With so much good music coming through thick and fast, it’s easy for albums to drop online and go overlooked. No lengthy write-ups as who reads those anyway? We keep it short and to the point because you’re here to listen to the music! Check out our weekly mini-guide below and if you like what you hear, click the links and support the artists.
Albums
Alfa Mist – Bring Backs
East London producer, pianist, and rapper Alfa Mist follows up his critically acclaimed 2019 LP’ Structuralism’ with ‘Bring Backs’. Arguably his best offering to date, he impresses with his languid and ethereal jazz-infused soundscapes as he explores his upbringing in musical form. The nine-song album features longtime collaborators Jamie Leeming (guitar), Kaya Thomas-Dyke (bass and vocals), Jamie Houghton (drums), and Johnny Woodham (trumpet) as well as rapper Lex Amor. Highly recommended to those who like their jazz mixed with a helping of hip-hop flavour on the side.
Rob Frye – Exoplanet
Rob Frye of the Bitchin’ Bajas blesses us with Exoplanet, his first album as a leader. A heady brew of improvised experimental jazz is what you get on this enticing album that features some of Chicago’s finest players, including Cooper Crain, Dan Quinlivan, Ben Lamar Gay, and Macie Stewart. Quin Kirchner, Tommaso Moretti, and Nick Ciontea – a winning combination!
The Fergus Quill Trio – Zoop Zoop
An album of many moods and textures chock-full of improvised jazz from The Fergus Quill Trio. Joining Quill is the thunderous Theo Goss (drums) and the prodigious Nico Widdowson (piano). Influenced by the classic piano trios of Oscar Peterson, Bill Evans, as well as contemporary classical music and free improvisation, this is an outstanding debut from the Leeds-based outfit.
Simon Goff – Vale
Berlin-based violinist and composer Simon Goff shares his dazzling debut album. Vale explores the interface between violin and technology and between the poles of intimacy and grandeur, as rich and deep and wide as the landscape that lies its heart, named after the Vale of York where Goff grew up. The album encapsulates a landscape and a place in time and an identity forged through youth and adulthood, all viewed from his current base in Berlin.
Vetle Nærø – Introspection
7K!, the contemporary and modern classical arm of !K7 Records drop ‘Introspection’ by 20-year-old Norwegian artist Vetle Nærø. The young musician is quickly becoming a notable figure in the instrumental scene, currently gaining significant attention from both the public and the world of film and TV. His new album follows his self-produced debut ‘By Heart’ and includes the hypnotic lead singles’ Waves, ‘Hypnagogia’ and ‘Collide.’
Leon Vynehall – Rare, Forever
Talented DJ and producer Leon Vynehall returns to Ninja Tune for his new album ‘Rare, Forever’. As always, his latest collection sees him continue his ambitious explorations in electronic music, traveling between the borderlines of house, ambient, industrial, soul, and beyond.
Satomimagae – Hanazono
Satomimagae drops her first release on RVNG Intl, following LPs and EPs on Chihei Hatakeyama’s White Paddy Mountain label. Press play and bask in her delicate vocals and minimal acoustic arrangements. I’ve been listening to this all week! Absouletly amazing album!
Ishmael Cormack – Fennec
Ishmael Cormack’s new album is a master class in pureness and minimalism. Gorgeous atmospheric electro-acoustics with touches of modern classical, within the unique, chilled, minimalistic beauty from the Somerset-based sound wizard. If you need to escape the stresses of modern life – click the play button. Oh, and one more thing, it’s also available as a name-your-price download. What’s not to like?
Danny Scott Lane – CAPUT
A gorgeous electronic album in which clarinet, flute, guitar, saxophone, and field recordings weave their way in and out to create a mesmerising musical texture – twelve beautiful songs, short slow-moving pieces that clock in at just 33 minutes. Highly recommended, you will love it from the first playful bleep to the last note.
EP’s
Lewis Daniel – States of Being
Saxophonist and composer Lewis Daniel shares his debut EP ‘States of Being’, a journey into the sonic world of the young composer and saxophonist, blurring the boundaries between jazz, hip-hop, gospel, garage, and grime. The result is both expansive and intricate, spanning the vast spectrum of Black music. Very recommended.
