Black Top #1 With Special Guest Steve Williamson
Black Top's No. 1 with special guest Steve Williamson was offically released yesterday on Babel.The album which was recorded live is a genre-bending work leapfrogging generic concerns as it plays with elements of the avant-garde, free improvisation, Jamaican dub and electronica. Black Top brings the personal experiences and influences of the musicians into the Improv and Free Jazz world - a 'black' perspective that is in flux while interacting all the time with the vibes around it. Forming a shape-shifting unit they are dedicated to exploring the intersection between live instruments and lo-fi technology.
Through regular live performances at North London’s Café Oto and elsewhere, Black Top have concentrated on developing working relationships with musicians from across the cultural and generational spectrum, who can match their own technical dexterity and handle the element of surprise that’s ever-present in their experiments. Collaborators have included saxophonists Steve Williamson, Shabaka Hutchens and Jason Yarde, vocalist Cleveland Watkiss, flugel horn player Claude Deppa and trumpeter Byron Wallen.
Black Top is:
Orphy Robinson (trumpet, marimba, vibes, steel pan and various electronics)
has been a major figure in UK and international jazz since the 1980s,
releasing two critically acclaimed solo albums on the Blue Note label and
playing with a host of major artists including Don Cherry, David Murray,
Henry Threadgill, Courtney Pine, Jazz Warriors and Andy Shepherd.
Pat Thomas (keyboards, piano, various electronics) is one of the most
challenging and audacious pianists currently operating in the UK, with a
unique style that embraces improvisation, jazz and new music. He has played
with major figures in improvised music including Derek Bailey, Steve Noble,
Tony Oxley and Lol Coxhill.
Special Guest:
Steve Williamson (saxophones) has released three acclaimed solo albums,
including 1990’s A Waltz for Grace, in collaboration with legendary vocalist
Abbey Lincoln. He has played in the renowned ensembles Jazz Warriors,
Chris McGregor’s Brotherhood of Breath and Louis Moholo-Moholo’s Viva La
Black, and worked with Courtney Pine, Iain Ballamy, Maceo Parker and others.
REVIEWS
Financial Times (Mike Hobart) Black Top: #One – review
'...free jazz electronica with urban grit...'
Guardian (John Fordham) Black Top: #One review – edgy, uncompromising improv jazz
'edgy, uncompromising improv jazz'
Jazzwise (Kevin Le Gendre) Black Top New Forms
'...no rules is the only way to create a new jazz tradition today...'
BUY / LISTEN TO Black Top #1
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