Written by Munich vocalist and composer Kilian Sladek releases “Gravity”, the next featured-guest single from his forthcoming album Colorblind, this Friday, 26 June. The track features guitarist Torsten Goods and is out on Bergson Music.
I first encountered Kilian at jazzahead in Bremen earlier this year, and came away wanting to hear more. Colorblind, due on 9 October on LP and all streaming platforms, is a significant new direction from his earlier work with Fragments on Unit Records. The release marks a move away from the atmospheric, ensemble-driven sound of those records and toward something more direct and song-centred, with the voice clearly up front throughout. The harmonic language is still firmly rooted in jazz, but the frame around it is neo-soul and R&B, and the results are immediately engaging.
The album was developed over roughly three years in close collaboration with pianist and producer Sam Hylton. Sladek composes first — building from piano, harmony and melody — before he and Hylton develop and produce the tracks together. That sequence matters: the beats are real and considered, but they serve the song rather than defining it, and the harmonic warmth that runs through the record is a direct result of starting from the music rather than the production. It is an approach that gives Colorblind a consistency of character across its full length.
“Gravity” is a strong entry point. Torsten Goods — Germany’s most widely regarded jazz guitar voice — brings a distinctly West Coast feel to the track, unhurried and warm, which suits the song’s subject matter well. Two further singles follow before the album lands: “All Yours” featuring Joo Kraus on 7 August, and “Café Indigo” featuring vocalist Karoline Weidt, trumpeter Lisa Buchholz and saxophonist Niko Zeidler on 18 September. The album also features Joshua Milo and drummer Lisa Wilhelm. Each guest was chosen for what they bring to a specific track, and the collaboration logic is embedded in the writing rather than added on top.
The album release will be followed by a live presentation at Bergson Kunstkraftwerk in Munich on 16 October. Bergson — developed from a former industrial heating plant in Aubing into one of west Munich’s most significant creative centres, with its own label, publishing infrastructure and resident artist pool — is both the home of this project and the label behind it. Sladek has been developing the live concept there over time through the “Kilian Sladek meets…” concert series, building the production and the audience step by step with different guest artists at each show. The 16 October date, with Torsten Goods and Karoline Weidt joining the full band on stage, brings that series to its conclusion.
I spoke with Kilian at length about the making of Colorblind, the shift from Fragments, and the thinking behind the collaboration choices. That interview will be published here closer to the album release in October.
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Last modified: June 14, 2026
