Category Archives: Blog

Watch BIG | BRAVE’s video for new single ‘Of This Ilk’

21 April 2021

Photo: Mathieu Ball

BIG | BRAVE are ready to unleash their fifth studio record, VITAL, this Friday, and ahead of it, the trio have just released a brand new single. Titled ‘Of This Ilk’, the new track gives us another glimpse into their upcoming album and is offered with an accompanying video. Speaking about it, vocalist Robin Wattie remarked:

“This video and song is an ode to those that understand this all too well, all too deeply. There is a silent form of suffering that most do not share. It is a private shame that is very public. The percentage of the global population that take these painstaking, costly efforts in whitening, or rather more aptly, bleaching their skin is higher than a lot would understand, let alone, would ever consider. There is a billion dollar industry in injectables and cream-like products containing harsh and even life-threatening chemicals to lighten, clarify, and whiten one’s skin. This video is an ode to my younger self, and to all the other children, teens and adults of the past, present and future that have used bleach in every way possible, that withdrew from the sun, used clothespins on their nose, scraped their skin raw, buying every product available, in trying every means they can think of to achieve this exclusive coveted lightness, whiteness.”

Watch the video below.

VITAL is out on CD and digitally on April 23rd and on vinyl later in the summer through Southern Lord

Portico Quartet set to release new album, Terrain, next month

20 April 2021

Photo: Hannah Collins

Portico Quartet have a new album on the way entitled Terrain. Consisting of a three-part suite, in addition to their own musical language, the album sees them explore a new sonic terrain drawing on American minimalism and ambient. Terrain is reportedly closer to previous works like Line and Shed Song (Isla/2009), Rubidium (Portico Quartet/2012) and Immediately Visible (Memory Streams/2019), as the bands’s saxophonist Jack Wyllie explains:

“We’ve always had this side of the band in some form. The core of it is having a repeated pattern, around which other parts move in and out, and start to form a narrative. We used to do longer improvisations not dissimilar to this around the time of our second record Isla. On ‘Terrain’ we’ve really dug into it and explored that form. I suppose there are obvious influences such as American minimalism, but I was particularly inspired by the work of Japanese composer Midori Takada. Her approach, particularly on ‘Through the Looking Glass’, where she moves through different worlds incorporating elements of minimalism with non-Western instruments and melodies were at the front of my mind when writing this music”.

Speaking about the recording, drummer Duncan Bellamy stated that it “felt a bricolage of conflicting, shifting signs, subtle tension and multiple narratives. Andrei Tarkovsky’s ‘Mirror’ and British artist John Akomfrah’s incredible ‘Handsworth Songs’ were pivotal points of reference for me.”

Terrain is set for release on May 28th through Gondwana Records and ahead of it they have shared the sublime ‘Terrain II’. Take a listen below.

Sarah Neufeld teases upcoming album with third single ‘The Top’

15 April 2021

With only a month to go until Detritus lands in all its resplendent glory, Sarah Neufeld has shared a third staggering single from her upcoming album called ‘The Top’. The marvellous composer and violinist had already enticed us with the poignant and beautiful lead single ‘Stories’, followed by the enchanting and bewildering ‘With Love and Blindness’. Save for a few ethereal vocal parts at the end of the track,  ‘The Top’ is the only solo violin composition on Detritus, and as she puts it, “it’s a fast, furious, trance like piece to play live.” The single comes paired with a striking video directed by Kaveh Nabatian. Here it is.

Detritus is out on May 14th through Paper Bag Records in North America and One Little Independent Records in the rest of the world.

Masayoshi Fujita previews upcoming album, Bird Ambience, with title track

13 April 2021

Last month we heard and loved the gorgeous and delicate ‘Thunder’, the lead single taken from Masayoshi Fujita‘s upcoming album Bird Ambience. The master vibraphonist, multi-percussionist, and composer explores a new sonic direction on Bird Ambiance, turning the spotlight on the marimba and bringing to full fruition influences that he had kept separate until now, including his acoustic solo recordings, the electronic dub releases under his El Fog moniker, and his experimental improvisations.

Fujita is offering another glorious glimpse into the album with the title track now streaming. Featuring label mate Hatis Noit, on the new single Fujita “weaves in celestial choral samples”, as the press release describes,  “and slow-motion, skeletal glitch jazz drums.”

Wrap your ears around ‘Bird Ambience’ now and grab the album when it’s out on May 28th through Erased Tapes.

De Beren Gieren share video for new single ‘Stress Als Optie’ off upcoming album

09 April 2021

Photo: Alexander Popelier

Dutch-Belgian acoustic-electronic piano trio De Beren Gieren have announced the release of a new full-length album. Entitled Less Is Endless, the effort arrives on September 10th through Sdban Ultra, and saw Dijf Sanders and Frederik Segers take on the producer seat. The album “is an ode to a universe teeming with life,” describes the press release, adding that “it searches for vents through which life can emerge and evolve.”

Ahead of the album release, De Beren Gieren have shared the brilliant and outandish ‘Stress Als Optie’, serving as an intriguing taster for the album. The trio commented on the track:

“This was a tune we almost skipped. We had 4 parts and could not find the right feeling for the overall atmosphere. Luckily we did not give up and waited for the eureka moment. At first, the chords that make most of the song now were only meant to be the outro. But in the end, they became the main thing.”

‘Stress Als Optie’ is offered with an accompanying video made by Victor Van Rossem. Take a look.

Sons of Kemet set to release new album, Black to the Future, in May

02 April 2021

Three years on from the release of Mercury Prize nominated album Your Queen Is A Reptile, Sons of Kemet have a new album on the way entitled Black to the Future. Slated for a May 14th release through Impulse Records, Black to the Future features guest contributions from artists like Angel Bat Dawid, Moor Mother, D Double E, and Steve Williamson. Speaking about the album, bandleader Shabaka Hutchings had this to say:

“Black to the Future is a sonic poem for the invocation of power, remembrance and healing. It depicts a movement to redefine and reaffirm what it means to strive for Black power. The meaning is not universal and the cultural context of the listener will shape their understanding. Yet in the end, the overarching message remains the same: For humanity to progress we must consider what it means to be Black to the Future.”

Along with the news, Sons of Kemet have shared the wild, groovy and powerful lead single ‘Hustle’, featuring Kojey Radical and Liane la Havas. ‘Hustle’ comes with a video directed by Ashleigh Jadee and features Taitlyn and Kaylee Jaiy. About the video, Hutching added:

“The dancers represent the duality present within any struggle to transcend internal limitations. As the video progresses, we see that it’s only once the differing elements of the self are reconciled and act in unison that rebirth (symbolized by the immersion in water) can occur.”

We’ve been listening to ‘Hustle’ over and over again. Here it is.