What makes Ally Hocking Howe’s EP ‘The Feather Came First’ a great listen is not the music itself, but the promise it carries: the promise of a great composer, and a great musician, who can mover through genres and blend elements from all sorts of sources to create something new
“I believe the melody is one of the most important things and I want it to always be significant. When I think the composition has reached a good level of complexity without sounding pretentious, then I am happy.”
“Morgana was a positive force in my life and gave me a lot of purpose”
“I’m very much a bassist in the sense that for a long time I’ve been in that supportive role, playing for a variety of artists of different genres. And with that I’ve had the good fortune to travel to different parts of the world, and live in The US. That exposure to different people and different sounds I think are what I consider to be some of the highlights.”
I first met Mina Yu at a Fem Belling performance; I was instantly blown away by her playing, her crisp sound, and the way that […] Read More
As a matter or fact, all the ballads in the album have a high charged emotional density, without ever turning into melodrama — this is probably due to Libor Smoldas’ earthy lyricism, Jakub Zomer’s ability to create haunting sonic undercurrents, and Sacha Kloostra’s carefully timed explosions, not to mention Ingrid James’ masterful control of her instrument.
The words ‘ethno-jazz’ and ‘folk-jazz’ often come up, when people try to describe Zela Margossian‘s music, but make no mistake: this is not a sub-genre, […] Read More
“I loved drums but also piano and composition, this why I decided to play the vibraphone and marimba; it sits right in the middle of both — a piano played with mallets. I’m joking, of course!”
“I did not expect the music that came out of me to be political, to be conscious jazz. I thought I would write a beautiful lovely AABA jazz standard that could swing.I didn’t realise that I was so angry or desperate.I didn’t realise I was so opinionated.”
Apparently, today is ‘Batman Day’ — the annual event started in celebration of the iconic comic book character’s 80th Anniversary, and it is evolving into […] Read More
