Photo: Shannon Marks

With his much anticipated new album Yowzers arriving in three weeks, and following the powerful and poignant title track, the inimitable Ben LaMar Gay has unveiled a second stirring track, offering another glimpse into what might be one of our favourite albums of the year. Titled ‘John, John Henry’, the new track finds the Chicago-born composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and storyteller reimagining a cornerstone of American folklore with profound emotional and political resonance. ‘John, John Henry’ is his interpretation of the American folk myth ‘The Ballad of John Henry’, a late 1800s song previously performed by the likes of Lead Belly, Dave Van Ronk, Songs: Ohia, and Rhiannon Giddens. Speaking about it, Gay shares:

“The intriguing thing about folklore is how it allows you to experience the depth of time, and the beauty of spreading information by word of mouth… The fact that only certain folk songs survive the test of time makes me wonder about the coded gems that live inside this information and the necessity of the eternal whisper in which it travels. I was young the first time I heard the name, “John Henry.” It was blasting from a cartoon on T.V. “JJJJohnnn Henryyyy!” echoed through the house and stayed. My experience with the legend up to now has been similar to playing telephone, the game where people form a circle to relay a quiet whisper of a message sent from another side of the circle. My version of the John Henry legend is me dealing with the moment when that eternal whisper finally finds my ear, inside the circle. “John, John Henry” can be heard as an extension of the perpetual theme “Man vs Machine” or “Man vs System”. One American moment. One American crossfire. It’s also an ode to the big cousin we all have who somehow believes in us and vows to protect us.”

If these first two singles are anything to go by, we’re in for an absolute treat. Take a listen to ‘John, John Henry’ now.

Yowzers is out on June 6th through International Anthem

Photo: Joe Jones

There’s wonderful news from tremendously talented and versatile composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and poet Ben LaMar Gay, who has announced the release of a new album. Entitled Yowzers, the upcoming record follows two critically acclaimed and outstanding albums – 2018’s Downtown Castles Can Never Block the Sun and 2021’s Open Arms to Open Us.​ Described as a “joyfully irreverent psychedelic fantasia of folklore, free jazz, and avant-garde Blues”, the album remains as daring and inventive as ever.

Yowzers features Gay’s longstanding quartet – Tommaso Moretti (drums, percussion, voice), Matthew Davis (tuba, piano, bells, voice), and Will Faber (guitar, ngoni, bells, voice) – whose chemistry has been honed over years of playing together. “A big part of the language this quartet has developed is spatial,” says Gay. “It’s seeing and hearing it live. You’re dealing with a thing that is older than the industry that sells it, and if you’ve never experienced those bodies in a room, there can be a disconnect.”

The album was recorded live at Palisade Studios in Chicago, capturing the spontaneous energy of the quartet in the moment. Gay also composed and recorded additional pieces at International Anthem HQ, collaborating with engineer Dave Vettraino and enlisting the help of his bandmates, woodwind player Rob Frye, and a mini-choir comprising vocalists Ayanna Woods, Tramaine Parker, and Ugochi Nwaogwugwu.​

We’ll have to wait until June 6th for Yowzers to be out through International Anthem but we can already hear the album’s title track, which serves as a powerful and poignant opener. Speaking about it, Gay comments:

“’Yowzers’ was a word and a sound that came to mind while observing the intersection of humor and horror in our present reality. On one side of a coin flip, “yowzers” is a deep sigh that quietly exits the body after facing the absurd. On the other side, it is a cry of amazement at how many secrets were left behind to help us endure and transcend the absurdity.”

Wrap your ears around ‘Yowzers’ now.

Photo: Charles Bouril

There’s wonderful news from musical polymath Ben LaMar Gay, who has yesterday announced the release of a new album, following last year’s outstanding and adventurous Open Arms to Open Us. Entitled Certain Reveries, the album will see the light of day on November 11th through International Anthem. As the press release describes, Certain Reveries is “a collection of work involving sound, fabric, movement, rivers, shadows, Lagosian memories, light and listening”.

Performed in duo with percussionist Tommaso Moretti, the album was originally filmed by Chris Strong for EFG London Jazz Fest’s live-stream program in 2020. At the time, the tremendously talented and versatile composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and poet presented Certain Reveries in three parts, each divided by a short film conceptualized, choreographed, and directed by him, as a tribute to the late multi-instrumentalist, vocalist and composer Eddie Harris.

Alongside the announcement, Gay has shared the album’s lead single, ‘Água Futurism’, a staggering 11-minute piece offered with a live video directed by Chris Strong. Watch it now.

In other related good news, Ben LaMar Gay is returning to the UK/EU this Autumn for a series of live dates, which includes a London show at The Barbican as part of CHICAGOxLONDON 2022. See the full run of dates below:

Oct 28 – Klub Stodoła, Warsaw, Poland
Oct 29 – Opus Jazz Club, Budapest, Hungary
Oct 30 – Fauves! Festival, Rome, Italy
Nov 2 – Jazzclub Fasching, Stockholm, Sweden
Nov 3 – Alte Feuerwache, Mannheim, Germany
Nov 4 – art.ist, Wiesbaden, Germany
Nov 5 – Palace, St. Gallen, Switzerland
Nov 6 – Haus der Berliner Festspiele, Berlin, Germany
Nov 8 – Ancienne Belgique, Brussels, Belgium
Nov 9 – Teatro Spazio 89, Milan, Italy
Nov 11 – Sala Vanni, Firenze, Italy
Nov 12 – Barbican Centre, London, England

Photo: Alejandro Ayala

Open Arms to Open Us, the outstanding and adventurous new album from musical polymath Ben LaMar Gay, slipped under our radar when it came out last month but we now have it firmly stuck in our ears and hearts. One of the year’s standout records, Open Arms to Open Us is an impressive feat with disparate stylistic dimensions. On his new album, the tremendously talented and versatile composer, multi-instrumentalist, singer and poet runs the gamut from blues, jazz and R&B to Tropicália, hip-hop and eletronica, and everything in between, often within the same track.

In adition to Tommaso Moretti on drums, Matthew Davis on tuba, and Rob Frye on woodwinds, Open Arms to Open Us saw Gay enlist a cast of stellar collaborators, including OHMME singers Sima Cunningham and Macie Stewart, bassist/vocalist/arranger Ayanna Woods, multi-disciplinary Rwandan artist Dorothée Munyaneza, poet A.Martinez, cellist Tomeka Reid, and vocalists Onye Ozuzu, Gira Dahnee, and Angel Bat Dawid.

In an accompanying prologue written by him, Gay says the album “deals with rhythm as an inheritance of information – sort of like DNA or RNA. Coping with the present-day bombardment of data and recycled ideologies from sources essentially fed by the creed “Destroy Them. Own the Earth” often leaves me with only one thing to look forward to: Rhythm. More than anything, I’d like my babies to always trust in rhythm. It’s the one trueness that travels great distances and constantly survives the crumbling of facades.”

He continues:

“Open Arms to Open Us is full of rhythm or information that will assist my young folk in dealing with the repetition of things that aim to harm them or stunt their holistic progression. The title is a suggestion of a body movement that is used in many spiritual practices and is also a gesture that represents a type of understanding that leads to touch or a hug. The music is for dancing, reflecting, celebrating, bellowing, bawling, stimulation, focus and deciphering messages from loved ones here and beyond. It was the space in between the sound of my great grandfather’s hammer that made me understand that, no matter what, We Gon Win.”

For a taste of the out-of-the-box sound and far flung influences at play in the album, here’s the three marvelous singles that preceded its release, ‘Sometimes I Forget How Summer Looks On You (feat. Ohmme)’, ‘Aunt Lola and the Quail’ and ‘Oh Great Be The Lake’.

Open Arms to Open Us is out now through International Anthem and Nonesuch Records.