Photo: Rendy Mahardhika

A longtime favourite artist of ours, drumming wizard, improviser and composer Booker Stardrum released yesterday his new solo album Close-up On The Outside, his first release for We Jazz Records. Even though it’s a solo record, the album feels collaborative and full of life, and it saw Stardrum join forces with a circle of trusted friends, including Anna Butterss, Jeremiah Chiu, Chris Williams, Lester St. Louis, Logan Hone, and Michael Coleman, to build something alive together. Stardrum “creates textures through midi controllers, samples, and loops”, as the press release describes, “wherein acoustic sequences are altered to fit plugged-in concepts or acoustic instrumentalists are brought in to humanize what he’s already mapped out electronically”. At its heart, Close-up On The Outside reflects on our connection to the world around us.

‘Dusk’ was the latest single to be let loose from the album. Of the track, Stardrum says:

“The original, working title for this piece was ‘Coyote at Dusk,’ named for a mangey coyote I used to see around my old neighborhood in LA. I dedicate this piece to all coyotes, especially the mangey ones. Thank you to my collaborator on this piece, Chris Williams, who approaches all music with such sensitivity, even mine ; )”

Listen to it below and be sure to grab the album straight after.