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Bex Burch: There Is Only Love and Fear
New album: Charming eccentric, experimental debut by the Leeds-raised Berlin-based composer, percussionist, producer and instrument maker whose LP conjures up delicate, rhythmic African-inflected jazz-folk-traditional magic with variety of acoustic-instrument collaborators alongside her very own handmade xylophone
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Alabaster DePlume: Come With Fierce Grace
New album: After last year’s Gold, another offbeat, truly oddball but original offering by Manchester-raised, London-based Gus Fairburn, his jittery side-of-mouth sax style and gnomic, mantra-style lyrics with guest such as Guinea vocalist Falle Nioke and polyrhythmic drummer Sarathy Korwar to fuse Afrobeat with clunky alt-folk-jazz
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The posthumous Jamie Branch album and the third in the Fly or Die series
New album: A posthumous release for the brilliantly innovative New York Chicago-raised jazz trumpeter with punk ethic or died last year aged just 39, with wonderful experimental sounds following 2017’s Fly Or Die and 2019’s Fly Or Die II – Bird Dogs of Paradise albums
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Makaya McCraven: In These Times
New album: An intricately beautiful and mesmeric fusion of polyrhythm and melody by the Paris-born, Chicago-based percussionist and composer, bringing together cosmic jazz, hip-hop breakbeats, funk, classical and African influences on this sublime fourth album, released back in September
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Alabaster DePlume: Gold
New album: The nom de plume of London-based Mancunian jazz artist Angus Fairbairn returns with a mesmeric selection of 19 numbers, his intimate jittery saxophone embellished with a wider range of acoustic sounds, choral backing, and offbeat and inspiringly strange spoken word
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Nine more albums to investigate …
Album reviews roundup: Psychedelia, jazz, prog and electronica dominate this week, including a synth album by the Smashing Pumpkins, eastern flavours by King Gizzard, exquisite Norwegian vocals by Ane Grun and a superb debut by Jack Cheshire
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The Specials are in their 40th anniversary, but how does the new album shape up?
Brass beauty from Beirut, a 40th anniversary album from The Specials. and a new solo album from the Stone Roses frontman are among this week’s roundup of releases that are various experimental, rock, electronica and more
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