Posted on January 19, 2010 - by Mark Zonda

Sally can dance!

I have to admit that I was quite surprised when I had the pleasure to listen to Sally Shapiro song. The power of her brilliant and tender retro tunes, produced with cleaver care and attention by Johan Agebjörn, persuaded me to feed the tide of a Neo Italo Disco movement,  after this chanteuse from Sweden managed to get such good results right some years after a first attempt to relive eurobet by the Japanese Tommy February6. Can’t hide all my enthusiasm in having Sally to answer to some questions of mine. Here she goes.

Mark Zonda: Sally Shapiro, what’s your real name, and how does it feel to have become so loved and popular all of a sudden?

Sally: I won’t tell my real name… I want to retain some privacy and it’s not of importance anyway. Since I´m not like recognized in the street and not doing live tours, this does not affect my daily life so much, but of course it feels good that many people like the music and I get happy when I get nice comments and so in reviews and more personally.

Mark Zonda:  How you felt in love with Italo Disco and which are your favourite tracks?

Sally: I grew up with the Swedish counterpart to this kind of music, later on Johan (my producer) introduced me the Southern European stuff. I have favourites like Squash Gang “I Want An Illusion”, Valerie Dore “Get Closer”, Italian Boys “Midnight Girl”, Sandra “Around My Heart”.

Mark Zonda: You and Tommy February6 inspired a whole new Neo Italo movement, that it’s actually taking place nowadays gathering indie artists under alias names to that kind of electronic music. Which artists would you like to see on their first compilations?

Sally: I don’t know, it’s difficult to say exactly who belongs to the genre. But Cloetta Paris for example.

Mark Zonda: How did your collaboration with Johan Agebjörn was born?

Sally: We became friends in 2001, but it took until 2004 before we discovered that we both had an interest in 80s disco. We started exchanging mixtapes with 80s Madonna, Limahl and italo disco. Later, we sang Christmas carols together and Johan said I had an italo disco-sounding voice. When he had made the track “I’ll Be By Your Side” he asked if I wanted to sing on it and that’s how it started.

Mark Zonda: In three years you blessed us with so many works. Is still “Disco Romance” your most important release, and which is “your your” favourite song?

Sally: I think “I’ll Be By Your Side”, the first track, is also the most important track for me, because it was the first one and without it we probably wouldn’t have made any other tracks. My other favourites are “Anorak Christmas”, “Jackie Jackie”, “He Keeps  Me Alive”, “Miracle” and “Save Your Love” and also a new one that will be released this year.

Sally Shapiro – “Time to let go”

Let it ring on...

• Sylvia Paradiso neo italo beat (0)
• Oliver Ackermann: Italo Disco is fucking amazing! (1)