Julie Ant is a visionary artist who skillfully combines her passion for visual design with her musical talents as a drummer and baritone sax player. With a specialization in audiovisual content, she has mastered the art of connecting the worlds of sight and sound, transforming the intangible realm of music into a captivating visual experience that resonates with our emotions.

In Julie's creative process, every detail is carefully considered, as she understands that each element contributes to the overall impact of her work. Her keen sensibility enables her to perceive the inherent beauty that surrounds us, while her boundless creativity allows her to present it in mesmerizing ways. Whether it's through the use of color, texture, movement, or composition, Julie's artistic prowess amplifies the depth and significance of the auditory experience.

Having grown up immersing herself in the hardcore punk scene, Julie's early musical foundation was formed through the rhythmic power of the drums. However, her musical journey led her to discover and embrace genres such as Funk, Hip Hop, and Latin music, expanding her repertoire and shaping a polyhedric style that defies conventions. This eclectic blend of musical influences infuses her creations with a distinct energy and a diverse range of sonic textures. In addition to her solo endeavors, Julie actively collaborates with various artists and bands, bringing her artistic flair to their projects. She has lent her talents to the likes of Baustelle, Colombre, Chiello, Selton, N.A.I.P, Ninos du Brasil, and Memento, contributing her unique perspective and adding depth to their musical expressions. Furthermore, Julie has embarked on personal musical ventures, which include the projects Addict Ameba, Julie Ant & Daniel Plentz (double drumming), and Julie Ant & N.A.I.P, allowing her to explore and experiment with different musical dynamics and creative partnerships.

Julie Ant's artistry goes beyond mere design and musical performance. It is a testament to her ability to capture and communicate the essence of sound, evoking emotions and expanding our understanding of the invisible world that surrounds us. With meticulous attention to detail, a keen eye for beauty, and an unwavering dedication to her craft, Julie continues to push the boundaries of creativity, leaving a lasting impact on both the visual design and music realms. She is a true pioneer, bridging the gap between art forms and enriching our sensory experiences in the process.

Join our exclusive conversation with Julie Ant x COEVAL:

Hi Julie, welcome to COEVAL. How did you find music? Did you grow up in a musical household, or are you first generation?

Hello! Thanks for calling me. In truth it was music that found me I suppose, it was a series of things that call other things with a common underlying attitude - I wasn't born into a musical family, apart from my father who occasionally played the guitar on the beach, but I have always listened to music since I was little until I started studying drums when I was 10 years old. We were a small skate crew at the time and listened to a lot of hardcore punk and hip hop, so something definitely clicked for me at that moment.

Which decades of music influenced you as a child and why? Name your favorite artists who inspire you constantly as a child.

Certainly, because of the underground scene in which I was a child and the context on which it based its roots and ideals, the 80'-90' decade - Ramones, Bad Religion, Black Sabbath, Beastie Boys, Dinosaur Jr, Nirvana . etc. Subsequently, incredible Italian bands appeared on the scene that still remain a golden destination like Verdena and Il Teatro degli Orrori (two of my absolute favorite Italian drummers). I went to their concerts and was literally mesmerized by the sound, the style, everything. Growing up, however, I was obviously struck by the Beatles, The Who, Pantera, Beach Boys and so on... Then I discovered Brazilian music, Caetano Veloso, Jeorge Ben Jor, etc... Then Afro beat with Tony Allen, Fela Kuti, Mulatu Astatke etc. I can think of a thousand others but I would write a papyrus.

Share with us a few highlights about how Addict Ameba was born as a multicultural music project exploring innovative + contemporary sounds. What is the main mission of it? How many artists are involved? Do you think the relationship between music and social impact is important today?

I joined Addict Ameba a few years after their original formation, in which I think there were 3 or 4 and they were more based on percussion and one horn I think. It was already born as a multi-ethnic project from the origins of the members (Argentina, Spain, French origins). Now there are 11 of us. It can certainly be defined as "world music", but we don't want to imitate a specific genre - simply each of us has common listening habits that come together in this genre, but we've all always played something else, so the mix that comes out It's very interesting. Lorenz, the guitarist, is a huge fan of Nirvana for example. I already said it just above. I think the mission that comes out of it is to try to make a global journey through music, mixing and uniting elements of various cultures in a natural and unforced way. I think the relationship between music and social impact is very important - music is a language, it is information, it is culture and it can define a territory. Think really about the musical culture of different countries which even have harmonic scales different from each other. There is always a responsibility in what you do and communicate.

Does Addict Ameba incorporate experimental methods related to music production and composition as a regenerative practice? How is your approach to the research process? Do you think the sound’s shapes as a form of meditation can have an impact on the human body and soul as healing?

Actually Addict Ameba It's the greatest jam in the world! We meet every Thursday at Guscio, the studio of our guitarist Lorenz (the one who loves Nirvana..) and it is the moment in which we free ourselves, we no longer communicate with words but with music. It all comes from friendship and the desire to be together - just as we communicate with words, we extend it to sound. I don't know whether to define it as a meditative activity, but it certainly has a therapeutic form in some way. My approach is to listen to this dialogue and insert myself following it, but maintaining my style, my language, which is always welcome. All of this has an effect on the body, of course, because if you can create something that works, you come out happy. If you play a little worse, you end up frustrated - but still happy to have shared it with others. As far as live performances are concerned, however, the energy created is always beneficial and as far as I'm concerned I manage to be ''here and now'' and not wander elsewhere with my mind.

How important is education in music nowadays? What do you think is the biggest challenge for independent musicians nowadays?

I limit myself to my experience here in Italy. Each region in Italy has its own musical history, its own tradition. I was born in Puglia and pizzica and percussion have a fundamental role that accompanies the customs of the area. Just as we study the history of our countries at school, the same should be done with the history of music. It seems quite clear to me that music influences generations, and that it is the content of a message. Many musical movements of the past were born in relation to the context of the society of the moment, often proving revolutionary and with a degree of innovation that continues today.

Independent Italian music is now dominated by a market - we have discovered that being a musician can be a profession - even if it is not yet fully recognized - and that simply with a computer you can do anything at excessive speed. However, it seems like a race to see who publishes first and who is most successful.

The musician creates content and this becomes usable for everyone and remains in the systems forever. The biggest challenge of the independent musician is not to just crave success, not to rush, but to take your time to express an internal need, an expressive art form that can reach other people.

I think that making music arises from an internal urgency - you can't help but create it, it comes a bit naturally... you can't force the process too much... Unfortunately the market also influences the sounds of an artist - you say that a certain type of mix cannot be broadcast on the radio + so on, who cares, I say. Let's say that the quality has dropped a lot, unfortunately. Attitude is everything. Stay pure and true to yourself too.

What particular song you have written resonates with you the most and why?

Difficult to answer because writing evolves with the person. I'm probably linked to the songs composed in my youth - even if with perhaps rotten and homely sounds - but because they are the first attempts to express something. I still listen to them and it's nice to hear how the compositions change over time, the way of thinking and expressing oneself changes. Every piece written represents me and I am fond of it. If I limit myself to the last year, I certainly feel very close to ''La Nostra Vita'' by Baustelle because during the writing an atmosphere and a crazy bond was created between us and playing it live excites me a lot. As well as new totally instrumental compositions that I'm working on in duo with Daniel Plentz, Selton's drummer, and in duo with N.A.I.P, another crazy brilliant artist.

How would you define the term “long-lasting” in music? How have your experiences with different artists changed your visions?

As I mentioned before, the good (and bad?) thing about music - if recorded - is that it will remain in the world forever. Certainly working with artists like Baustelle and also Colombre, noticing the care with which the songs are made and their process of writing, listening and everything, has influenced me a lot. In fact, I find that writing and publishing something that remains in the air requires the right time and flow, almost like a sacred ritual. I think that music is truly Long Lasting when it avoids being subject to strict market rules, in order to remain totally pure. Art is such when it is not subject to market laws. We have numerous examples of this from the past. Then there are works that are only valid for that specific moment in which they are born - such as improvisation or an audiovisual performance, and I also find it very magical that that experience is only linked to that precise moment and its memory can remain in us for as long as we wanted or as a consequence of what has marked us.

What are a few ways to explore visual arts related to sounds + music and how do you think they communicate with each other? Share with us a few highlights regarding your journey.

I work a lot with audiovisuals. I studied Fashion Design and then Communication Design - not really Audiovideo! From here, however, an exploration and a career path began that brought me closer to animation, videomapping, new media art + more. It was a natural and consequential choice to want to use this vast type of media, because I think that the moving image is the closest thing to sound. While listening, I have always visualized something in my head - be it colours, images, suggestions, worlds... synesthesia! so I looked for a language to translate the auditory.

Visual arts came alive through music or music came alive through art for you?

I actually think that the two fields are related. Honestly, it's difficult for me to animate without listening. Even the very first Disney cartoons were made following a score. The visual suggestion for me comes from the auditory one.

What makes your project ‘THE LAST SUPPER ALIVE’ for Kyodo Tsushin during the Art Festival in Osaka, Japan, so unique? We love the way it was created and because you chose Leonardo Da Vinci to represent Italian culture. What is the message behind this project that you wanted Japan to understand?

I am very passionate about sacred, classical and Greek art. I would say that the Last Supper by Vinci is emblematic of our culture. I tried to give a breath of life to a work that has existed for years, without however modifying the original too much because it wouldn't make any sense nor would I have the skills to do so! With the technologies we have today, I tried to immerse myself and imagine what the atmosphere of that crucial moment could be like: from the initial dark and empty room, the light slowly begins to enter until all the characters are revealed and their roles are perceived. The key word in these audiovisuals is delicacy. Thanks to technology, art can become more accessible even abroad and spread history. It was interesting because Japan and Italy are diametrically opposed in culture.

Do you prefer more graphic design or motion + visual projects related to art?

I prefer motion + visual projects in relation to art, but in short... It's a very thin boundary in reality and the tools are vast and constantly evolving. Everyone chooses their own means of relating to art and it's nice to be free in this sense. I prefer what moves, because I can better link it to the passage of time. When real audiovisual shows are created it is the best - the forms of the Visual follow those of the invisible frequencies making them visible in real time, allowing a more immersed and immediate experience compared to a static image. This does not mean that the Greeks, Romans and so on managed to imprint a value and meaning in a static object that will last forever and that I consider unsurpassable - this is why I try to take inspiration from them using my own means.

Is there any abandoned art or music project that you would like to give a re-birth? How do you explore the needs of finding new ways of healing?

An infinity! As for art, I would like to bring back to life a Greek temple of some incredible deity. Only the ruins are already filled with a sacred aura that envelops you and takes you into a timeless dimension that goes beyond the past, present and future. They are places and works that resonate in their immobility. As for music, the one that matters is immortal. The imitation does not belong to us, because it was created in another context but it is right to study it and be inspired. I couldn't define finding new ways of healing... I think it arises, as I have already said, from an inner urgency that somehow finds the way to manifest itself in its own time. Attitude and openness is everything. It's not easy.

Being based in Italy, what are the biggest challenges for you as an independent artist? How do you overcome them?

My daily struggle is trying to make two artistic spheres co-exist - music and visual - while also making it a job, without however polluting it too much by market dynamics. Live on what you love. Exalting the beauty and artistic heritage in which we are rich. It is very difficult, because they are not areas fully recognized by Italian society as work-related. Covid has spoken very clearly... I can't understand it, really. A musician must not study less (indeed...) than an accountant or anything else. The sacrifices are many. Very, very, very few awards. So you live in a constant state of instability that often leads you to give up. But surrender is an illusion for those who have within themselves the strong need for expression. There is too much haste in doing things, you want everything immediately, and everything must have a sales value. It's frustrating. What do we live for…? I often ask myself this.

How important is innovation in music and how graphic design can play a role when it comes to experimenting new ways? How do you see the future of music related to art in a few words?

It is a big challenge to create something innovative in music compared to the past, if we continue like this in this totally capitalist era. Music is innovative when it is researched. Being digital natives is a double-edged sword - times speed up, but often - not always - to the detriment of quality and message. Perhaps today innovation in music occurs when you manage to do what you deeply feel. It is important because what you create can really reach everyone and is the container of a content that can influence. Visual design is a tool we have to increase an experience and activate more sensory spheres. Combining it with music is powerful and is an instrument that communicates a lot on an emotional and perceptive level. We are emotional beings, aren't we? In a few words, the future of music in relation to art is: a timeless, continually evolving experience.

Name a few of your favorite artists.

Art: the ancient Greeks, but I see it as tough for the future.

Audiovideo: Was my dream to collaborate with Ryoichi Kurokawa, Quayola.

Music: Caribou, Thru Collected, Verdena (the music is theirs, I just enjoy it, but I would gladly do the Visual together), those with whom I already collaborate and an infinite number of other names but I limit myself to the very first ones that come to me in mind or with whom I am in contact otherwise I will never finish.

The craziest place where you would like to play drums and with who?

Definitely a sacred place, a church, the Greek temple of some deity I was talking about before. But I would re-interpret and de-contextualize it if necessary. I really like working with other musicians, so even here choosing who to do it with becomes tough... It would be nice to do it with my favorite drummer, Luca Ferrari, right? But that temple would risk collapsing, so I'll think about it.

A letter to your future self. What would you write?

Don't give up.