For Berlin’s Jan Fabritius, the title of his latest album, CHAMBRE NOIRE – French for ‘Dark Room’ – is double-edged. On one hand, it’s a metaphor for his debilitating black moods after too many setbacks in too short of a time. On the other, it’s a direct reference to his favourite wine bar in Paris, where, over two years, he spent joyous hours and nights escalating his fascination for both natural wine and the French language alike. There’s darkness and then there’s darkness: Fabritius knows both well.
Fabritius had retreated to Paris in 2017 after managing Berlin’s renowned Calyx Mastering studios for five years - regular clients include Caribou, Moderat, Jóhann Jóhannsson and Richie Hawtin - and he subsequently enjoyed an intensely creative period in the French capital, releasing music under the name Colourful. Having returned to Berlin in 2019, however, to work for indie label City Slang he set out to release a new solo album.
According to Fabritius, “I tried my best to take something positive and valuable out of the Hades of emotions I found myself in, so CHAMBRE NOIRE isn’t an album that finds me wallowing in negativity. Instead it’s about hope and overcoming obstacles in life which at the time seem insurmountable. It’s about making peace with one’s own vulnerability.”
