punk radar flamingo records genoa

PUNK RADAR: Flamingo Records Store – Genoa

In ‘Punk Radar’, our guide to underground venues, we take you on a tour of Genoa and the Flamingo Records shop

What you’re about to read is the first chapter of ‘Punk Radar’, our new article-series that aims to discover places and projects in Italy (and beyond), whatever might symbolise our subculture and is related to the world of DIY.  The intention is both to promote the project chosen for the article and to give some information about the city that hosts it, in order to give as complete a picture as possible of the punk and DIY scene in that area, including self-run spaces, record shops, ‘friendly’ bars and pubs and more. There will be no shortage of musical curiosities, a bit of history and even some advice on what not to miss in the city. A column for the punks, by the punks, for those who, like us, wander the world in search of underground places to have a pint and places full of stickers to scare off tourists!  

It was 2017 when Alberto and Emanuela opened a record shop in a somewhat hidden area of Genoa. Sometime later Massimo joined the crew and Flamingo Records was born, one of the most active punk realities in Italy and Liguria. In October 2024, the Pink Flamingo moved to Via Luccoli 17r, in a bigger and more central location that allowed for the organisation of smaller events and, above all, more space and therefore a wider musical choice. However, Flamingo Records is not just a record shop, but a cultural centre of the city, where people can come in, exchange information about concerts, talk about music, bring their own productions or admire Fabrizio Barile’s exhibition inside the shop, free of charge. We are crazy about this project and the people who are part of it, so we are very happy to launch this new hybrid column in the company of the Genoese flamingo!

Let’s leave room for questions!

Radio Punk: Hello Alberto, Hello Maso! Welcome back to our ‘zine! Tell us a little bit about it: how did the Flamingo Records shop come about and why the flamingo as the main animal?

Flamingo Records: The shop was started by Albe and Emi as a punk-only clothing and record shop, of course we starved ourselves because there weren’t enough punks in the city to support that kind of stuff, plus it was in an area where only the daredevils would go. A couple of years later we integrated Maso into the crew and decided to become a record shop in our own right, but always with a focus on the most obnoxious music, from oi! to drones to Norwegian organists to ska, just stuff that makes most people shit their pants. Flamingos have a stupid face, so we love them. 

Radio Punk: In the new shop we know you have a very special exhibition, what does it consist of? Do you have any other events or projects in the pipeline for the shop?

Flamingo Records: A good friend of ours, Fabrizio Barile, is one of the biggest collectors of punk culture material in Italy.  For years he has been organising exhibitions to show very rare gems (he has a whole exhibition on punk in Switzerland, for example.) With him we thought of setting up a permanent exhibition in the shop and changing the theme every three months or so. The first one was about signed material (records, promo photos, press kits). At the moment I am writing in front of signatures from the Ramones, Dead Kennedys, Blondie, Sham 69, to name but a few. The idea is always to give people an excuse to come into the shop, if only to look at the display and have a chat. On the opposite wall, we have just started displaying the fantastic screen prints of Jessica Rassi aka JJ Farfante, who has worked with top bands over the years including Mudhoney, Melvins, Boris, Yob and many more. Screen prints are available for purchase, but as I said, you can go in here without the anxiety of buying, just to enjoy the air you breathe in a record shop. In these first two months we have played several artists in the shop, we have presented three books, we have no desire to stop, every idea is good to open this space to people.

On the left the old store. On the right the new one in via Luccoli, 17r

Radio Punk: As a very important meeting point of the city, would you like to recommend other underground/punk/diy places in Genoa where one can meet other badly dressed riffraff with dubious musical tastes like us?

Flamingo Records: Apart from the occupied spaces, there are no real punk meeting places, but places like Fitz, Kowalski, Mescite and Neat are important evening meeting places that also promote very good events. There are also many associations that promote culture in all its forms, such as Disorder, Drama, Metrodora, Adescite and many others. Tourists often ask me where they can go to have a drink while listening to punk music, well, there isn’t one, in case one of the readers wants to start a failing business…

For concerts I would say, besides Zapata and Pinelli, Villa Rossi, Cinemino Ad Astra, Luzzati. Genoa lacks a venue like the Raindogs in Savona, the top for music programming in Liguria.

Radio Punk: We know you don’t like wild tourism, but if someone on our tour is passing through Genoa, where can they find the best focaccia? Tell us what and where to eat and drink without getting fleeced. Finally, a cultural question: what do you recommend to see in or around your city that isn’t a tourist attraction? 

Flamingo Records: In the centre it’s quite a hassle to find a decent focaccia, wild tourism has lowered the quality, I recommend getting it in the suburbs. For me, the best focaccia in Genoa is Marinetta’s in Voltri, there are those who disagree, but they’re people with no sense of taste.

For me, the best thing to do is to spend a day getting lost in the alleys, half a day at Villa Pallavicini in Pegli and if you have time, take a car, drive up the Faiallo Pass and look at the view from the mountains.

Radio Punk: In the last few years several social spaces have been cleared out, including Buridda, Utopia, TDN and Zapata, which not only played an important political and cultural role, but were also important for subcultures. How has the city’s punk scene changed from a few years ago? What is still going on today? 

Flamingo Records: Underground music in Genoa has always had its natural place in the social centres or self-run spaces. Recent political developments have taken away most of the meeting places, even if Zapata and Pinelli are resisting, times are hard. In this respect, I would like to say that, despite the fact that I am a shopkeeper and therefore theoretically more protected by right-wing politics (in theory, of course, it is an idiotic idea), the social centres have always supported me much more than I could have expected, understanding from the beginning what my project was and what my ideals were. On the other hand, this is a city full of contradictions, did you know that thousands of containers of goods arrive in our port from China, but in the chicest areas of the city centre you can’t sell so-called chinoiserie? 

Anyway, the punk scene is alive and kicking and there are lots of young people at the gigs.

Radio Punk: …And instead, as Flamingo Records, do you feel a responsibility to spread counterculture and promote generational change? And how could this be done?

Flamingo Records: I think that the push towards a subculture is something personal, that everyone matures on their own. Let’s face it: the classic punk or metalhead is a lonely weirdo. There were no punks in my neighbourhood, no one who listened to the same music as me, no one who wanted to go to a concert, and yet I felt an irrepressible urge to do so. I made friends through punk, but I would listen to this music if I was the last man on earth. So no, I don’t feel any responsibility or any particular desire to pass anything on to young people; I just want to promote good music and a certain kind of ethos, and if someone is interested, they can be 12 or 70 years old. Anyway, just to make you laugh, a few days ago a crazy kid with a Borsalino hat and shiny shoes came into the shop and asked me where the 45 rpm beats were… he was a 9 year old mod!

Radio Punk: Finally, we would like to thank you and ask you a question as if we were customers in your shop: do you recommend any bands from Genoa that we should definitely listen to?

Flamingo Records: You’re spoilt for choice and I can boast that all the good bands are under Flamingo Records, so go to our bandcamp and you’ll get an overview of Genoese punk. I advise you to bookmark the name Demo Dum for the future, really forward kids.

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