I think about this from time to time.
“The flame that burns Twice as bright burns half as long.”
― Lao Tzu, Te-Tao Ching
In a number of ways, Mario’s flame really did burn twice as bright, and he certainly fulfilled the half as long part by only making it to age 47.
One of the ways, was through music. His mom was a classically trained pianist and her “side hustle” was giving piano lessons. So naturally, Mario learned the piano as well as how to read music. Rather than branching out into other instruments, he branched out into electronic music, becoming a DJ in the early 1990s.
I met him not long after. Art and music were two things we had in common right off the bat.
About a year or so after I’d moved to Los Angeles, I started to get heavily involved with the underground electronic music scene. A friend taught me how to mix records and I too started DJing in small clubs and raves. I was also writing for a couple of the electronic music magazines at the time, mainly doing reviews. I had gotten a contact from a company that made software for creating electronic music along with a series of sample CDs and they wanted me to review it for the magazines.
By this point, Mario was talking more and more about making his own electronic music. But he didn’t have a computer or any equipment. The timing was perfect, because I had recently gotten that composing software and sample CDs. So I encouraged Mario to get his own computer. I’d help build it since my dad and I had built several PCs together and I knew what was needed to run the software.
In short order, Mario was up and running with the new PC, new software, and plenty of ideas. He also bought a Nord keyboard to make his own samples.
Influenced by everything from classic music, 80’s pop, and experimental to other electronic artists, he started creating.
Mario was never good at promotion though. He never could quite shake the idea that he’d “never be popular”. I wouldn’t say it was a lack of confidence as much as it was contempt for “stardom”. And so, promoting what he was making kind of fell in my lap.
By this time, there was a website called mp3(dot)com that was becoming more and more popular. Artists could create an account and then upload their tracks. This was the very beginning of digital music. So Mario created an account and started uploading. Since he got in on it early, his tracks started getting more and more attention.
At one point in time, one of his tracks was the #1 downloaded track in the electronic music genre. The folks at mp3(dot)com actually cut him a check, contacted him and wanted him to come down to the office for a visit. He did, and I could tell he enjoyed himself.
Eventually though, the website started having troubles with copyright infringement (mostly from electronic artists “sampling” other tracks in their work – and Mario was no exception there). They were bought out by Vivendi Universal but they couldn’t make it profitable and dismantled the site in 2003. For years after that, Mario would find his tracks on pirate download sites even though almost all of the mp3(dot)com tracks also ended up on the Internet Archive.
In 1999, Mario and I also formed a small record label so that we could put out our own music. I was never as prolific at making music as he was, but I did put out a few things. I have to admit, it was pretty damn fun when you would DJ somewhere and be able to drop your own track, hear it live on a booming system and watch people dancing to it. There even a Discogs page dedicated to our record label (that neither one of us put up) and had a few “groupies” over the years haha.
In the room of our house where Mario made a lot of his tracks, I have a framed test pressing of our first 12″ single. Some days it doesn’t even seem real all the things we did back in those days.
After we’d moved away from L.A., he continued to make tracks while I kind of gave it up. He was always a hell of a lot more talented than I was in that department. I was glad he kept making stuff. He collaborated with other music producers as well, putting out a number of remixes. He also created his own videos for a few tracks with elaborate animations and 3D design that he did himself using the software 3D Studio Max. He found a new website to create an account on and add his tracks. He didn’t charge any money for them. By this point, he adopted the attitude that he just didn’t care anymore, and he just made tracks for himself. But I knew he still did care, or he wouldn’t have shared them at all.
Sadly, in his last couple years he stopped making tracks altogether. He was quite literally and physically burning out as alcoholism took everything.
After he passed away, it was bitter sweet going through his 2 computers and trying to collect all of the tracks he created. There were a number of them that I’d never even heard before. It was emotional for sure. He had talent that equaled or exceeded some of the best of the best in the world of electronic music and the larger world will never really know. Although, to this day, there are still are a handful of people out there that talk about and seek out his music.
One of these days, I’m going to finish what Mario always said he would do and never did, and that is create a website and upload all of his tracks and custom samples for anyone to enjoy and download, for free. He’d love that.
