Lorenzo Feliciati

Lorenzo Feliciati, an Italian bassist, has built a body of work that consistently merges jazz sensibilities with prog-rock structures. His collaborative output encompasses releases credited to the groups Naked Truth and Wasabi.

A largely self-taught player, Feliciati discovered his focus on fretless electric bass at age fourteen after attending a 1982 concert by Jaco Pastorius. By twenty he was performing in Rome clubs while deepening his immersion in the styles of Percy Jones, Mick Karn, and Pino Palladino. His first album, Upon My Head, appeared as a self-release in 2003; Schoots Records reissued it two years later and followed with Live at European BassDay & More in 2006.

While maintaining a schedule of session dates, road work, and teaching at major clinics, Feliciati assembled the jazz-fusion ensemble Naked Truth alongside trumpeter Graham Haynes, keyboardist Roy Powell, and Pat Mastelotto of King Crimson. The band delivered Shizaru in 2011 and Ouroboros the next year, both on RareNoise Records. Cuneiform Records put out Holy Abyss in 2012, documenting a project pairing Feliciati with guitarist Joel Harrison and featuring Powell, trumpeter Cuong Vu, and drummer Dan Weiss. Feliciati subsequently shifted his solo output to RareNoise, which issued Frequent Flyer later that same year.

The calendar year 2014 proved especially productive, yielding Twinscapes with Colin Edwin as well as Napoli, recorded with Powell and drummer Maxx Furian. The same year saw the trio Wasabi—Feliciati on double bass, Alessandro Gwis on keys, and Emanuele Smimmo on drums—release Closer. Feliciati returned in 2015 with the expansive concept album Koi, scored for full ensemble and horn section that incorporated Mastelotto. Naked Truth also regrouped that year, producing their third album, Avian Thug, issued in early 2016. Elevator Man, released in 2017 and again featuring Mastelotto and Powell, added guest contributions from Vu, Chad Wackerman of Banned from Utopia, and guitarists Mattias “IA” Eklundh and Marco Sfogli, together with numerous additional musicians.