“PEOPLE WANT MORE HUMAN ELEMENT BACK IN DANCE MUSIC“ IN CONVERSATION WITH CURSES
Curses, formally known as Luca Venezia, is an American DJ, producer, and label owner living in Berlin. Growing up in Manhattan during the late 80s, he soon became heavily involved in New York’s punk scene, elements that influence his music to this day. Today, he is known for blending the nostalgia of New Wave with energetic Italo-Disco, connecting back to his Italian roots. He includes flashes of Post-Punk and live, ghostly vocals in his DJ sets, making them an exciting blend of everything that moves him.
Curses has been active in the industry for over a decade — the experience and intuition he has gained allow him to adapt to different environments, alternating between heavy-hitting body music and the uplifting nostalgia of Italo and Proto-House.
Despite his residency at the iconic Pornceptual Berlin and gigs all over the world, he started curating his own vinyl compilation series in 2021. Collecting sounds from numerous artists, the first Next Wave Acid Punx brought together music that emerged from punk and new wave scenes, DNA that accompanied Curses throughout his own musical career. The second compilation was created during the pandemic and therefore became a celebration of live, upbeat music.
Since yesterday, the third Next Wave Acid Punx has been out and is said to be a full-circle moment. In this compilation, Curses returns to his roots to explore and honour the sounds that first initiated him into Brooklyn’s rave scene. The collection spans 2 LPs and 3 CDs, moving from the Detroit techno of Model 500 to the proto-trance of Age of Love, while also featuring brand-new tracks from some of today’s best producers, such as Zaatar and Leona Jacewska.
We met Curses on a call to hear all about the third (and last?) Next Wave Acid Punx, which places in Berlin inspire him, and whether the early anarchic spirit can still be found amidst all the TikTok ravers.
Curses:
Yeah, absolutely. I’ve always had these little blips in time in music history, that I liked, where subgenres last a few years. I love new beat from the 80s, and Eskimo asked me to curate a compilation of my favorite tracks during Covid.
That expanded into inviting current artists to make new music inspired by that energy—music with edge, but also a punk attitude. It grew into a second chapter, and now this third one, Trois, is really tapping into my early rave youth. I grew up in New York, going to raves, but also playing in punk bands and skateboarding—so it’s all these countercultures merging: Frankfurt, Detroit, Valencia, Belgium sounds from the 80s and 90s.
C:
I focused a lot on bands—electronic post-punk groups like Boy Harsher, Nitzer Ebb, The Hacker—blending that with DJ culture and guitars, keeping that 80s synth thread.
With Trois, it’s more club-focused and heavier, which feels like the right way to close the trilogy.
C:
(laughs) That’s what everybody asks. It takes so long to license old music. It’s really difficult to track people down. A lot of artists don’t even want their old music anymore.
So yeah, I think this is the last one.
C:
Eskimo and News Distribution have a strong network, so they can reach a lot of people. But it’s still a lot of back and forth. Some artists don’t even have their master files anymore, so it gets complicated.
C:
I love early EBM, early electronic body music from the 80s and 90s. Even early trance would sample current affairs—news, war reports, TV. So you’re escaping on the dancefloor, but still reminded of reality. I also use old VHS tapes I’ve digitized—commercials, news reports. My mom also digitized tapes from when I had a public access TV show in New York as a teenager, so I also used some of those.
C:
They go hand in hand. I started in bands, so that’s always my true love. I love touring with a band because you share everything.
“DJing can feel a little lonely sometimes.“
But then again, after carrying guitars and doing endless soundchecks, I miss DJing too; also because there you can adapt to the crowd. As a band, you can only play your songs.
C:
All the time. I remember a gig in Las Vegas where I don’t think the crowd really understood what I was doing, so you just adapt.
C:
I prepare moods, not tracklists.
For example for an 8am warehouse set—uplifting, sunrise energy. Playing at 4am in a club – I go heavier, that´s peak time.
I also always check who’s playing before me. It’s about respecting the night as a whole.
C:
I see live music coming back into clubs—bands and DJs mixing more. In the UK and France it’s already happening.
“People want more human element back in dance music.“
C:
I think they already are. BPM has slowed down a lot, which I love. For me, the perfect range is 116 to 125 BPM – there’s room to breathe, and people stay longer on the dancefloor.
Hard techno became mainstream, so people naturally move away from it. Even in Berlin, younger crowds are playing slower, groovier stuff again-disco, proto house, acid house.
C:
It’s only that now everywhere. And when something becomes that dominant, it stops feeling underground. Hard techno was cool maybe five years ago, but it got overdone. And TikTok probably didn’t help.
C:
Yeah. Exactly.
C:
I needed a change. I felt creatively stuck in New York. Same routines, same people. Berlin felt more open, more inspiring. I had lived here in 2005, so coming back in 2015 made sense.
C:
Yeah, I’m really happy here. I’ve got my wife here, and we have a really good life. I still go back to New York, but Berlin gives me space to create without pressure. New York is amazing, but it’s just very expensive-you can’t really breathe creatively in the same way.
C:
A new album, club EP, remixes—including Pixel Grip. We’re also testing new band material live in Berlin soon at Columbia Halle for Grayscale Fest. Most of it will come out next year, because I wanted to give enough space for the Next Wave Acid Punx Trois compilation.
