STM 185 - Massimo Carozzi

Massimo Carozzi is an Italian multidisciplinary artist whose work spans a wide range of forms, from photography to field recordings. He is the founder of the ZimmerFrei collective, which explores the relationship between the real and the imagined, the public and the private, through various artistic media. Beyond this, Massimo is deeply immersed in experimental music, producing under multiple aliases and contributing to different projects. His musical ventures range from the minimal dub techno of Weight and Treble—who released an EP on Lithuanian label Cold Tear Records—to the improvisational environmental soundtracks of Phonorama, and the audio-poetry project El Muniria. Each of these projects is distinct, revealing new facets of Massimo’s artistry.

Secret Thirteen Mix 185 is a unique entry in our journal, and the first of its kind. Titled Sillon Fermé (French for "locked groove"), the mix is crafted entirely from locked grooves taken from vinyl records in Massimo’s collection. Recorded live on two turntables with a third used later for overdubs, the mix transports the listener into a hypnotic, slowly shifting soundscape, where one groove melts into the next. The locked grooves play off each other, sometimes colliding, sometimes harmonizing, to form a beautifully layered, almost seamless composition—a unified flow of mesmerizing repetition. Within this sonic landscape, you’ll hear everything from radiophonic bleeps, woolen jazzy loops, and psychedelic swings, to melancholic ambient tones and concrete drones. Massimo masterfully controls the flow, ensuring that no loop overstays its welcome, with transitions that are consistently smooth and delicate.

The moods within the mix are diverse, ranging from playful coziness to haunting swirls and surreal soundscapes. It’s a testament to the hypnotic allure of repetition. The sources themselves are as varied as the sounds they produce. Massimo’s locked-groove vinyl collection features works from masters of sound-cycles like Janek Schaefer and Stefan Goldmann, along with contributions from series on the Staalplaat label and others. The mix’s fluid continuity and elegant, circular motion evoke the untitled artwork of Lothar Charoux—both are meditative, abstract explorations of form and repetition, subtly shifting while maintaining a cohesive flow.

“I began collecting locked-groove records a long time ago. These objects are fascinating: they have a built-in 'ostinato,' persistently repeating itself; they exist somewhere between a piece of music and a musical instrument. Furthermore, vinyl (and the sounds their grooves contain) deteriorates over time with repeated use, creating unexpected changes in the texture of sound. Something interesting happens when you mix two locked-groove vinyls: usually, these records have dozens, sometimes hundreds, of locked grooves per side, making it nearly impossible to precisely locate the groove you are looking for. Therefore, there is also an aleatory element to this mixing technique, which I find intriguing.

I recorded this mix directly into a two-track recorder using two Technics 1200 turntables and later added a few overdubs using a Stanton T50 turntable. The mix is entitled 'Sillon Fermé,' in reference to the first experiments done with these kinds of grooves by Pierre Schaeffer in 1948.”