A really interesting project this, as a group of talented producers come together in praise of criminally unsung veteran producer, Shazz.

Didier Delesalle aka Shazz has been active since ’92, and was one of the first artists signed to French high street retail giant FNAC‘s dance music division. Yes, France is so damn cultured that even the country’s equivalent of Radio Shack did their bit to foster the ’90s house revolution. Releasing timeless underground material on F Communications and Yellow Productions, Shazz later signed to major label Columbia and has been releasing jazz-tinged, soulful material ever since.

The SHAZZer Project sees Shazz and Jean-Marie K trawling through nearly three decades of material with the aim of breathing new life into some of the most iconic cuts of his long career. With previous volumes “The S” “The H” and “The A” this is the first installment of “The Z” and features brand new reworks by French underground hero Dan Ghenacia, Chez Damier & Ben Vedren in their “H2H” guise, plus emerging talents Marc Brauner, Molly and Kusmee aka AMS 250.

A beautifully poised package without a weak link, it’s hard to pick out highlights, but Ghenacia’s muscular, slowed down rendition of bumping F Communication ’94 classic “Hold Me” and Molly’s lo-fi techno reshape of the beautiful oddity “Apres Les Larmes” released under the Nuages moniker (a collaboration between Delesalle and Saint Germain’s Ludovic Navarre) stand out immediately to these ears. The EP, plus three previous volumes, is out now, and comes highly recommended.

Shazz: Shazzer Project Z EP Part 1 (Dan Ghenacia, Chez Damier & Ben Vedren, Marc Brauner, Molly and EMS 250 AKA Kusmee Remixes) / Electronic Griot & Batignolles Square (April 2020 / Digital/12″ Vinyl)
A1. Shazz: “Hold Me” (Dan Ghenacia remix)
A2. Shazz: “Marathon Man” (Marc Brauner remix)
B1. Shazz: “Saint Georges” (H2H dub remix)
B2. Shazz: “SHAZZ-Le Marais” (EMS 250 & KUSMEE remix)

 


 

Originally published in 5 Mag issue 181: A Tribute to Mike Huckaby. Support 5 Mag by becoming a member for just $1 per issue.