The Bloody Beetroots

  • Venice, Italy
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  • Electronic
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  • 2006
    started
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About The Bloody Beetroots

Bloody Beetroots is Sir Bob Cornelius Rifo, the Italian producer and photographer born the same year as punk rock, a fact emphatically made clear by the “1977″ tattooed across his chest.

In fact, that tattoo is about the most identifying public feature of Rifo, whose penchant for wearing masks (see other cultural phenomena from Underground Resistance to “V is for Vendetta”) seems to be a declaration of ominous anonymity that defers the spotlight to his long list of productions, projects, films, art, manifestoes and musical incarnations emanating from his Bloody Beetroots production epicenter: Bloody Beetroots DJ set where the decks-manning Rifo is joined by FX man Tommy Tea; Bloody Beetroots Deathcrew 77, his “electro-punk” band with drummer Battle and Tea capable of turning a gig for thousands of fans into a political rally/empowerment seminar, and in his forthcoming embodiment, Church of Noise, which is nothing short of a “cultural-musical movement,” as Rifo calls it, with Dennis Lyxzen of Swedish hardcore punk-pioneers Refused and The (International) Noise Conspiracy.

Bloody Beetroots has always been an anomaly amidst the cocooned trends and coddled pedigrees of dance music. After fits and starts in Italian garage-punk bands, Rifo launched Bloody Beetroots in 2007. Over the next three years, he would win the support of electro house heavyweights Etienne de Crecy and Alex Gopher in Europe, and Dim Mak’s Steve Aoki stateside, with each production more elaborate and ambitious than the last.

From the start, Bloody Beetroots was capable of synergizing sonics and sensibilities from The Damned to Debussy, the anthemic wistfulness of new wave and primal screams of hardcore punk, into remarkably actualized efforts that became platforms for larger socio-political historiography and cultural histrionics: the homage to Italian Futurism of “Rombo,” the cinematic soundtrack to Nazi resistance (and you thought it was just dance music) that is “Domino”–the striking black and white video for which features Rifo using only a book as weapon, and the kick drum pattern, in an irony too rich to ignore, recalling New Order’s “Blue Monday.” Then there’s the sci-fi fantasy anarchism of writer Michael Moorcock in “Cornelius” and the Trekkie techie nerd joy of smearing sounds that is simply, cerebellum-meltingly “Warp.” Clearly on Rifo’s watch, anything’s not only possible–but from the sheer vastness of sounds and media that have materialized–probable as well. From one-man studio production to full band live show with Bloody Beetroots Death Crew 77, dance tracks to films, photography, fashion and socio-political activism are all encompassed.

“Electronic dance music is the bridge that spans my musical influences,” explains Rifo. “My intention was to use the energy of punk to give it a devastating new form–one that embraces different universes of sound, the ordered chaos that I live every day, the unique shape that every thought should have.” This “ordered chaos” has resulted in much more than music on many levels. This isn’t dance music as hedonistic escape, he says, this is shared adrenaline as catalyst and call to action. Free your ass and your mind will follow, to flip a Funkadelicism.

“The music is meant to inspire, to dream and to give a reason of strength, but it also has the power to bring people together forever. And that’s why I try every day to give my audience a full view. Photography, music, fashion, icons and world history. There are many levels of communication.”

It’s this communication he is confident that can spark thought and action in listener’s lives, because similar experiences have in his. “My life is about growth, development, art and courageous actions. I firmly believe that life is made of this,” Rifo continues. “I’ve spent a lot of time over the last four years with anarchic subcultures–musical, artistic, political–and I saw in the eyes of the people the desire to reverse the situation. Anarchy, to me, is a way to free ourselves from the bite of our time. I use a multi-disciplinary action to make people free.”

Rifo clearly wants people to have more than just a good time, he wants them to re-imagine their whole world and start a new one. “I see no real revolution of our time. For years the underground world has tried to fight the rival ‘normal’ world. It’s time to create a parallel one. If we can’t fight the system, we must learn to benefit from it to build something new.”

Hence, Church of Noise, Rifo’s inaugural collaboration with Sweden’s Dennis Lyxzen (Refused/The (International) Noise Conspiracy). “Dennis and I have decided to break the mental barriers and we are here today to fight together,” he explains. Of their otherwise unlikely pairng he says, “There are many common ideas between Romborama [his debut album] and The Shape Of Punk To Come [Refused’s seminal album]. Both are primarily inspired by the anarchism of Malatesta.”

You don’t have to know your anarchist history to get what Church of Noise is about: faith and frequencies, the familiar and the ferocious, and most of all, freedom. With its siren-call of bittersweet strings waving like morning-after battle flags as well as the raw, chugging live bass and guitar-shards framing vocals that alternate between adrenal caterwaul and spoken-word break-downs (“…It only takes a sound to change the beaten path/It only takes love and courage to take it all back”…), Church of Noise is the most ambitious Bloody Beetroots recording to date.

Truly as Rifo’s calls it, “a cultural/musical movement.” From its manifesto (yes, manifesto): “Church of Noise is a congregation of lovers, fighters, sinners, artists, misfits, outcasts, losers and weirdos. In other words, normal, irrational, angry, happy, fucked-up people,” it says, sounding as much like an apocalyptic cult or maybe even an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting, very lower-case catholic and all-embracing but also something very positive and looking forward.

“My whole life has been determined and shaped by the people I’ve looked up and the people that have supported me,” says Rifo. “Bloody Beetroots and Church of Noise is something I owe to people to potentially be as important to them as things that influenced me to make the choices and live as freely as I have.” Mindless techno bollocks this ain’t. Enjoy. But more importantly, be inspired. To dance, sure. And hopefully, to live freer.
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Music

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  • Chronicles Of A Fallen Love featuring Greta Svabo Bech
    the-bloody-beetroots
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    Chronicles Of A Fallen Love featuring Greta Svabo Bech
  • Rocksteady
    the-bloody-beetroots
    Video
    Rocksteady
  • Church of Noise
    the-bloody-beetroots
    Video
    Church of Noise
  • 22710766
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    • Warp 1.9 (feat. Steve Aoki)
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/9/4/5/5/1/186815549.mp3
    • Chronicles Of A Fallen Love
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/4/5/8/5/6/982465854.mp3
    • Chronicles Of A Fallen Love
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g2/7/1/1/7/2/951727117.mp3
    • WARP 1977 Feat. Steve Aoki & Bobermann
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/9/3/5/2/1/202712539.mp3
    • Butter
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/3/8/2/6/1/186816283.mp3
    • Domino
      http://listen.vo.llnwd.net/g1/3/3/9/5/7/237775933.mp3

Photos

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News

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  • The Bloody Beetroots
    Electric Daisy Carnival 2013: Calvin Harris, Afrojack, Eric Prydz, Richie Hawtin
    MTV Hive
    May 20, 2013
    Electric Daisy Carnival stopped by New York's Citi Field last weekend for two days of DJs, carnival rides and dancing. It was EDC's second year in th...
    Read More
  • The Bloody Beetroots
    Afrojack, Calvin Harris, Porter Robinson 'Take Over' Electric Daisy Carnival: Day Two
    MTV News
    May 19, 2013
    Cloudy skies were an afterthought Saturday as the EDM fest saw Thomas Gold, AN21 and Max Vangeli and more rocking New York's Citi Field.
    Read More
  • The Bloody Beetroots
    Afrojack, Calvin Harris, Porter Robinson 'Take Over' Electric Daisy Carnival: Day Two
    MTV News
    May 19, 2013
    Cloudy skies were an afterthought Saturday as the EDM fest saw Thomas Gold, AN21 and Max Vangeli and more rocking New York's Citi Field.
    Read More

Tour Dates

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  • May 24 Friday
    Joliet, IL, US Chicagoland Speedway
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  • May 25 Saturday
    Millvale, PA, US Mr. Small's Theatre
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  • May 27 Monday
    Minneapolis, MN, US Skyway Theater
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  • Jun 7 Friday
    Nürburg, Germany Nürburgring
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  • Jun 7 Friday
    Nuremberg, Germany Zeppelinfeld
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  • Jun 21 Friday
    Las Vegas, NV, US Unknown venue
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  • Jun 27 Thursday
    St. Gallen, Switzerland Unknown venue
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  • Jul 5 Friday
    Bobital, France Parc Du Louvre
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  • Jul 6 Saturday
    Bobital, France Parc Du Louvre
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  • Jul 7 Sunday
    Belfort, France Unknown venue
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  • Jul 13 Saturday
    Lisbon, Portugal Passeio Marítimo De Algés
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  • Jul 17 Wednesday
    Biarritz, France Stade Aguilera
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  • Jul 18 Thursday
    Biarritz, France Stade Aguilera
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  • Jul 19 Friday
    Biarritz, France Stade Aguilera
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  • Jul 20 Saturday
    Fraga, Spain Desierto De Los Monegros
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  • Aug 4 Sunday
    Castellon, Spain Unknown venue
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  • Aug 11 Sunday
    Landerneau, France Salle Saint Ernel
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  • Aug 22 Thursday
    Charleville-Mézières, France Stade Bayard
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  • Aug 23 Friday
    Corsept, France Festival Couvre Feu / Chapiteaux
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  • Aug 23 Friday
    Corsept, France Festival Couvre Feu / Chapiteaux
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  • Aug 24 Saturday
    Charleville-Mézières, France Stade Bayard
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  • Aug 25 Sunday
    Charleville-Mézières, France Stade Bayard
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Discography

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  • Romborama (2009)
    The Bloody Beetroots
    Romborama (2009)
    Dim Mak
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