Melanie De Biasio is a Belgian vocalist who mixes jazz, blues, and soul. Born in Charleroi, Belgium in 1978,
De Biasio studied classical dance and flute before discovering her love of singing. She studied music at the Lemmens Institute in Leuven and the Brussels Conservatory.
De Biasio released her debut album, A Stomach Is Burning, in 2007. In 2013, she returned on
PIAS with
No Deal, an album that reached number five on Belgium's Ultratop chart and earned her a 2015 European Border Breakers Award. The release was also strongly supported in the U.K. by BBC DJ
Gilles Peterson, who had the singer perform at his 2015 Worldwide Awards ceremony.
Peterson helped put together
No Deal Remixed, issued on
PIAS in February 2015. Contributors included
Eels,
Seven Davis, Jr. and
Cinematic Orchestra.
De Biasio followed this up with the aural odyssey Blackened Cities on
Play It Again Sam in May 2016. The EP consisted of a single 24-minute suite-like track inspired by her travels through post-industrial environs such as Charleroi, Manchester, and Detroit. The composition provocatively explores European jazz, noir-ish soul, avant pop, electro, trip-hop, and classical crossover. The full-length
Lilies, recorded in comparatively sequestered conditions with simplified means, followed in 2017. ~ Matt Collar