Franz & Shape Team Up with TenGrams for New .001 EP: A Thrilling Electro-Punk Collaboration
Italian electro-punk duo Franz & Shape are back with a brand new release, teaming up with fellow countrymen TenGrams for the highly anticipated .001 EP.
Support EP and get it here
With over 20 years of production and performance experience, Franz & Shape have carved out a unique niche in the electronic music scene, known for their Synth Wave and EBM-tinged beats. Their music is defined by energetic basslines and dynamic rhythms, a style they’ve perfected over decades of experimentation and collaboration.
For their latest project, the duo has joined forces with TenGrams, a dynamic act made up of brothers Alessandro and Davide Piatto. Davide, well-known for his role in the pioneering N.O.I.A., a key group in the birth of Italo Disco, brings a wealth of experience and historical significance to the table. Together, the four musicians have created a sonic masterpiece with their collaboration on the .001 EP.
The .001 EP showcases the combined production talents, diverse influences, and deep musical knowledge of the four artists. Featuring two well-crafted Electro tracks, the EP brings to the forefront their shared love for tough beats, infectious basslines, and memorable melodic hooks. Each track strikes a balance between energy and intricacy, delivering an immersive experience that is both innovative and nostalgic.
Fans of electro-punk and synthwave will find themselves drawn to the .001 EP‘s unique fusion of styles and its high-octane, club-ready energy. It’s a testament to the enduring power of collaboration, as Franz & Shape and TenGrams continue to evolve and shape the future of electronic music.
Follow TenGrams Here
Follow Bass Agenda Recordings Here
Franz & Shape, the Italian electro-punk duo consisting of Francesco Spazzoli and Chris Shape, have built a genre-defying sound that blends Slamming Electro with influences of Italo, 80s New Wave, EBM, and Techno, making their music perfect for modern dance floors.
Since their breakthrough track “Countach” in 2005, which earned spots on notable DJ mixes like 2 Many DJ’s “This Is Radio Soulwax” and BBC Radio 1’s Essential Mix, the duo has continued to push boundaries. Their full-length album Acceleration featured collaborations with artists such as Perspects, Chelonis R. Jones, GD Luxxe, Tomas Barfod (WhoMadeWho), Mount Sims, David Carretta and Dirk Da Davo (The Neon Judgement), solidifying their place as pioneers in the Italo, Dark Wave, and Synth Wave scenes.
How did you meet? Coincidence or destiny? What was the first trigger of collaborating together?
Destiny, we met in a well-known Italian club in Riccione. Inspired by the same seminal artists and stuff, we were driven by a mutual passion for a certain kind of music and the desire to tell something, together, through it.
What was your mutual music interest about?
We were both definitely influenced by Italo because we are Italian, so this music was very much a natural part of our musical upbringing.
We also grew up with other genres of music too though – Punk, 80’s New Wave and Electronic Body Music, but ultimately fell in love at first sight with Techno music in all its forms and facets.
Did you know from the start what sound you were looking for exactly? Or were you searching for it together during the process?
We always had a clear vision of the type of music we wanted to produce together.
This is also what pushed us to form our own group, with distinctive and recognizable sounds that were our own true expression of what we felt artistically.
What was your studio routine when you have you decided to create releases together?
The first thing, and this still remains today, was brainstorming to bring out unfiltered ideas and then begin our process of artistic creation.
Strong writing, lots of listening. Developing a routine definitely helps you to stay organized, focused and motivated, which can sometimes be lost in the creative process.
Approximation is not allowed if you want to obtain concrete results.
What was your first music related experience separately and together?
We grew up studying music and playing instruments. Franz started working as a DJ while Chris, after having played in a new wave band, had become a sound engineer. We both experienced the electronic club scene of Rimini in the heart of Adriatic Riviera during the 90’s, and we are still very much influenced by that. You could say it’s in our DNA. We finally started collaborating in the studio in the early 2000’s, rehearsing and experimenting, before signing to the Swiss label Relish, and from that moment our musical journey began and has led to us performing from North America to South Australia.
Have you ever performed in Asia? If you would like to go on tour soon over there, where would you go and why?
We haven’t performed in Asia yet, but it would be really fascinating. This is the largest continent in the world with a huge variety of cultures, civilizations and, consequently, music.
It is difficult to choose a particular country but what we can say that we love three fundamental elements of this wonderful continent, which we always try to follow in the creation of our songs: technique, concentration and discipline.
Your debut album ACCELERATION released via Zurich based label Relish has an immortal spirit which still feels fresh… How was the experience? What we can expect next?
We are proud that “Acceleration” is still well acclaimed by critics and the public. We are very attached to our first album – it represents us. We wanted to do something of our own, with powerful synths and melodies, and we did it.
We also still love the iconic artwork created by Robi Insinna aka Headman, which many have since tried to replicate.
Working on the new album, as we are now, we went back to recording in our first studio, called Antenna.
As always, we will follow our instinct, without compromise or limitations, nothing decided at the table with someone who says: “We will do so and so…” Never.
We just want to carry on like this. There is still a long way to go.
Tell us about your vision as an artist. How would you describe it briefly?
Our attitude in composing music, even if it might not seem like it, is punk in some way. We do what we feel, what we like, following our inspiration without constraints, trying to produce something that will have longevity, and communicate a message.
We are lucky enough to be able to make music when we feel like it or approach an idea when we think it’s time. And if we don’t, nothing happens.
The first Album was plenty of various collaborations. Who was your favourite one so far? Any reunion soon with someone those talents?
There was a feeling with each collaboration right from the first demo and perhaps we will involve them again in the future, but it’s impossible to pick a favourite when they all have such unique talent. We certainly have to thank them all again one by one for how they contributed in such a personal way to the creation of the songs.
Who would be your dream collaborator? Do you have any?
Definitely the next one.
Since 2004 it’s been a while… why the break, why did you come back together?
Yes, a few years have passed and we have never stopped listening to and creating music. It wasn’t a real breakup, we would like to say it was the end of a chapter, this is life, and now we are writing the new one.
So how did you come back together? Did you meet again somewhere in the real time in real space by destiny?
For the second time we met yet again in a club.
Franz: that night I was supposed to go out with a girl but then something went wrong :-), my plan changed and I decided to go to a party in town.
And that’s where I saw Chris, once again we were in the same club. This was a clear sign of destiny, fate or whatever you want to call it, and from that night everything started afresh.
Your track “This Is The Way” feat. GD Luxxe has landed also on our Charity Compilation for earthquake victims in Turkey and Syria. Tell us more about this song and its creation.
With this song we wanted to break away from club music standards. We treated the synthesizers more like an electric instrument than a computer, adding New Order-esque, warm and incisive vocals by GD Luxxe. It was very important for us to support you in this Charity Compilation. Among other things we are also currently preparing an acoustic version of “This Is The Way”, together with Gerhard Potuznik. This is who we are.
Can’t wait for your new creations. What we can expect next from you?
We are working together again, with new energy, free heads, new ideas, passion and a super strong desire to make good music.
These are our ingredients to transmit the powerful gift of good vibrations and wellbeing to our listeners.
Follow Franz & Shape Here
Photos : KEYI STUDIO ( Grzegorz Bacinski & Izabella Chrobok )
Designers/brands: RAF By Raf Simons, Oakley
more music features here
Berlin Fashion Week Event by KEYI Magazine on February 3rd at OXI!
