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HCB 005CD
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After the success of their critically-acclaimed third album Sharpener (HCB 001CD/002LP, 2016), which reached #3 in the jazz charts and #14 in the independent music charts, London's brass juggernauts Hackney Colliery Band blaze back onto the scene with their first collaborative album, ushering in a whole new era for the band. Featuring collaborations with a host of key names in jazz and world music including amongst others the father of Ethio-jazz Mulatu Astatke, British jazz funk legend James Taylor, trombonist Dennis Rollins, UK saxophonist Pete Wareham, and Beninese singer-songwriter and Grammy Award-winner Angélique Kidjo, Hackney Colliery Band have effortlessly transformed their explosive live energy into 11 original recordings that push the groove and form in an accomplished manner. On Collaborations: Volume One, writers Steve Pretty, Olly Blackman, and Luke Christie have between them penned the outfit's most dynamic material to date. "Mm Mm'" (featuring Angélique Kidjo and Roundhouse Choir) merges Beninese grooves with wah pedal trumpet textures, and the rousing call-and-response between Kidjo's soaring vocal and the exhilarating choir adds a richness and depth to the composition. On "Snowfire", innovative Norwegian pianist Bugge Wesseltoft brings a Euro/nu-jazz feel, while Dennis "Funkybone" Rollins adds his trademark virtuoso trombone to the carnival-flavored "Ricochet". There's an energy, respect for tradition, and the exuberance of London in Hackney Colliery Band's work, best exemplified in the downright thrilling James Taylor collaboration "Hypothetical". "Netsanet" featuring Mulatu Astatke is a deep exploration of Mulatu's trademark Ethio-jazz, while "Crushing Lactic", composed by Tom Rogerson (fresh from a recent Brian Eno collaboration) has a frenzied flow, with big horns and driving rhythm section. Elsewhere, Pete Wareham (stalwart of the London jazz revival) lends his free-flowing sax to "What's Gone Before", leading you into a powerful communion of jazz and brass as Mulatu Astatke's "Derashe" takes the listener down a vibrating rhythmic path while accompanied by blasts of horns and Mulatu's trademark vibraphone. Two spoken word compositions ("Why Yellow" and "Climbing Up My Own Life Until I Die") featuring York-born writer and comedian Rob Auton lend an introspective voice.
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HCB 004LP
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LP version. 180 gram vinyl; gatefold sleeve. After the success of their critically-acclaimed third album Sharpener (HCB 001CD/002LP, 2016), which reached #3 in the jazz charts and #14 in the independent music charts, London's brass juggernauts Hackney Colliery Band blaze back onto the scene with their first collaborative album, ushering in a whole new era for the band. Featuring collaborations with a host of key names in jazz and world music including amongst others the father of Ethio-jazz Mulatu Astatke, British jazz funk legend James Taylor, trombonist Dennis Rollins, UK saxophonist Pete Wareham, and Beninese singer-songwriter and Grammy Award-winner Angélique Kidjo, Hackney Colliery Band have effortlessly transformed their explosive live energy into 11 original recordings that push the groove and form in an accomplished manner. On Collaborations: Volume One, writers Steve Pretty, Olly Blackman, and Luke Christie have between them penned the outfit's most dynamic material to date. "Mm Mm'" (featuring Angélique Kidjo and Roundhouse Choir) merges Beninese grooves with wah pedal trumpet textures, and the rousing call-and-response between Kidjo's soaring vocal and the exhilarating choir adds a richness and depth to the composition. On "Snowfire", innovative Norwegian pianist Bugge Wesseltoft brings a Euro/nu-jazz feel, while Dennis "Funkybone" Rollins adds his trademark virtuoso trombone to the carnival-flavored "Ricochet". There's an energy, respect for tradition, and the exuberance of London in Hackney Colliery Band's work, best exemplified in the downright thrilling James Taylor collaboration "Hypothetical". "Netsanet" featuring Mulatu Astatke is a deep exploration of Mulatu's trademark Ethio-jazz, while "Crushing Lactic", composed by Tom Rogerson (fresh from a recent Brian Eno collaboration) has a frenzied flow, with big horns and driving rhythm section. Elsewhere, Pete Wareham (stalwart of the London jazz revival) lends his free-flowing sax to "What's Gone Before", leading you into a powerful communion of jazz and brass as Mulatu Astatke's "Derashe" takes the listener down a vibrating rhythmic path while accompanied by blasts of horns and Mulatu's trademark vibraphone. Two spoken word compositions ("Why Yellow" and "Climbing Up My Own Life Until I Die") featuring York-born writer and comedian Rob Auton lend an introspective voice.
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HCB 003CD
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After the success of their critically-acclaimed third album Sharpener (HCB 001CD/002LP, 2016), London's brass juggernauts Hackney Colliery Band return with their first live album. With BBC Radio 2 describing them as "one of the best live bands we have in this country", their live shows have become legendary, selling out venues across the UK and Europe. Recorded over three shows in 2016 and early 2017, the recording captures the band in peak form. Playing largely original material from Sharpener and their second album Common Decency (2013), they also dust off some crowd favorites including their unique mash up of Prodigy covers, rousing versions of Blackstreet's "No Diggity" and Nirvana's "Heart-Shaped Box", and concluding with an acoustic version of Toto's "Africa" as they parade through the crowd at the end of the set. Hearing the band playing live is a very different experience from listening to their three studio albums; it becomes immediately obvious that, far from locked-down studio heads, these are some serious jazz improvisers, here stretching out on extended solos, and with a restless energy to push the groove and to form in new directions. But this consummate musicianship and skill is always worn very lightly: the band have always managed to present complex music in an extremely playful, fun way, and to a very broad demographic. Front man Steve Pretty's interactions with the crowd, raise the energy levels still further, and those with a good ear can listen out for some heart-warming moments from the audience, like the somewhat slurry man a little bit too close to the sound desk microphone singing along to "Heart-Shaped Box". It's the quirks and little imperfections make this album special. Rather than going through the recordings with a fine-tooth comb removing the trumpet cracks, sax squeaks, or drum mishits, which are inevitable in a 90-minute power set with seven brass musicians and two drummers, the production is minimal. With the brass band revival in full swing, Hackney Colliery Band manage to occupy their own very distinctive space. Washes of Scandinavian-influenced electronica collide with extended contemporary jazz improvisation, dancefloor-friendly beats contrast with pounding rock rhythms, and Balkanesque melodies nestle up against soul and hip hop grooves. This set owes as much to modern European jazz and American alternative rock as it does to New Orleans second lines or the traditional British brass bands to which their name pays tribute.
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2LP
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HCB 002LP
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After the phenomenal success of 2016's critically-acclaimed Sharpener, which hit number 3 in the iTunes jazz charts and number 14 in the Independent Album charts, Hackney Colliery Band present a double vinyl version of the album, featuring three bonus dancefloor-friendly tracks. On the back of two hugely successful albums and almost constant touring, HCB's third album Sharpener shows the band on more confident form than ever, with powerful new electronic elements and a dancefloor sensibility adding to the jazz, rock and soul for which they are known. Building on the strength of their critically-acclaimed original writing, Sharpener has a powerful set of originals at its core, alongside a trio of leftfield covers in the shape of Nirvana's "Heart-Shaped Box", Kwabs's "Wrong Or Right", and Three Trapped Tigers' "Cramm". With the addition of three covers, this vinyl release resounds with the humor, musicianship, and charm which HCB are known for. "Heroes", a bouncy tribute to the late David Bowie, "Rolling In The Deep" was commissioned as part of the band's 45 minute set at the closing ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games, and "Give It Up", as heard on the 2016 Ambrosia Deluxe custard advertisement. Album opener "Jump Then Run" echoes the sound of the legendary Moondog, while "Gather Your Wits" is a roof-raising rumble of brass and rebellious behavior. "Wrong Or Right", a soulful version of London soul star Kwabs's great tune, comes to life with juicy menace before "The Morning", an uplifting and anthemic arrangement, builds into joyous hedonism. "When You Know" gives space to the band's superb jazz chops, while album title track "Sharpener" is a big, bold, brassy, and utterly mesmerizing affair. It's perhaps the band's outstanding arrangements which sets them apart. From the intricacies of "Timelapse" to the introspection of "Reawake", from the punky rock groove of "It's Normally Bigger" (based on a true story) to the rave jazz of "Bread And Circuses", the arrangements throughout showcase writers Steve Pretty, Olly Blackman, and Luke Christie's contrasting styles and ability to switch from screaming energy to moody introspection, from cutting-edge jazz to dancefloor rave, proving that Hackney Colliery Band is not just another party brass band blowing through the usual pop covers. Double LP comes on heavyweight vinyl, one red, one blue; Comes in a gatefold sleeve.
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CD
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HCB 001CD
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On the back of two hugely successful albums and almost constant touring, Hackney Colliery Band's new album, Sharpener, shows the band in a more confident form than ever, with powerful new electronic elements and a dancefloor sensibility adding to the jazz, rock and soul for which they are known. Building on the strength of their critically-acclaimed original writing, Sharpener has a powerful set of originals at its core, alongside a trio of left-field covers in the shape of Nirvana's "Heart-Shaped Box", Kwabs's "Wrong or Right" and Three Trapped Tigers's "Cramm". It's a record that resounds with humor, charm and the hum of the glorious variety of musical genres that emanate from their hometown. Album opener "Jump Then Run" echoes the sound of the legendary Moondog, while "Gather Your Wits" is a roof-raising rumble of brass and rebellious behavior. "Wrong or Right", a soulful version of London soul star Kwabs's great tune, comes to life with juicy menace before "The Morning", an uplifting anthemic arrangement, builds into joyous hedonism. "When You Know" gives space to the band's superb jazz chops, while album title track "Sharpener" is a big, bold, brassy and utterly mesmerizing affair. It's perhaps the band's outstanding arrangements which sets them apart. From the intricacies of "Timelapse" to the introspection of "Reawake", from the punky rock groove of "It's Normally Bigger" (based on a true story) to the rave jazz of "Bread and Circuses", the arrangements throughout showcase writers Olly Blackman, Luke Christie and Steve Pretty's contrasting styles, able to switch from screaming energy to moody introspection, from cutting-edge jazz to dancefloor rave, and proving that Hackney Colliery Band is not just another party brass band blowing through the usual pop covers. Alongside main stage sets at festivals like Field Day and Love Supreme and collaborations with Amy Winehouse, Fyfe Dangerfield, Eliza Doolittle, Jamie Cullum, Andreya Triana, Williams Fairey Band, Rhodes and DJ Yoda, they have performed live sessions on BBC Radio 2 and Jazz FM, and their performances have been featured on BBC Two, Sky Arts and live at the BRIT, Mercury and Mobo Awards. The Times has said that Hackney Colliery Band are "redefining the brass band format for the 21st century."
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