Alt-Fest

What Benny Benassi is for pink-shirt-wearing mainstream girls, XP8 is for the alternative electro scene - and Italy's most successful export in that field, these days.

The band, started in 2001 as a trio including previous singer Paul Toohill and based in Rome, Italy, composes an airy blend of EBM, electronica, techno and trance, bringing their various visions and talents to life with synthetic vibrancy and danceable beats, crossing electronic genres with relative ease.

Aimed at the heart of the dancefloor, the music keeps listeners moving through the night in timeless waves, emitting subtle hints of the 1980s while slipping easily into sounds of the new millennium: glitchy patterns, sharp simulated strings, and clear vocals travel through bright sequences and brooding atmospheres.

"Structured madness, quiet sinister verses and a furious chorus."

– Max Watt, Soundsphere Magazine

After having released their first demo, Forgive, on the now defunct mp3.com website, and receiving good feedbacks, they signed a deal with the Polish label Black Flames Records, who would reissue the demo on May 2004 as Forgive, quickly followed by the RE_Productions EP in October 2004.

In several interviews though, the band seemed to consider their real debut the 2005 album Hrs:Min:Sec, released on the acclaimed German label Infacted Recordings.

Over the years, XP8 made a name for themselves due to their energetic live performances: the band have played all over Europe, from their native Italy to Russia, and attended prestigious festivals like the Wave-Gotik-Treffen, Blackfield and NCN Fetival in Germany, and the Kinetik Festival in Canada.

And in 2014 XP8 will be performing for you!