EFG London Jazz Festival 2022 - Top Picks | Preview
This year marks EFG London Jazz Festival's 30th birthday.
As has become an annual Autumnal tradition, we're picking some of the performances and gigs which we're super excited about at Jazz Revelations ahead of the festival.
Taking place over 10 days - between the 11th and 20th of November - the festival hosts the hottest jazz talent, both established names, as well as some of the most exciting emerging talent.
Created in 1992 by live international music producers, Serious, the festival emerged from the long-standing Camden Jazz Week which was created in 1970; with the active support of the London Arts Board (now Arts Council England, London). The London Jazz Festival began to spread its wings by mixing international and British artists and a commitment to education activity. The aims of the festival still remain the same today; celebrating the place of jazz in a city which is at ease with its rich cultural diversity, and drawing in a multitude of venues across London.
With hundreds across the whole city, we've picked out some the gigs we're most excited about.
You can use our handy navigation menu to jump to which day/date you'd like to explore below:
FRIDAY 11 NOVEMBER 2022
Church of Sound present Surya Botofasina, Nate Mercereau, Carlos Niño + special guests
Surya Botofasina, Nate Mercereau and Carlos Niño have been playing and recording together extensively as a trio for the last year. Niño’s Extra Presence record was released this year, and features Mercereau heavily, while Niño and Mercereau can be heard on Botofasina’s debut album ‘Everyone’s Children’, which has just been released.
They will be gracing Church of Sound with an expansive performance, in which Niño’s exploratory percussion texturizations and Mercereau’s guitar synth and live sampling, will be shepherded by Botofasina’s spiritual keyboard playing - much inspired by his learnings from Swamini Alice Coltrane.
Binker Golding
Saxophonist Binker Golding will be playing music from his new album Dream Like A Dogwood Wild Boy, which was released on Gearbox Records earlier this year.
This album finds Golding moving towards a new sound that incorporates elements of blues, heart-land rock and Americana while remaining rooted in the jazz idiom. The songs explore themes of manhood, father and son relationships, friendship, love and sex, reflection, drinking, escapism, death, masculinity, and resilience. His quintet features some of the UK's most talented artists featuring pianist Sarah Tandy, guitarist Billy Adamson, double bass player Daniel Casimir and drummer Sam Jones.
Ishmael Ensemble
Over the past 5 years, producer, and saxophonist Pete Cunningham’s Ishmael Ensemble has gone from being a humble bedroom recording project to an integral part of the thriving U.K. Jazz scene.
The group's debut album A State Of Flow saw Cunningham explore an array of sonic scenery from lush cinematic soundscapes to raucous peaks of psychedelia that received high praise from listeners & journalists alike.
The group's follow-up record Visions of Light saw them further blur the lines between jazz & electronic music, taking the listener on an expansive journey in sound whilst flying the flag for their hometown of Bristol.
Even though it's sold out, absolutely try to get yourself a ticket, as Ally saw their 2021 London Jazz Festival performance, saying; "Without a shadow of a doubt, Ishmael Ensemble's performance was one of the high points of the festival".
Check out Ally's preview of their Dundundun remix here.
Jas Kayser + K15
One of the leading stars of London's vibrant Jazz scene right now, drummer Jas Kayser will be sharing new original material alongside music from her critically acclaimed 2021 debut album, Jas 5ive with a support DJ set from London’s own K15.
J to Z Late: Live from the EFG London Jazz Festival | FREE
J to Z returns for their legendary late night party from the opening night of the London Jazz Festival, broadcast live on BBC Radio 3. Joining host Jumoké Fashola at PizzaExpress Live (Holborn) is a top secret line-up of festival stars, including one of the world’s leading jazz vocalists, two of London’s most talked about young bands, and a piano virtuoso and Mercury Prize nominee [we can't guess who this is... Fergus McCreadie].
Although this late night performance is a free event, hurry as tickets are scarce...
SATURDAY 12 NOVEMBER 2022
Total Refreshment Centre presents: Rosie Turton and tyroneisaacstuart | FREE
Rosie Turton’s musical path is defined by her unwavering desire to explore new territories: sounds, cultures, textures and collaborations, she’s always open to discoveries. A mainstay of the new London Jazz scene, Rosie started the trombone at age 11 and later began playing with Tomorrow Warriors, which was instrumental in her development as a musician. In 2021, Rosie released EP Expansions and Transformations: Part I & II, an exploration of impermanence and evolution and how this intertwines music and mind.
Saxophonist, dancer and rapper tyroneisaacstuart honed his skills playing with Tomorrow’s Warriors while also dancing with Boy Blue Entertainment. Recipient of the Steve Reid Innovation Award in 2019-2020, he has since forged a practice where he is comfortable playing SXSW or Church of Sound one week, and dancing in Little Simz’ Brit Awards performance another.
CHICAGOxLONDON: Alabaster DePlume, Angel Bat Dawid, Ben LaMar Gay, Jeff Parker, and more…
EFG London Jazz Festival presents a special weekend at the Barbican focusing on generations of Chicago avant-garde redefining the future of jazz. The musical and spiritual connections of Chicago and London’s jazz scenes come together for a night of one-off collaborations and performances, bringing together a line-up made up of artists from Chicago label International Anthem’s incredible roster along with friends and family from London’s Total Refreshment Centre: Alabaster DePlume, the London-based Mancunian poet, saxophonist, composer, and mastermind of the legendary Peach series at TRC, hot on the heels of his critically lauded new album GOLD. Chicago’s spiritual jazz oracle Angel Bat Dawid also makes her third appearance at the EFG London Jazz Festival, putting together a one-off collaboration with some of her closest London-based friends and musicians in advance of her next album. Ben LaMar Gay – the versatile and prolific multi-instrumentalist, vocalist, and composer – and his quartet performing his latest album Open Arms to Open Us, channelling a radical array of sound, colour, and space through the universal language of folklore. Guitarist Jeff Parker of Tortoise and Chicago Underground fame (amongst others) joins the bill with a delicate solo set to perform material from his beautiful latest album Forfolks Joining them will be a number of guests from both sides of the Atlantic.
CHICAGOxLONDON 2022 continues the beautiful spirit of cross-border collaboration that has been building so gloriously since its first iteration was presented by International Anthem & EZH at Total Refreshment Centre in 2017.
Check out Ally's review of Jeff Parker's Suite For Max Brown here.
SUNDAY 13 NOVEMBER 2022
The Northern Line: Presented by EFG London Jazz Festival & Jazz North
EFG London Jazz Festival & Jazz North are proud to present a collection of artists from Jazz North's talent development scheme - The Northern Line.
Yaatri (2pm-3pm) Yaatri is an award winning five-piece art-rock/jazz crossover group formed in Leeds in 2018. Their blend of complex composition and ethereal soundscapes captivates the heart as well as the mind. Influenced by the momentum of the rhythms of India, immersive timbres of electronic music, and the energy of rock and roll, their music has a strong sense of purpose and journey. Ni Maxine (4pm-5pm) Ni Maxine is a Neo-Jazz Singer-Songwriter; a black woman navigating the modern world and exploring themes of home, identity, self-esteem and belonging. Born in North London and raised in Bristol, Ni Maxine moved to Liverpool in 2019. Maxine’s childhood was steeped in the deep cultural reference points of black history. She recalls her father’s love of jazz, her mother’s love of funk and rare groove, as well week-days in front of MTV Base and Sunday mornings in a gospel church, where she first learned to sing. Hannabiell & the Midnight Blue Collective (6pm-7pm) A high-energy Afro Fusion Collective fusing powerful and upbeat Latin & African percussion, brass, vocal chants, Blues, Jazz, Afro-beat, Funk, and Reggae to create a unique sound and an invigorating party atmosphere that will get you up on your feet.
Bill Laurance
Bill Laurance, the four-time Grammy-winning pianist, composer and founding member of fusion powerhouse Snarky Puppy, returns to Kings Place for a special EFG London Jazz Festival solo show.
Ash Walker Experience
Ash Walker Experience will headline the opening of Mama Shelter's Sunday Session on Sunday 13th November. Following his debut in 2015, this muti-instrumentalist and DJ has released three albums with sounds ranging from Jazz, Blues, Soul, Funk and Reggae. Walker is no stranger to iconic jazz venues, having played at the esteemed Jazz Café, as well as some of the UK’s biggest festivals.
Ash is joined by Ruby Francis and Josh Barry. Josh’s influences include James Brown, Otis Redding and Jimi Hendrix. He is known for his emotive vocal style which is as haunting against a backdrop of music, as well as acapella. He has won the Glastonbury Emerging Talent Contest and has toured as support to Rag N Bone Man. Ruby is a self-taught musician, with inspiration taken from Erykah Badu to Bjork.
Check out Ben's interview with Ash Walker and his review of Kennebec - Departure Remmixed.
Collocutor
Collocutor is a ground-breaking modal jazz ensemble formed and led by saxophonist/composer Tamar Osborn (aka Tamar Collocutor). Drawing on wide-ranging influences from electric-era Miles Davis to minimalism via Indian classical music and ethio-jazz, Collocutor’s approach reflects the meaning of their name: ‘a person taking part in a conversation’.
Over the course of three albums and an EP, the unique sound of the quintet (formerly septet) has matured into something exploratory, deep and compelling.
Sélène Saint-Aimé
The double bassist, singer and poet of Martinican and West African descent released her first album Mare Undarum to critical acclaim in 2020, navigating a unique path between contemporary jazz, Afro Caribbean rhythms and modern classical music. Her latest album Potomitan, was released in early 2022 to widespread critical acclaim.
Melanie Charles + Nadeem Din-Gabisi
Brooklyn-born Haitian singer, songwriter, producer, dancer, actress, flautist Melanie Charles is getting noticed for turning jazz on its head in more ways than one. Whether it is bringing a lifelong reverence to a back catalogue of jazz or calling out injustices in her co-hosted podcast ‘Make Jazz Trill Again’, Melanie Charles is a vocalist who ‘takes us on a journey that embodies the soul of jazz: exploration’ (NPR).
On her latest album on Verve, Y’all Don’t (Really) Care About Black Women, she flips the script by sampling the history of powerful Black women in jazz, and putting her own imprint on classics by Dinah Washington, Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Betty Carter, and more.
MONDAY 14 NOVEMBER 2022
Amy Gadiaga | FREE
Amy Gadiaga is bassist-vocalist and composer from Paris based in London. Connecting the old-school jazz singer's tradition and modern bops of artists such as the Jackson’s, Amy’s band offers energetic performances that celebrate artistry and freedom.
Amy bridges the old-school jazz vocalist tradition of musicians such as Betty Carter and Wayne Shorter with the modern bops of artists such as D'Angelo and Kimbra. A fast-rising star of the London Jazz Scene and recently signed by Jazz Re:Freshed, Amy's band offers an energetic performance that celebrates art, freedom and black pride.
Sarah Tandy
Sarah Tandy has swiftly risen to become one of the most in-demand players of her generation, performing on keys for Jazz Jamaica, Mr Jukes, Yazmin Lacey, Binker Golding, Poppy Ajudha, Camilla George, Nubya Garcia, Nerija, Daniel Casimir, Binker Golding, Nu Civilisation Orchestra, Maisha and many more.
Her debut album was released on Jazz Re:freshed in 2019, and she was nominated for the Jazz FM Breakthrough Act the same year. In 2020 she was awarded the Parliamentary Jazz Award for Best Instrumentalist.
Sarah's live shows have an electric quality to them; watching the pianist in what appears to be a transcendent state as she and her band throw themselves into their performance is something of a marvel to behold.
Check out Ben's review of Sarah Tandy's Infection in the Sentence here.
TUESDAY 15 NOVEMBER 2022
Chiminyo | FREE
Chiminyo (Tim Doyle) is a drummer and producer from North London who, with his tech-heavy drum kit set-up, combines the raw, immediate live sound of percussion and the futuristic timbres of his electronic productions to create his own, daring soundworld. Via laboriously self-coded software, each cymbal crash and drum hit triggers a synth or sample, allowing Chiminyo complete control and freeing him of all loops, click-tracks and backing tracks. Every sound effect is performed live, producing an idiosyncratic kind of music
Native Rebel Recordings presents: The Brother Moves On, Chelsea Carmichael, CoN & KwAkE
Native Rebel Recordings – the record label from multi-reed player and cultural instigator, Shabaka Hutchings - is hosting a special evening at EartH (Theatre) in Hackney. With sets from three Native Rebel artists, The Brother Moves On, Chelsea Carmichael and CoN & KwAkE.
The Brother Moves On are part of a powerful lineage of South African protest music – the 'most important band in the country' according to SA publication Platform. The internationally acclaimed outfit's genesis as a DIY collective of visual and performance artists shines through in the creative way they draw from past, present and future, in their phenomenal live shows, and in masterful resistance music that heals and challenges in equal measure. TBMO are fronted by Siyabonga Mthembu, who is also part of Shabaka's Hutchings' Shabaka and the Ancestors. Their album Tolika Mtoliki made Apple Music's top releases for 2021. Saxophonist, composer and arranger Chelsea Carmichael is a warm and hypnotic player who brings subtle and considered improvisation to everything she does. As well as leading her own band, she plays with Neue Grafik Ensemble, Theon Cross and the Outlook Orchestra amongst others. Her debut album The River Doesn’t Like Strangers was the first release on Native Rebel Recordings in 2021. CoN & KwAkE is a partnership of Confucius MC and Kwake Bass. Confucius has been embedded in the UK hip-hop scene since the early 2000’s, rising above the noise and cutting through the clichéd conversations, while Kwake is the musical director for Sampha, Kae Tempest, as well as collaborating with the likes of MF DOOM, Dean Blunt, Mica Levi, Tirzah, and his own band the Speakers Corner Quartet. Melding together hip-hop elements to spoken word aspects CoN&KwAkE utilise the flexibility offered by jazz with an intimate, experimental quality on their forthcoming debut album Eyes In The Tower.
Abdullah Ibrahim
South African pianist Abdullah Ibrahim returns to London - a mesmerising evening from a master musician. Any performance from Cape Town’s jazz hero is a journey through a lifetime’s experience; the musical melting pot of his upbringing (gospel and jive, American jazz and classical music, sacred and secular) and the music of his jazz heroes (Ellington and Coltrane amongst them) all skilfully embroidered by his free-flowing piano invention.
WEDNESDAY 16 NOVEMBER 2022
Tru Thoughts Takeover - Sly5thAve & Roberto Verástegui
Agua de Jamaica is the first collaborative project between producer, multi-instrumentalist, composer and arranger Sly5thave and pianist and composer Roberto Verástegui.
Epitomising this fusion of sounds and collaborative talents, laced with nods to funk and hip hop, composer and arranger Sly5thave and pianist and composer Roberto Verástegui improvised a jazz reworking before taking it home to layer synths, piano and beats. With a constant backbeat and harmonic pattern courtesy of Sly5thAve, Roberto’s Hammond organ takes the experimental jazz centre stage.
Camilla George
This is Camilla George's first London show performing music from her new album Ibio-Ibio.
With a love of fusing African and Western sounds, her music is a delightful blend of Afrofuturism, hip hop and jazz. A star of the renowned Jazz Jamaica, she’s since gone on to produce two albums of critical acclaim in Isang and The People Could Fly.
Camilla's music is warm yet authoritative, relaxed yet imaginative.
Check out Camilla George's 'On Rotation' picks here.
Kinkajous
Kinkajous explores the space between jazz, orchestral and electronic music, in a compelling mix of tonalities and influences drawn from their London home. Led by drummer/producer Benoît Parmentier and saxophonist/clarinettist Adrien Cau, they have earned a reputation for conjuring up a powerful and cinematic sound.
Touching on ideas of certainty, belief and identity, their highly anticipated second album Being Waves was released at the end of 2021. With its blend of acoustic and orchestral instrumentation, analogue synthesis and sampling processes, there is an elaborate yet organic feel to the music.
Joined by Jack Doherty (synths), Maria Chiara Argirò (keys) and Andres Castellanos (bass), their live performances are exhilarating yet intimate, reflecting the band’s outstanding musicianship and versatility.
Check out Robbie's review of Being Waves here.
TRU THOUGHTS TAKEOVER - Late Late Show with Bryony Jarman-Pinto and DJ Nostalgia 77
Bryony Jarman-Pinto is an expressive and adventurous singer-songwriter, combining harmonious vocals and mesmerising jazz-fused melodies with personal and complex lyrics. Plus DJ sets from Nostalgia 77.
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Exploring a crossover of genres as she develops her style as an artist, Bryony Jarman-Pinto draws influence from the likes of Hiatus Koyote and Solange to Zara Macfarlane and Lianne La Havas. She finds herself increasingly merging elements of folk music with the jazz and world influences of her youth, for a sound that is truly her own.
Nostalgia 77 first burst onto the scene with his heavy, new-funk based sound in 2002. Also known as Ben Lamdin, his hard work and prolific creation process has seen many of his outstanding records being released on Tru Thoughts for over a decade.