Live: GIANNI BREZZO

In the organizer's words:

Gianni Brezzo is the studio/band project of Cologne musician Marvin Horsch. After a few flirtations in the form of remixes for artists from the Jakarta Records family, Gianni Brezzo's first own release is now available on the Berlin label.

"The Awakening" is the name of the new EP, which thematically points in a similar direction to the title of its predecessor "Traditional Heart". A kitschy, pop image in the very best sense, which also reflects his own musical approach. After all, the title of his last album referred to the process of making music itself. With "The Awakening", Brezzo is now more specific: "It has become very important for me to be able to make music at home. There's something private and intimate about making music for me, so it was a kind of awakening to how important it is to work on an environment that suits me before I start working on music."

Guest musicians were even more involved in the production of "The Awakening" than on Brezzo's previous EPs & LPs. This is evident not least in the two collaborations with J.Lamotta - for whose song "If You Wanna" Brezzo had already produced a remix last year - and Otis Junior. It is particularly striking how the voices of the two Jakarta acts fit naturally into the typical Gianni Brezzo dramaturgy of the tracks and, like the instrumental lead melodies of the other tracks, follow a relatively free development. The result is an exciting blend of soul and jazz-inspired pop, which is also reflected in Horsch's artistic biography.

In addition to the Brezzo project, for whose creation Horsch's acquaintance with the Cologne jazz scene was decisive, he is also interested in cross-genre collaborations. Most recently, for example, in the form of the joint LP release "Masala Kiss" (Into the Lights, 2020) with Osnabrück-based ambient artist Cass, or - if you look back a little further - as a producer of pop acts such as Keshavara, Woman, Xul Zolar.
(From Ronald Röttel)