Berlioz at Koko

Jasper Atlee has enjoyed immense success under his Berlioz moniker. Within the first few singles, TikTok and Instagram users began using his jazz-house productions to soundtrack snippets of cinema. This particular genre of short-form entertainment fuelled an early burst of popularity and helped garner him millions of streams. Building on this momentum, his debut album open this wall was released in July of this year, a tight 11-track project packed with tantalisingly short songs (many under three minutes) that seem itching to be extended in DJ sets. Three back-to-back dates at Koko seem as fitting a place as any to see Berlioz realise his vision.

Formerly releasing music as Ted Jasper, Atlee draws inspiration from the art world to inform his latest persona. Berlioz’s own Spotify bio even reads: “If Matisse made house music.” It’s not a sincere claim, but his music has the flair of visual spectacle: airy saxophone floats over expansive drum grooves, which undergird the set while allowing the mind to create its own imagery.

Despite this, his lighting setup at Koko is fairly sparse – minimalist stagecraft and lighting mainly serve to highlight the artist himself. It’s an interesting choice to let the music speak for itself, rather than relying on flashy lighting rigs to coerce a crowd into a more receptive state. Taken to its logical extreme, this approach saw Fourtet playing a string of gigs in 2018 lit only by a couple of desk lamps. 

Minus the dazzling lighting setup, Berlioz instead manages the audience through a versatile selection of tracks from across jazz and house. Vocal samples and instrumentals weave around one other, all grounded in catchy rhythms which energise even the Tuesday-night crowd. His most popular song to date, deep in it, becomes mixed with a heavier house beat that lends suitable weight to the dancefloor. Another highlight comes with a pairing of sitar with moody organ chords – a sharp contrast against the breathy saxophone otherwise permeating the show.

Berlioz’s attitude is perhaps best summarised by one of his track titles: jazz is for ordinary people. Disregarding elitist attitudes evinced from some corners of the scene, he makes it accessible without diluting its essence. The genre has, after all, always been about movement. Working in the intersection between jazz and dance, Berlioz offers a beautiful synthesis. 

Ben Browning
Photos: Nick Bennett

For further information and future events visit Berlioz’s website here.

Watch the video for the single wash my sins away here: