: XIII — ‘Invrs Solaria’ [digital]
C2C002: Kode9 — ‘C0C’ [digital + tape + vinyl]
