This is absolutely acoustically fascinating￼

one of the sweetest things i've ever heard, it kills me again. respect

The title track from Jose James' new album out now on Brownswood Recordings.

Itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/fr/album/blackmagic/id547333074

Bandcamp: http://brownswoodrecordings.bandcamp.com/album/blackmagic

Amazonn: http://www.amazon.fr/Blackmagic/dp/B008OCN95E/ref=sr_shvl_album_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370355304&sr=301-1

Jose James - BLACKMAGIC

take u 2 another place.

Taken from the album 'Home' - due out in mid-February on Sound of Speed Records.

Culross Close are:

Eli Emmnauel - Bass
Hasani - Percussion & Incense
Anthony Kieron - Keys
Nathaniel Jiddu - Synthesizers
May Goode - Drums


Artwork c/o of Ears -  http://earstotheground.net/

Pre-order

Requiem + Reflections

Day Spa Studios Vol. 1 (Side A)

The Yussef Kamal Trio - Strings Of Light (BBC Rip)

When The Expansions self released their first single in 2013, the laid-back jazz funk of Lavender, it quickly gained strong support from soul and rare-groove aficionados including Kenny Dope, Dom Servini, Patrick Forge and Andy Smith. A run of shows followed and before long, when someone was asking if there was a soul-jazz band around to play with, “The Expansions” was the answer. 

Although this popularity meant a hiatus in releasing music, the band have been constantly busy, playing around Europe with legendary British-Ghanaian soul singer, Andrew Ashong and the exceptional, upcoming talent Connie Constance. 

There has also been a breakout project from drummer Jonny Drop - the album Sub Plot gained massive support and love from BBC Radio 6 Music’s Lauren Laverne. While keys-man Dave Koor has been busy playing shows with Gilles Peterson favourite Hector Plimmer, Shaun Escoffery, and Ego Ella May, improvising with Yussef Dayes (Yussef Kamaal) and Nubya Garcia, releasing music as Deoke and collaborating with label-mate Scrimshire on their Modified Man exploration. 

But always, The Expansions has remained a central focus and the true home of these four jazz and soul lovers, with occasional trips out to the country to form ideas and practice new music for the eventual album. 

Murmuration, recorded over three days at Big Noise in Southend, is constructed of single takes, with minimal overdubs, as the band attempt to capture the feeling and energy they create live. 

Debut single Breakthrough introduced the insanely catchy but deeply soulful blend of synths and groove, but here on the album that is explored to the fullest with longer breakdowns and more expansive, experimental solos. Pocket 5 displays the, possibly unexpected, influences of broken beat and almost combative rhythm playing – particularly in the complex guitar and keys breakdown where Koor and O’Keefe layer conflicting time signatures and battle to ride it out to the heavy drum return. 

Cannonball brings warm mellowness that delicately evolves through beats, touching on bossas alongside their fundamental hip-hop sensibilities. But even here there is a raucous zenith before the band sublimely recede into the silence of the a-side ending. 

Colossal album highlight Ivory Mountain is truly an epic. Evoking moments of 4Hero, there is a lightness of groove in the first half of this soulful exploration. But at the halfway point, all restraint is let go as a live string section joins the four quarters of the band for three glorious minutes of soulful disco. Evoking sounds of Quincy Jones, George Benson and Johnny Hammond, all the way through to a beautifully cacophonous finale. 

Dragonfly undoubtedly reflects on the work of Herbie Hancock and is the most direct throwback to the band’s earlier work, which is a welcome marker of how far they have come. A quintessential jazz funker. 

The album closes with the thoughtful and introverted shuffle of Miles Away. In the final eight minutes of Murmuration, The Expansions allow space and time to take precedence, with once-more-restrained peaks and developments. It becomes clear though, that the band cannot resist one last explosive finale, as they rise with screeching synths, strings and dubs for a perfect race to the finish line. 

You can hear the influences of Idris Muhammad, Grover Washington, even parallels with South London peers Yussef Kamaal and Ruby Rushton. But The Expansions have tirelessly worked to create a sound of their own and are very proud, along with label Albert’s Favourites, to finally share it.

Murmuration

Miles Away

Budapest born and based producer/keyboardist Szabolcs Bognar starts his new collaborative jazz project https://soundcloud.com/abasemusic with debut single "Skeme goes all city".
The base of the track is a smooth cinematic sounding riverbed of soothing harmonies where different instruments flow around in repetitive phrases. Every phrase repeats itself in the perfect length, as soon as you get your fix - a new melody kicks in.
"We wrote and recorded the track in one improvised studio session back in 2016. I brought the harmonic structure and the main melody and the band built on top of that. Everyone brought something to the table. It was recorded in the oldschool way, all the musicians in the same room, no headphones, no chance for correcting mistakes or editing. Raw. The title is a dedication to the New York graffiti pioneer Skeme and the power of self expression in Hip Hop culture." - Àbáse

"Fanni Zahár - flute, vocals 
Szabolcs Bognár - Rhodes 
Tamás Heilig - bass 
Tamás Czirják - drums 

Recorded, mixed & mastered at Studio Einz, Budapest 

Cover design by Fabian Kretz"

https://soundcloud.com/abasemusic

EP/LP coming soon...

Àbáse - Skeme Goes All City

Yussef Kamaal - String of Light (Live @ Jazz Cafe) ::: Mixing / Mastering (2016)

First single from the upcoming release Seven Wonders. New Movements in Australian Jazz & Soul A 14 track compilation recorded at Plug Seven Studios In Melbourne Collingwood, in partnership with Wondercore Island, due for release Feb 2020.

Without You (Featuring Steve Spacek) - Troubleman - Farout recordings 2004

Mark Pritchard

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