Kāla, by Gianni Denitto

Kāla

by Gianni Denitto

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Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
Cafè d'Arab vinyl with original Café d'Arab version, Japan Blues Remix & Tillsammans,
3 songs in total

Includes unlimited streaming of Kāla via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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edition of 10

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€25 EUR or more

1.	Air China 05:50	info	buy track
2.	Café d'Arab 03:24	info	buy track
3.	Stockholm Rasta 03:44	info	buy track
4.	Tillsammans 04:33	info	buy track
5.	Touki Bouki 04:30	info	buy track
6.	True 05:50	info	buy track

about

As a professional saxophonist, Gianni Denitto has spent the past two years touring, playing gigs and giving masterclasses around the world. Coming from a classical formation and with extensive experience in jazz music, the Italian musician has explored the intersection of classical and jazz with electronic music since his first solo album Brain on a Sofa. Two years of globetrotting with his saxophone has led him to discover and explore the music culture of the countries he has visited, which he has treasured and finally made his own.

Kāla, out on June 26th for Elastica Records, enshrines in six tracks all the bits and pieces he has gathered from the four corners of the earth, led by the rich sound of his saxophone.

The album kicks in with “Air China”, a chilled down-tempo track with electro hints steered by the words of Singaporean/Canadian hip-hop artist MAS1A, switching between English and Chinese so casually that you’ll barely notice. With hints of Amon Tobin’s Isam, Disclosure’s electro synths and melodies on the pentatonic scale make a perfect blend when paired with Denitto’s mellow saxophone.

No time to process what you have just heard; you’re already being teleported to the other side of the globe, to the deserts of Morocco. “Cafe D’Arab” takes a plunge into the hectic and rich rhythms of North African and gnawa music. The North African sound is definitely dominant, until you realise Denitto has been playing since the very beginning, his saxophone craftily camouflaged as a relentless back melody of the track, with a raw and rhythmical sound reminiscent of Shabaka Hutchings in The Comet Is Coming.

Through the six tracks, Denitto explores the realms of dub, reggae, Indian raga and Western African music. He collaborates with Swedish/Ghanaian reggae group Roots By Nature and British dub ensemble Zion Train in “Stockholm Rasta” and with Indian actor Supriyo Dutta in “True”, the closing track of the album. But, his true masterpiece is a song inspired by a country that wouldn’t be considered “exotic”, at least in the western world: Sweden.

“Tillsammans” (meaning “together” in Swedish), is one of those rare pieces of music that will get through to you from its very first note. Slower, immersive and intimate — It’s like walking through a snow-covered city on a sunny day in December, when it’s freezing but everything around you is brighter and more vivid than you could ever imagine. It is arguably the most authorial track of Kāla, where Denitto’s talent and creativity as saxophonist and composer truly come to light. A true gem.

This album is literally a journey through the world, every track taking inspiration from the tradition of a different land and a different culture. Yet Denitto is never literal in the way he develops his tracks, constantly exploring the expressiveness of his saxophone in the broadest sense possible. At times he reflects the music heritage of the country he’s honouring, while in others he breaks free to express his creative potential. Gianni Denitto is a truly talented musician and Kāla is the proof of it. Hearing is believing.

credits

released June 26, 2018

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about

Gianni Denitto Turin, Italy

A proud artist of Roland Europe, Eventide Audio and Rampone & Cazzani saxophones, Gianni has always been fond of jazz, world music, electronics and sound design improvisations. He’s among the 10 italian jazz musicians of the future in 2018 for GQ magazine. ... more