Simon Jermyn is an Irish guitarist and electric bassist now based in Berlin, having recently relocated there after 11 years in New York City. He has worked with many of the world’s finest improvising musicians, including John Zorn, Jim Black, Aaron Parks, Chris Speed, Gerald Cleaver, Chris Lightcap, Tom Rainey, Michael Attias, and Anna Webber, among many others. He holds a PhD from Ulster University in Northern Ireland and has performed at venues and festivals around the U.S, Europe and Asia, including the Village Vanguard, Blue Note Beijing, The Stone, and Joe’s Pub.Jermyn’s latest project is Obsany, a new Berlin-based quartet that he leads from the guitar chair alongside three pillars of the European modern jazz scene: Petter Eldh on electric bass, Otis Sandsjö on tenor saxophone, and Lukas Akintaya on drums. 

For their recorded debut, the group is joined on several pieces by the alto saxophone luminary Michaël Attias. Obsany’s focus is on Jermyn’s compositions, an exciting and fun mixture of off-kilter grooves, surprising melodies, open improvisation and soundscapes. It’s music that is most likely to be filed under ‘jazz,’ though its influences run the gamut – from jazz and improvised music through electronica, new music, Afropop and rock. Obsany is a word that came to Jermyn in a dream—it doesn’t seem to exist in any language. It’s a fitting title for an album that resists categorization.Obsany (out February 28th on the Toronto label Elastic Recordings) is Jermyn’s 5th release, joining the group albums Trot A Mouse (2007) and Pictorial Atlas of Mammals (2015) and his solo albums Hymni (2010) and Processes (2021) in his canon. It’s a beautiful addition to an impressive and eclectic catalogue of work.