Giuseppe Ottaviani – Horizons [Part 2]
Earlier this year we saw the release of Giuseppe Ottaviani’s Horizons [Part 1]. And now we see the Italian producer deliver the second part of his epic-in-size and scope project; Horizons [Part 2]. This is fully available on vinyl, CD, streaming, and digital download for the first time.
When they take a new stylistic direction, it’s rare for the artists themselves to understate it. Giuseppe Ottaviani sees the change in music that spans his two Horizons albums as more a-moment-in-time “modification” to his sound. And not one that represents a permanent change. Nonetheless, you’d be hard-pressed to think of a producer within the last ten years who’s made quite such an audacious & remarkable ‘All-in’ musical leap as the Italian has.
Lockdown provided the initial inspirational gleaming for the non-club-centric nature of Horizons. Its initial single was over a year ago. However, it now feels like just the first of several inspirations, as opposed to its single guiding principle. To create an album that had a wholly different feel, the methodology of Giuseppe’s studio craft naturally had to adapt.
“Making this has been as satisfying as any major project I’ve undertaken. I’m delighted with how it turned out, and I know there isn’t a single track across its eighteen that I won’t stand by in twenty years’ time. I knew there would be more of a challenge to making it … but looking back I’m not sure, I anticipated to quite what degree. With some things in life, though, it’s just better not to know!
Each track that reached completion I could hear sounded significantly different from anything I’d made before. That had a way of setting the artistic bar higher for each one that followed. One aspect I particularly love about ‘Horizons’ is that it has a single feel and vibe that runs creatively, vocally, lyrically, tonally and sonically through it. It is the most ‘complete’ album collection I’ve made, and I couldn’t have done it without the incredibly talented group of singers and songwriters that gathered for it.”
Horizons part 2 collaborators and tracks
Perhaps even more challenging, though, he had to tap into a different sort of singer-songwriter to realize it. To do that, he searched for vocalists that were all but unknown within the trance space. This ensured that his own production hand was creatively forced, exploding any final music-making comfort zones that might exist.
In terms of the body of work he’s arrived with, you’d have to wonder if even Giuseppe himself realized exactly how evolutionary the end product would be. From the ever-shifting emotions of Richard Walters’ turn on ‘Keep You Safe’, to the bleak-yet-beautiful ‘Won’t Matter Much’ with singer Treetalk, the album is unafraid to touch those deeper themes.
That goes every bit as much for the stirring lament of ‘Bittersweet’, sung by Norway’s Katrine Stenbekk. As well as the haunting, but never-less-than-intriguing ‘Silhouettes & Outlines’, with vocals lent by Jess Ball. New to the ear too are the instrumental cuts ‘Under Dark Skies’ and ‘Celsius’. Both tracks resound with Giuseppe’s studio boom, along with high-achieving harmonies and frequencies. You can listen to Giuseppe Ottaviani- ‘Horizons’ Part 2 below!
