In order to record the compositions on his critically acclaimed 2022 release Gold, Alabaster DePlume instilled a culture of creativity by leading his ensembles in spontaneous composition and development. This resulted in an abundance of material that he has since produced and arranged, resulting in this collection. The direction here is firmly rooted in performance and less focused on post-production, featuring DePlume’s go-to collaborators in the London scene, and yielding particular space to percussionist Tom Skinner (The Smile, Sons of Kemet), vocalist Momoko Gill, and percussionist / vocalist Donna Thompson. The result is a raw, beautiful, percussive, group music, in-the-room music. You’re there. You’re here. Take a listen.
