Nubiyan Twist Share ‘Through The Noise (Chant 2)’ From ‘Blue Note Re:imagined II’
‘Blue Note Re:imagined II’ is out September 16.
Nine-piece afro-jazz outfit Nubiyan Twist have shared a fresh spin on Donald Byrd’s “Through The Noise (Chant 2).” The track will be featured on Blue Note Re:imagined II.
The project returns on September with a new 16-track compilation featuring fresh takes on music from the illustrious Blue Note Records vaults recorded by a heavyweight line-up of the UK jazz, soul, and R&B scene’s most hotly-tipped rising stars.
“We liked the idea of taking a track that might not be an obvious choice and when approaching our arrangement of Donald Byrd’s ‘Chant,’” shared the group.
“We were thinking about the unusual marriage of heavy swing found in both jazz and UK garage and 2-step. This was a connection we hadn’t consciously made before but one that became an exciting backdrop for our influences that include broken-beat, afrobeat and bebop. The lyrics are influenced by the ‘reimagined’ concept itself and the idea that the music forms a way for great musicians of the past to speak to us, in the present day.”
Arriving off the back of the widespread international success of the first volume, which topped jazz charts around the globe, Blue Note Re:imagined II once again infuses the spirit of the new UK jazz generation into the legendary label’s iconic catalog, balancing the genre’s tradition with its future and reflecting the melting pot of talent and diversity within the current scene.
The track follows Theon Cross’ reimagining of Thelonious Monk’s “Epistrophy,” which first appeared on Monk’s 1948 Blue Note album Genius Of Modern Music, Vol. 1. The London tuba player is known as a core member of Sons of Kemet, and he’s collaborated with artists like Moses Boyd, Nubya Garcia, Jon Batiste, Emeli Sandé, Kano, Lafawndah, and Makaya McCraven. The label released a 7” on July 8 of Theon Cross’ “Epistrophy” paired with Ego Ella May’s reimagining of visionary drummer Chico Hamilton’s “The Morning Side Of Love,” which was the first single released from the album.
“For more than eight decades the artists of Blue Note Records have continually pushed the envelope of contemporary music,” said Blue Note President Don Was. “Blue Note Re:imagined II once again honors that legacy by letting the UK’s most creative young artists reinvent the treasures of the Blue Note catalog through their own lens.”
Additional tracks on the album will include funk-pop duo Franc Moody’s version of Donald Byrd’s “Cristo Redentor,” fast-emerging vocalist Cherise’s take on Norah Jones’ “Sunrise,” Maya Delilah covering Neil Young’s “Harvest Moon,” which was recorded by Cassandra Wilson on her 1995 Blue Note album New Moon Daughter, Birmingham-born pianist Reuben James’ reimagining of Wayne Shorter’s ballad “Infant Eyes,” and more.
