The three Italian producers who make up the house-music trio Meduza were hanging out in a London studio with the English group Goodboys when a member of the latter had an idea. Stepping to the studio intercom, he hummed a casual melodic line. “The mic was on and was recording everything he said. Immediately we noticed that it works in the drop,” Meduza’s Mattia Vitale recalled in an interview with Apple Music. This dashed-off vocal line went on to form the backbone of Meduza’s 2019 breakout hit “Piece Of Your Heart”—a house anthem whose luscious bass and 909-style handclaps helped propel it to “song of the summer” status around the globe. Hailing from Milan, Vitale and his bandmates Luca de Gregorio and Simone Giani first started working together in 2014. Before settling on the Meduza name, they kicked around ideas and experimented with remixes of classic heaters by Whitney Houston and Backstreet Boys. But it’s “Piece Of Your Heart” and their follow-up single “Lose Control” that really show their powers. As they work to build a bridge between underground dance floors and global pop trends, Meduza’s strong ears for melody and motion help them get the most out of the simplest elements.