House Music Manchester in the 1980s was an exciting place to live. 'Dodging rain and bullets' as Chris and Anthony Donnelly put it. A revolution was taking place in the city's nightclubs and the brothers were in its midst. Their world, as well as ours, would have been a very different place without it.
Gio Goi was born out of the Donnelly's love of electronic
house music. Today they recall being in New Order front-man Bernard Sumner's place, hearing the pulsing drum beats and clarion call synths for the first time. They were hooked instantly, and as they and other advocates championed the music to their friends, club nights dedicated to it sprang up across the city, including at the fabled Hacienda club run by Manchester legend, Tony Wilson.
House music is in Gio Goi's blood. The vibrant, tribal rhythms, a fusion of black and white American influences, originated in Chicago and migrated to New York where visiting British DJs such as Mike Pickering heard them in clubs like The Paradise Garage. Acting as cultural scouts, these DJs brought rare white label records back to England and spun them for an appreciative audience, sowing the seeds of what was to become known as 'The Second Summer of Love'.
Anthony and Chris made clothing that matched the
house music vibe - zip-up tracksuit tops and t-shirts paying homage to the glow-stick ambience of the clubs. Soon they started selling these clothes to friends and family at The Hacienda, creating a community spirit that elevated the brand to the status of identity.
House music enjoyed its euphoric heyday in the early nineties before making room for a new wave of musicians; staying true to its roots, Gio Goi recognised something special in these new contenders. Soon they were rolling with the likes of The Happy Mondays and Oasis, and rubbing shoulders with the glamorously debauched Pete Doherty and Amy Winehouse. While all this was going on,
house music continued to grow in the warehouses and clubs, exploring fresh techniques and rhythms to kept people dancing well into the night.
Now a new generation of DJs and dance music stars has been unleashed onto a grateful public, including Deadmau5 - something of a figurehead for the dance revival. He and Gio Goi have worked closely to keep their respective art forms at the forefront of innovation over the past few years;
Deadmau5 has even modelled new ranges for the brand.
Speaking of which, the current range consolidates on Gio Goi's past glories but brings it up to date with a refreshed colour palette and silhouettes designed to reflect the metropolitan, multi-cultural milieu we find ourselves in. Matte colours and natural fabrics underpin the bold, 'in-your-face' prints; vibrant shades of orange, sigma blue and real red jostle for pride of place on knits polos and the ubiquitous Gio Goi t-shirts. The cuts are also slimmer than before, revealing the rejuvenating influence of rock and roll on the brand.
Gio Goi is one of a rare-breed: a label that stays faithful to its roots but is able to adapt to new influences and environments, keeping the music scene dressed in the latest styles. Like the coveted white labels that the first house DJs brought back from America, Gio Goi's new range of clothing is freshly pressed and soon to make a big impact on the underground scene.