Opek - Trafo

Opek lives in Cologne, plays jazz, and is a friend of ekn. If you follow us on Instagram, you've probably heard his music playing in the background of some of our videos. But his new Album, Trafo, is way way better than our videos. We like it so much that we want to share it with you too. 

Jazz at ekn? What's that supposed to sound like? 

In TRAFO, Opek connects his cinematic visions to his love for jazz music, creating a dark and cloudy deep groove soundscape, filled with hallucinations and slivers of time travel. The mostly instrumental album scratches different genres, including spiritual jazz, rare groove, and of course library and 70s film music. 

Recorded live in his Cologne studio by a five piece band, Opek pays homage to influences like Wayne Shorter, Soft Machine, David Axelrodand Marc Moulin's Placebo. The recording setting gives the album tension and vividness on one hand, intimacy and warmth on the other. 

The compositions transform old memories into melodies and strive to translate recurrent observations into sound. On TRAFO Opek plays the drums and is accompanied by Caris Hermes on double blass, Elisabeth Waanders on Fender Rhodes, Julius van Rhee on saxophone and Jonathan Böbel on trombone. 

Typical Opek-esk sounds make the album a krautjazz experience and let elements of nightly madness dissolve into stimulating curiosity. 

Note: Shipping is handled directly by Schallplattenfirma Records in Berlin.