Black Peter Group’s amalgam of electronica, punk and rap shot through with a healthy dose of hillbilly two-step is a global phenomena. Frontman Gio Black Peter has shaken it Go-Go style from east London’s Dalston Superstore to Helsinki’s FagYou! The devil-may-care gigs are not the only vent for his creativity though. This is My Gun, a solo show at Styx Project Space in Berlin this year showcased the New York-based multi-media artist’s energy-infused paintings that riff on Jean Cocteau, Modigliani and Chagall. Then there was Happy Nomad, at Envoy Enterprises in New York, a show comprising paintings and photographs Gio found time to produce while on the road. He also got down in Otto; or, Up With Dead People, Bruce LaBruce’s Sundance-selected sex and gore fest that proved zombies aced vampires in the hottest undead stakes.
Dazed Digital: What´s the story behind your name? Gio Black Peter: Black Peter came because when I was in school I looked a lot younger then. All the other boys and I also wore the same dirty black jeans and hoodie. Everyone started calling me Black Peter Pan, which eventually just became Black Peter.
DD: How would you describe your music? Gio Black Peter: I think my music, just like a lot of new music now, doesn’t really fit into any category. It’s a fusion of electro, hip hop, indie and punk. Lyrically, my songs are about politics and relationships. Relationships between a person and the government, aliens, society, bus drivers, fuck buddies etc.
DD: Your MySpace tells gig-goers "It’s a party. So Let’s Have Fun!" Any memorable gigs? What’s the wildest it’s been? How was it at Dalston Superstore the other week? Gio Black Peter: There’s been lots of great crazy gigs. From Tokyo to Helsinki. We once had a show in London where we only wore cling film. I had my nose broken during a show and that was pretty wild. Dalston Superstore was a lot of fun. It was a Jim Warboy party so you know all the craziest London kids are going to be there which means lots of fun. I performed on the bar which made me think of my teenage Go-Go dancing days in New York.
DD: What´s in Black Peter Group´s rider? Gio Black Peter: Rinks and Rugs!
DD: Can you tell me anything about Virgin Shuffle – the EP scheduled for release in April / May? Gio Black Peter: Virgin Shuffle EP is going to consist of four new Black Peter Group tracks which I collaborated on with New York producer and D.J. Sean B. One of the main tracks is called "Pope Sex", a more hip hop inspired track which I’m really excited to drop and see how it is received. Maybe I’ll write the Pope an email and see if he wants to star in the video (fingers crossed). It is still too early for a release date but I will be posting updates on gioblackpeter.blogspot.com.
DD: How did you get involved in Otto; or, Up With Dead People? Any quirky stories from the shoot? Gio Black Peter: I met Bruce at Slava Mogutin’s book release party in Miami during Art Basel. We all hung out and had a really great time and a couple of weeks later Bruce sent me an email asking if I wanted to be in his new movie. I think my audition was when he saw me perform during soundcheck.
Quirky story? When he shot the love scene with my character and Otto, I thought that we were actually going to have sex, since I had seen Bruce’s other films. So instead of being shy about it I pulled my pants down with an automatic erection and said, "Okay, let’s do it." Turns out we were only going to act it out. Oops.
Interview by Stephen Lucas
