The Predatory Wasp
Jazz collective Kokoroko channel the greats of West Africa, building on the foundations laid by Fela Kuti, Tony Allen and Ebo Taylor and lacing together their influences into a soul shaking, horn-fueled sound. Taken from their new album Tuff Times Never Last, Da Du Dah is breezy, jazz-and-funk-laced soul ripe for BBQs and struttin’.
Here’s another one I missed from last year, taken from American singer, songwriter and producer Bilal’s sixth studio album Adjust Brightness: a heady blend of soul, jazz and funk through an electronic lens. Full of life and warmth, there’s also a menacing undercurrent to The Story that adds to its allure.
SAULT’s Acts of Faith was originally released as a free download back in July 2024 before a surprise official release on Christmas day last month. I missed both of these releases, so I’m sharing the beautiful opening track now for everyone else whose fingers is a firmly on the pulse as mine.
Jacob Long aka Earthen Sea is an American electronic musician and producer. Formerly the bassist for post-hardcore bands Black Eyes and Mi Ami, Long transitioned to solo work, exploring ambient and dub techno landscapes. His previous album, 2022’s excellent Ghost Poems moved away from the dub techno that characterised his first two solo LPs and new release Recollections delves further into jazz and downtempo, albeit through a heavily muted, soft-focus lens.
Milan W.’s new album Leave Another Day feels like the culmination of 16 years weaving his way through projects like Crumar Young, Mittland Och Leo, Speedqueen, and Beach. Across 12 tracks, he distills dusky country, noir jazz, and indie-pop melancholia into a cohesive, dreamlike whole. His voice – weightless yet commanding – hovers in perfect suspension, threading through warm synth tones and intricate textures with the grace of an old soul navigating new terrain.
Following their excellent collaborative LP Dolphin, UK jazz maestro Greg Foat and Venetian electronic luminary Gigi Masin join forces once again for The Fish Factory Sessions, an exclusive release for Record Store Day 2024. Also featuring the talents Moses Boyd on drums and Tom Herbert on bass, Sabena is an alternative version of the track of the same name from Dolphin; a beautifully poignant tribute to Masin’s late wife, with this new version even more delicate than its predecessor.
https://gregfoat.bandcamp.com/album/the-fish-factory-sessions
Shout out to Alexander Crickdog for drawing my attention to Ms Ray’s incredible Wow Is Now EP from a few years ago, which remains a dinner party staple. Signs is similarly shimmery Sade-adjacent bedroom pop and hopefully signals an imminent album announcement.
This is taken from the Thom Yorke-composed original score for Daniele Luchetti’s film Confidenza, an adaptation of the Italian drama based on Domenico Starnone’s novel of the same name. The soundtrack LP sees Yorke working again with Sam Petts-Davies as well as the London Contemporary Orchestra alongside a jazz ensemble which included Robert Stillman and fellow The Smile bandmate Tom Skinner.
I’ve been sulking about the woeful Glastonbury line-up for the last few days, but now it’s time I got over it and got on with my life. And even though there are so few acts I’m excited about seeing that it genuinely makes me sad, there are a few glimmers of light; Arooj Aftab among them. To Remain/To Return is from Love In Exile, an album I completely missed last year, with Vijay Iyer on pianos and electronics, Shahzad Ismaily on bass and Moog synth Aftab’s soaring Urdu vocals.
Landing last week, Statues II is the culmination of a double album that began with his Statues I, released in August of this year, both of which follow his incredible collaboration with Dawn Richard on Pigments; one of the best album of 2022. Leaning hard into both ambient and jazz, OST is a fuzzy, celestial, faintly ominous delight.
The Predatory Wasp 