Lines, the brand new EP from the Claire James Trio, is now available from the Efpi online shop! Take a listen here…
You can download the 4 track EP for £3 or order the CD version for £5 (+£1 p&p) which also includes the download for immediate gratification. Don’t forget the trio are also performing a free gig at the Manchester Jazz Festival TODAY – 3pm in the festival pavilion in Albert Square, more details here. Come along and celebrate the release with the guys, and be amongst the first to get your hands on the CD.
All of us at Efpi are really excited about this collection of music, let us know what you think!
Efpi Records is delighted to present ‘Lines‘, the debut EP by the Claire James Trio – an exciting young piano trio led by Claire alongside Stewart Wilson on bass and Jim Molyneux on drums.
The trio brings together three musicians who take the fluent techniques and subtleties of sound gained from their classical training and apply them brilliantly to a contemporary jazz setting. As a pianist and composer Claire is influenced by British greats such as John Taylor and Nikki Iles as well as the rhythmic groove of Zoe Rahman, leading to an ensemble sound that is versatile and dynamic whilst continually evolving.
‘Lines’ features four of Claire’s original compositions and will be released on Monday 25th July 2011, available as a handmade CD and download through the Efpi online shop. You’ll also be able to purchase the CD at their gig at the Manchester Jazz Festival on the same day – they perform at 3pm in the Festival Pavilion in Albert Square, entry is free (more details here).
To whet your appetite for the release of ‘Lines’, check out the trio’s version of Nick Drake’s ‘Three Hours’ below (recorded in the same session) and check back on Monday to be amongst the first to hear the full EP!
It’s time to get stuck in to this year’s Manchester Jazz Festival, starting today!. To help you on your way, we’ve put together our Top Ten of things we want to see this year (arranged here in date order so as not to cause any arguments…). Enjoy!
1. Gambol & ACV - Sat 23rd 2pm/4pm – Festival Pavilion - Two out-of-town bands here, each led by the bassist. Chris Mapp’s Gambol (pictured above) drove up from Birmingham to play a blinding set at Sandbar for us earlier in the year and it’ll be a pleasure to see them back in Manchester, expect free-rock-jazz textures amongst everything else! ACV hail from Newcastle and we met them when HAQ played up there. Led by Andy Champion, they again take influences from a wide range of places i and out of the jazz tradition, it’s going to be great to see them live for the first time.
2. Claire James Trio - Mon 25th 3pm – Festival Pavilion. – A recent favourite at our Freedom Principle @ Sandbar series, Claire’s tunes and playing are a refreshing approach to the piano trio. We were so impressed that we’re releasing her debut EP (see official announcement soon…). Also featuring sometime Beats & Pieces drummer Jim Molyneux.
3. Corey Mwamba/Dave Kane/Joshua Blackmore - Mon 25th 8pm – Festival Pavilion. Corey Mwamba is turing out to be something of a force of nature, a incredible vibes player with a thirst for experimentation that means we’ve no idea what to expect, except that it’ll be well worth seeing. Dave Kane and Troyka’s Josh Blackmore are about as a good a rhythm section as you could ask for working in contemporary jazz today.
4. Adam Fairhall’s Imaginary Delta - Tues 26th 8pm – Band On The Wall. This year’s MJF Originals commission sees Adam blending elements from across the whole timeline of jazz. Expect to hear influences ranging from stride piano and blues right through to electronics, courtesy of Paul Rogers on laptop and turntables. If you’ve heard their duo album, you’ll be excited about this, and that’s just one of the many sides to this composer’s work.
5. Stuart McCallum Distilled Album Launch - Weds 27th 7:30pm – RNCM – Stuart has been at the forefront of Manchester’s creative community for a long time, and won the MJF New Talent award a few years ago (before funding cuts got rid of it). For anyone who’s seen him live recently (like, at Sandbar, for example), these are the tunes he’s been working on, but with a full wind and string ensemble. Expect some fiery guitar playing and an impressive visual display from visual artist Linder.
6. Skamel - Weds 27th 10pm – Matt & Phred’s - My band :-) Set up by Johnny Hunter initally to play the music of French Ska band Raspigaous, the sextet have broaden horizons to play a wide range of reggae/ska/dub music, alongside original tunes, all put through a “jazz” brain and opened up to allow plenty of improvisation and freedom. Perfect chance to unwind with a drink after Stuart McCallum’s gig at the RNCM.
7. Chris Cundy/Stephen Grew - Thurs 28th 1pm – St. Ann’s Church. Two solo recitals by phenomenal improvisers. Pianist Stephen we’re familiar with, having heard him with Evan Parker, Mick Beck and countless others, whereas Chris is a relatively new name to us (hailing as he does from the South-West), but the prospect of a bass clarinet solo set is far too intriguing a one to miss.
8. Edition Records Showcase - Thurs 28th 8pm – Band on the Wall - Edition appeared a few years ago and right away started producing some incredible releases from the likes of Phronesis, Bourne/Davis/Kane and many others. Here, label boss Dave Stapelton leads his quintet, follwed by young Danish sax player Marius Neset, who catapulted himself into our attention with some blistering displays in Django Bates’ group. Can’t ask for a bigger endorsement than that!
9. GoGo Penguin - Fri 29th 11:45am – Festival Pavilion – This trio should need no introduction. Anyone who’s witnessed their Sandbar performances will know all about the energy that Chris and the trio produce. They take the work done by the late Esbjorn Svenssion as a starting point and bring in a whole host of other influences to produce a moving set of music.
10. Richard Iles’ Miniature Brass Emporium - Fri 29th 8pm – Festival Pavilion – A master-composer, this sees the return of Richard’s large ensemble featuring the cream of Manchester’s jazz talent. Also featuring a very special guest, Iain Ballamy (him from Loose Tubes and Food…). Should be a very special night.
So there you go, there’s a whole host of other gigs happening, including some ones we’re really looking forward to but couldn’t fit in here. Check out the festival website for a full list of everything, and have a great week!
Efpi’s newest artists perform at Manchester Jazz Festival and celebrate the release of their new EP, ‘Lines’. Gig kicks off at 3pm FREE ENTRY – more details here
Massive thanks to everybody who came to the final Freedom Principle event of the season last week, featuring an Efpi supergroup of musicians performing compositions that had been submitted to us following our open call. It was a great night of great music, and we were also really pleased that the event was part of the Not Part Of festival – there’s lots of other amazing things going on during the festival, check out the listings…
We recorded (most of) the gig, and I’ll upload it here as soon as I get chance to get it all cut up. In the meantime though, check out the video below of us performing Adrian Stevenson’s tune ‘Indecision’. As I said, all of the compositions submitted were of a really high standard and it was shame we didn’t have time to play them all.
Thanks as always to Sandbar for being amazing hosts, to all the musicians that have performed since our opening night in September, and finally (but most importantly) to you, the audience, for supporting us – keep an eye out for what the autumn has in store…
Last gig of the season, featuring brand new compositions from members of HAQ and Beats & Pieces Big Band, alongside tunes composed by YOU! For full details on our call for compositions click here.
This is a great little festival with a great lineup, headlined by the Matthew Herbert Big Band. Check out the artists for the other 2 days too, be there or be square! More info here
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