Bawrut revives SILENCIO Label with powerful collaboration ft migrants and agricultural workers

Music

Madrid-based Italian producer Bawrut is relaunching his SILENCIO imprint nearly a decade after it delivered the underground hit “Ciquita,” this time with a deeply personal project that bridges electronic music and social activism.

The story of SILENCIO begins with a love affair. In 2016, Bawrut met London-based music, arts and culture magazine and label Ransom Note, yes that is us. Both parties fell head over heels for “Ciquita.” Ransom Note Records was birthed solely for the purpose of providing a vinyl release for Bawrut’s Ciquita – it sold out in a week, becoming a stone-cold classic and best seller that would go on to define a lot of both of our trajectories. Almost ten years and many collaborative projects later, the musical relationship between Bawrut and Ransom Note remains strong… so much so we decided to rekindle SILENCIO!

The Sound of Silencio returns as Bawrut’s creative outlet, embracing all his different sensibilities. The first release under the revived label is a collaboration between Bawrut and Scuola Fatoma, a four-track EP born from an extraordinary three-day recording session with migrants and undocumented agricultural workers in Southern Italy.

Bawrut, whose work has received support from prominent DJs including Axel Boman, Erol Alkan, and the late Jackmaster, has performed at legendary venues including Fabric, Sub Club, and festivals like Sonar and Nuits Sonores. His genre-defying approach draws from Chicago house pioneers whilst maintaining a distinctly European sensibility.

Scuola Fatoma is an Italian language school and community organisation that helps marginalised individuals – specifically migrants and undocumented workers – emerge from societal invisibility. The recordings took place in a makeshift studio set up within the school’s premises.

The EP’s four tracks each tell a different story. “Ciao Tunisie” is a farewell song co-written with participant Seif, who addresses his home country Tunisia for forcing him and thousands of others to risk their lives crossing the Mediterranean in search of better opportunities. “Guetto” features Ndongo, discovered in the Borgo Mezzanone slum, a former Rome reggae singer whose undocumented status has left him in limbo. “Abby Oh” captures a moment of pure joy when participant Hatem spontaneously launched into what Bawrut describes as a personal Ace of Base-style version over a reggae beat. “Walla Yamma” transforms Fares’s original composition with a darker, club-driven drum arrangement.

“The EP captures the bitterness of a country that pushes people away, mixed with the joy of a moment of light-heartedness,” Bawrut explains. “What brought them together was music and escapism.”

The artwork by Rocio Mateos Garcia pays tribute to Marco Cavallo, a giant papier-mâché horse created in the 1970s to bring visibility to people confined in Italian psychiatric asylums. The contemporary Marco Cavallo now serves to expose migrants and undocumented workers who remain invisible to mainstream society.

SILENCIO’s return represents more than just a label relaunch for Bawrut—it’s a creative outlet embracing his diverse sensibilities, creating what he calls “effective and oddball club tracks” that convey both enthusiastic and bitter reflections on a world that is simultaneously beautiful and deeply troubling.

The first single Bawrut x Scuola Fatoma EP is available now on SILENCIO.