Munich’s post-rock-infused jazz 5-piece FAZER has shared their first single and video since signing with City Slang (label home to Caribou, Calexico, José González, Lambchop, among many others). “ Grenadier ” is a perfect introduction to the FAZER universe. Moving freely between composition and improvisation, the band’s spacious, organic sound pitches lyrical melodies from guitar and trumpet over dual-drummer polyrhythmic grooves and dub-like basslines with a distinct Ethio Jazz vibe.

Celebrating the signing of the quintet to City Slang, label founder Christof Ellinghaus goes on record: “When you get introduced to a guy, at 4 am in the morning, in the sweet spot on the main floor at Berghain, during the first-ever set thereof the one and only d&b legend Goldie… it’s not like any conversation will make a whole lot of sense, or reach a certain depth… but, at least you can exchange numbers. What could possibly go wrong? And sure enough, this chance meeting with a guy from Munich, who turns out to be Martin Brugger in FAZER, well… it led to him sending us music, and us flipping out over the unique post-rock textures in their very Teutonic cup of jazz. Listening to FAZER immediately took us back to our own glorious Tortoise days, but then here’s a bunch of musicians from Munich picking up the baton and running with it, turning it into their own groove machine? Well, count us in!“

The menacing video for “Grenadier” was written and directed by Johannes Brugger, who shares:  “I wanted to experiment with dream-like narrative elements. The story takes place in a dark alley, imaginary but strangely familiar thanks to tons of American movies we’ve watched. It takes place at an indeterminable time and plays the one dream we all had about running away from something to no avail.”