XJAZZ! Festival 10th Anniversary Celebration
XJAZZ!, the renowned festival at the forefront of Berlin’s jazz scene, proudly announces its 10th-anniversary edition set to take place from May 6th to 12th. In celebration of this significant milestone, XJAZZ, in collaboration with the Analogue Foundation, presents a special gift to the global jazz community: ‘Entangled Grounds. The Sound of XJAZZ! Berlin’ – a compilation album capturing the essence of collaboration, connection, and community fostered over the past decade.
Curated by keyboardist and producer Szabolcs ‘Szabi’ Bognár, better known as Àbáse, along with Erik Brewer, head of Brewery Studios, and Sebastian Hecht, XJAZZ’s visionary managing director, ‘Entangled Grounds’ features 10 tracks born at Brewery Studios. Sebastian Hecht comments, “We felt it was the perfect moment to capture the essence of our current sound for posterity.”
This compilation album serves as a snapshot of the evolving jazz landscape, showcasing the fluid and improvisational nature of the genre – ‘Entangled Grounds’ offers a diverse sonic experience, unveiling new sounds and band configurations previously unheard.
Each track on the album represents a collaboration and a collective creation, reflecting the ethos of XJAZZ as a platform for dialogue and exchange. As Sebastian Hecht explains, “With XJAZZ!, we want to be much more than ‘just’ a festival. We generally try to keep the doors open, rather than closing them.”
‘Entangled Grounds’ includes ‘Can’t Uproot Me,’ a mesmerizing fusion of cultural influences by the collective Sonic Interventions. Other highlights include the experimental sounds of ‘Z.F.E.X.’ by Ziggy Zeitgeist and the lo-fi grooves of ‘Sunflower’ by Sofia Efty. The album reaches its pinnacle with the epic ‘The Brewery Suite,’ a fourteen-minute masterpiece adorned with lush harmonies and captivating vocal performances.
As the 2024 edition of the XJAZZ! Festival unfolds this May, attendees will have the opportunity to acquire a lasting memento of the festival experience with ‘Entangled Grounds. The Sound of XJAZZ! Berlin.’ This compilation album reinforces the spirit of collaboration, connection, and community that defines both XJAZZ! festival and the vibrant Berlin jazz scene.
For more information about XJAZZ and the ‘Entangled Grounds’ compilation album, visit www.xjazz.net.