Sons of Kemet x The Comet Is Coming frontman Shabaka Hutchings once again takes up his saxophone for “his most punk record yet”.

Shabaka is back on the saxophone on his latest album, Of The Earth, which is being released independently via his brand-new label, Shabaka Records. Shabaka: “This record is my celebration of freedom in creative self-expression. Before the pandemic, I could only play the clarinet and saxophone and knew nothing about music production (or how to play the flute), so this has been a journey of learning and a reflection on the music that’s been created as a result.”
 
On Friday 25 September, Shabaka will present his new album at AB, and tickets are still available. 

The presse on 'Of The Earth':

• ‘The jazz polymath wrote, played, produced, and mixed everything on his new solo album, weaving overlapping loops and knotty counterpoints into a dynamic suite of interconnected pieces. The structural foundation of Of the Earth is the loop—rhythms of various shapes and sizes tumble out of silence and whirl in place, and when Shabaka lands on an interesting pattern he’s not afraid to let it play on its own for a few bars. The tension in a given track comes from how those repeating cells support and interact with wind parts, which are melodically rich and thick with harmonies.’ - 7.9 /10 Pitchfork
• ‘Shabaka heeft intussen de weg naar de saxofoon weer gevonden en dat vieren we met Of The Earth. Shabaka heeft een scherp oor voor sterke melodieën, niet zelden in overlappende, herhalende minimalpatronen afgeleverd. De nummers zitten vol sterke vondsten; een rauwe randje hier en een opwindend ritme daar maken de boel nog spannender.’ – OOR
• Even in his earliest interviews, Hutchings expressed ambivalence about ‘jazz’, and his music has always pushed against expectations of the genre. In Of The Earth he has slipped its bonds almost entirely, crafting a holistic, electro-acoustic world music that defies categorisation. Another ‘new age’ in Shabaka’s story dawns.’ – Mojo
• ‘Shabaka n’a rien perdu de sa vigueur. Avec Of the Earth, le King nous offre un album innovant. Sur Go Astray, il s’essaye même au rap, instillant de la fraîcheur et convoquant des thèmes chers tels que l’esclavagisme. Si le tout se révèle quelque peu décousu, il officialise son retour au ténor, tout en poursuivant son exploration intarissable de nouveaux horizons musicaux.’ - ★★★★ Mowno