Archie Shepp Quartet // Get The Blessing // Soweto Kinch

Archie Shepp worked with Cecil Taylor and Bill Dixon around 1960 before becoming a member of John Coltrane’s inner circle. In 1965 he played on Coltrane’s album “Ascension”. His cry got under one’s skin and more often than not his themes were politically or socially motivated. Over the years his flaming avant-gardism has mellowed and he merged traditional elements like blues, gospel and spirituals – without compromising his radical musical attitude.

ArchieShepp homepage

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Their godfather was the Ornette Coleman Quartet, whose song “The Blessing” was their namesake back in 2000 when they formed. Since then, Get The Blessing has earned itself the reputation of being one of the most interesting and non-conformist jazz formations in England. Their improvisations are unpredictable, their multi-layered soundscapes are hypnotic, and their hip-hop, dub and lo-fi infused grooves are intensely gripping. This comes as no surprise because Get The Blessing’s hometown is Bristol where Jim Barr and Clive Deamer stirred up the pop world with trip-hop legends Portishead back in the ’90s.

“Fiercely intelligent music in which muted trumpet and saxophone, enhanced by thoughtful washes of electronica, perform pirouettes over refreshingly melodic vamps.”
Sunday Times

TheBlessing homepage

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When Soweto Kinch surfaced in Germany in the late ‘90s with Jazz Jamaica or Gary Crosby’s Nu Troop – including an appearance at the Berlin Jazz Festival 2000 – the young alto saxophonist from Great Britain was celebrated as the brilliant scion of Eric Dolphy, Ornette Coleman and the English jazz pioneer Joe Harriott. But it was not enough for Soweto Kinch to be measured against the past: he wanted to pursue his own course. And with his special blend of freely improvised jazz, musical fragments from his Caribbean forefathers and rap that focuses on everyday life in Great Britain’s cities, he quickly ensured a wide following that goes far beyond the borders of the jazz community. Social commitment, coupled with a sense of multi-cultural traditions, accounts for the extraordinary urgency of his music in the present day.

“I’m really excited about these shows, the stripped trio format allows me more harmonic freedom and space to deliver lyrics. Moreover, I’m excited about integrating new things into the show, such as tenor sax and live looping.”
Soweto Kinch

SowetoKinch homepage