Fennesz | Artist
Christian Fennesz is an Austrian electronic composer and guitarist born 1962 in Vienna. Fennesz, who works under his surname only, utilizes guitar and notebook computers to make multilayered compositions that blend melody and treated samples with techno-influenced production. Fennesz was born and raised in Austria and studied music formally in art school. He started playing guitar around the age of 9. He initially performed as a member of the Austrian experimental rock band Maische before signing to electronic music label Mego as a solo artist. The influence of techno led him to begin composing with a laptop. In 1995 he released his first EP Instrument, which explored electro-acoustic and ambient stylings. In 1997, Fennesz released his debut full-length album Hotel Paral.lel, which saw him delve more explicitly into laptop production and early glitch aesthetics. He followed with the 1998 single "Plays", which contained near-unrecognizable covers of the Rolling Stones' "Paint It Black" and the Beach Boys' "Don't Talk (Put Your Head on My Shoulder)". In the following years, he collaborated with a variety of artists, including Peter "Pita" Rehberg and Jim O'Rourke as part of Fenn O'Berg. In 2001, he released his third studio album Endless Summer to widespread critical praise and recognition. He collaborated with figures such as David Sylvian, Keith Rowe, eRikm, Ryuichi Sakamoto in the following years, and released the albums Venice and Black Sea to further critical praise. Fennesz frequently collaborates with other leading electro-musicians including Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jim O'Rourke and Sparklehorse. One recent project "Mahler Remixed" involved reinterpreting samples of Gustav Mahler's esteemed classical orchestral works, using electo-acoustic processing. Outstanding Fennesz albums include Endless Summer (2001), Venice (2004), Black Sea (2008), Bécs (2014), Agora (2019) and Mosaic (2024). Regarding his studio production techniques, since the 1990s, Fennesz has worked with the programming software Max/MSP and the free patch Ppooll, which he runs in conjunction with the workstation Logic 9. In both studio and live settings, he routes his guitar through effects pedals (including a custom distortion box) and into his computer. There, it is processed and combined with Ppooll software plugins and tools such as samplers, synthesizers, effects, and MIDI controllers. In interview, Fennesz cites influences such as Brian Eno's early albums Another Green World and Taking Tiger Mountain, and the sounds of West African musicians such as Toumani Diabaté.
Artist Website: fennesz.com
Featured Albums: Fennesz
Related Artists: Ryuichi Sakamoto, Jim O'Rourke
