Zita Swoon is a cosmopolitan crew of Antwerp internationalists, each with his own rucksack whose contents are cheerfully shared around among the group. Musicians with an open mind, who never do the same thing twice, live on stage. The driving force behind the collective is Stef Kamil Carlens, composer, lyricist, singer and musician. The songs he composes are insistent, with a groove that immediately speaks to a wide public. From absurd funk to the traditional business of the singer-songwriter, with here and there a dash of folk, blues and 1980s disco.
And now we have a whole new concept: Zita Swoon Group with the 'New Old World' project, a small orchestra whose familiar make-up is supplemented with a string trio and a classic grand piano. Stef Kamil Carlens and Aarich Jespers write out the music in full - genuine scores in which melody, harmony and arrangement determine the mood. Serious music for the classical concert hall. Speaking about his latest laboratory, developed in deSingel, Carlens says, "I feel the need to go deeper into various aspects of our work: experiment, melody and harmony, movement and rhythm. With Zita Swoon Group, I'm looking to bring music into perfect equilibrium with itself. The choice of instruments and amplifiers is becoming more important. And so is how it should sound in the concert hall".