Earlier in April, Alexander Robotnick announced Radio Versions Vol. 1 and Vol. 2, kicking off a retrospective compilation series. He has now shared that the third and fourth installations will release on his own Hot Elephant Music May 14th and 28th, respectively.
The seven tracks comprising Radio Versions Vol. 3 hail from various points throughout Robotnick’s extensive discography. “Les Grands Voyages De L’amour” came out in the early ’80s, for instance, whereas “Can I have an Ashtray” arrived a little over a decade ago. Radio Versions Vol. 4, meanwhile, includes covers of songs by jazz greats Herbie Hancock, Miles Davis and John Coltrane in addition to five originals from Robotnick’s 2015 album, Music For an Imaginary Club.
Italo disco was the missing link between the disco of the ’70s and the tracky sounds of ’80s house and techno. Alexander Robotnick (real name Maurizio Dami) was one of the foremost artists associated with the genre, perhaps most notably for his 1983 hit single “Problèmes D’Amour.”
As the years passed, however, Dami did not let his moment in the Italo spotlight define his career. In the late ’80s he explored world music by collaborating with the likes of Govinda, and he organized the inaugural Ambient Music Festival in Florence in 1995.
More information on Radio Versions Vol. 3 and Vol. 4 is available on the Hot Elephant Music website.
