Alberto De Santiago doesn’t just make music — he curates joy. Better known as Never Dull, the San Diegan multi-instrumentalist is helping lead the disco house revival with a style that’s equal parts cheeky and soulful. His sets, shimmying from silky disco into high-energy house, are peppered with playful samples (think, Mousse T’s ‘Horny’) that make listeners laugh as hard as they dance.
From the dusty record bins of the ’70s to the glossy grooves of ’90s vinyl (and even a little early-2000s nostalgia), disco is De Santiago’s main ingredient.
His latest EP channels that ethos: bridging the timeless warmth that only organic disco can provide, with a fresh, energetic momentum — renewing the genre’s longevity and magic for a new generation. With a global tour and a growing catalog of feel-good disco house anthems, the artist continues his mission: to bring the fun back to dance music.
You’re very vocal about bringing the fun back into dance music. What do you think’s been missing?
I think dance music is fun. At least, I think it’s meant to be a fun experience, when you go out, and see a DJ. You’re trying to have fun. I miss the moments where I was on the dancefloor with my friends and then a song came on and the lyrics weren’t as serious. I feel like dance music has gone a little colder than usual, with the sounds being more robotic — the rise of tech house, and techno — which, and I want to clarify, I do like. But I miss the part where you’d hear a funny lyric, or a sarcastic one. I want to bring that back. I want to play around with that kind of sound.
Music that’s a little cheeky, more light-hearted?
Yes. Sounds that make you chuckle a bit. I never want to take myself too seriously, this is what dance music is to me — not lyric-heavy, just meant for dancing. I miss that kind of music, so I’m making it. I’m bringing that music back.
Would you consider yourself more of a house artist with disco roots, or as someone actively trying to bridge both sounds in a new way?
I would say I’m a house artist, very heavily influenced by my disco roots, and the organic sounds of disco which was the first dance music that was created, ever, after soul music. And I’ve always wanted to keep that quality in my music, not go too far away from that.
For me, in my music, there always has to be something that reminds me of the past. Even if I’m using crazier sounds, or colder sounds, there’s always something that’s soulful and organic about my music.
Speaking of roots — your approach to sampling is an integral part of your projects. Are you still pulling samples from iconic disco tracks or are you finding other ways to infuse that soulful, nostalgic energy into your newer projects?
Both. With one of my latest singles, I was lucky enough to sample Vaughan Mason & Crew’s ‘Bounce, Rock, Skate, Roll,’ but an opportunity like that doesn’t come around often, where you have the sample clearance available, and you get the sample cleared. So that was a special one for me.
When I don’t have that option, I try to — and I wouldn’t say emulate, because I won’t copy any specific track — reference the vibe of certain tracks that I really love from the past.
What are some elements you reference from older disco tracks?
Often it’s a funky bass line. What if I made it heavier? How about we play with some more textures? I love to mix an organic vibe with something really fresh and different for listeners hearing these sounds mixed in from the past, right now, for the very first time.
This is why I say I’m a house artist with disco roots because I want to push the sound to the point where someone who is listening to it today isn’t like, ‘Oh this is wedding music!’
Do people say that to you often?
I used to get that all the time when I played just classics. They’d say, ‘Oh, I heard this at a wedding!’ Which, yes, we hear the classics at weddings. But it’s because it’s great music, and everyone loves it. So I mix these sounds with new ones, to give listeners something unexpected.
You’ve talked about being part of this new wave of modern disco — is there anyone else you think is pushing the disco revival forward right now too?
Yes. There’s a whole scene. They’ve been there for years, and they still exist. They’re my mentors, this first wave of disco house from the 2000s. I am fortunate enough to have connected with a few of them and they liked what I was doing then. What I’m making now is similar to what they were making back then, but in a newer way.
For me it’s very rewarding to connect with DJs in the scene and for them to say to me they enjoy my music and what I’m doing with this project. Last time I was in New York, I met Mousse T. I love his song ‘Horny,’ it’s a classic. I told him that I played it a lot when I was on tour two years ago, and it was a lot of fun to connect with them.
Is there an underground scene that’s contributing to this revival of the genre?
The underground scene is huge, and I think a lot of people don’t know how huge. These underground artists tend to be more reserved, but they’re changing the sound. They’re very passionate about how disco sounded before, and I really respect that. I even did that for a little bit, when I started this project, but because my project’s name is ‘Never Dull’…
Do you ever feel that pressure to ‘Never’ be ‘Dull’?
[laughing] Honestly, yes. I don’t think about it too often anymore, but sometimes it does cross my mind and I think, ‘I better kick it up, make it more interesting.’ But it’s always pressure on myself and what I’m making, it’s never about the crowd. It’s a personal thing.
I have a lot of ideas. Outside of the music I make, I’m a very creative person. I’m always thinking about what I can do now, and what I can do next that I’ve never done before, and play around with the next concept, and the next.
You are very creative. Beyond touring and producing, you’ve also been building some cool things on the side. I want to ask you about the Feel Good Nights series, which has now reached its ninth episode. How did the series start?
The series started in my room. It was during the pandemic, the very first one. I made the very first episode, just for fun, and didn’t make another until a year later when people started asking me to make another, so I did, not thinking much of it again. People kept asking for more, so I made another and then I ended up making one every three months. But none of them were planned. They were just sets I made when I had downtime, when I wasn’t touring, and in my studio.
I left them all up online, and I didn’t notice how many people were viewing them, commenting, and enjoying the sets. A year went by, and people started coming up to me at shows and actually telling me, ‘Hey, I love Feel Good Nights, you should make more, I’ve watched all of them,’ and I was like, ‘Oh man, maybe I should make more.’ And Youtube is populated now with so many of these videos of DJ sets — everywhere and anywhere — but it’s funny because I was doing it first.
The series has really taken off. Where do you see it going from here — more production, live streams?
Before I made my latest one, I had this thought about making episodes with my friends but I didn’t want to make anything feel forced, that’s not my vibe. So it took awhile to just go for it and get everyone together.
When I first started playing [as Never Dull], my friends were the ones that came to my shows. They know my songs, they know all my music. I’m working on some merch right now, and some of them asked to try it on. My friends are so kind and nice. That episode was a special one for me.
But any episode you watch, it’s like a first date, a virtual first date. It’s what I want people to see, what they can expect, at my show.
Speaking of, let’s talk about the moment you’re in right now. You’ve got this huge tour and it feels like you’re making amazing momentum creatively, and performance-wise. Is there a lot of planning that goes on for your set ahead of a show?
How my sets usually go is: I start with disco, and then — I wouldn’t say a slower BPM, but slower than we end up at the end — go into disco house, then end with house music. And maybe something different. It depends on the crowd.
Are you approaching your sets differently when you’re in Europe vs the U.S.? What’s been resonating with crowds lately?
In the U.S. I would say it’s changed a bit. You have to be a little more strategic about what you play, how you play it, and in what order. In New York, they’re very open minded. But in some cities, they really don’t know anything about disco. I’m actually introducing them to disco for the first time. And it’s a tricky thing to do as an artist.
I’ll make mashups with hip hop or rap tracks and disco. Like, I’ll put a rap vocal on top of ‘Good Times,’ Chic’s classic tune… That has worked for me and gotten crowds going — opening their minds to something they didn’t see coming, sounds they didn’t expect to hear. I open with mashups like that, it opens people up to go to a different place, a different sound with me. That’s how it feels to me, playing around the U.S., and I love it. It’s a challenge. Nothing’s ever the same, all crowds are different.
And in Europe?
In Europe I feel truer to my job of being a DJ, which is also showing people music they don’t know, and they can enjoy. I feel they are a little bit more open minded in Europe, but it’s culture-related. I’ve always felt that DJ culture is different in every country.
Their radio has always been a bit more cutting edge — more open to, and always trying to, push new sounds. When I play disco in Europe, they know what I’m about, and that helps a lot. If I want to take detours, they’re always up for it.
Last question is an easy one — if you could collaborate on a track with any disco legend, living or deceased, who would it be, and what would the track sound like?
That is actually a hard one! There are many disco legends, it’s so hard to choose just one. But — and this is ‘bucket list’ for me — I would say Nile Rodgers. He did so much work after [Chic], with Madonna, David Bowie… He just kept going. Him as a producer, and his capability to make a song… Disco. Legend.
Our collaboration would have an organic, classic disco feel to it that leads up to something really crazy sounding. The beat drop would be something harder, but very danceable. There would be a section full of vocals and harmonies, and a lot of soul — the best of both worlds. But, it would be ten times better because it’s Nile.
Disco isn’t just about the past for De Santiago — it’s about rewriting the future of the dancefloor with a wink, and a whole lot of soul. Whether he’s crafting mashups to surprise American crowds or pushing new sounds with classic disco energy across Europe, his goal is simple: keep people moving, smiling, and coming back for more.
Never Dull is bringing his BIG DISCO ENERGY overseas this month for a string of fall tour dates.
Tour ticket links: https://ffm.live/bigdiscoenergytour
Never Dull socials: Instagram , TikTok , YouTube , Facebook , Spotify
Interview and writing by Melisa Yuriar.
Saint Audio 
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