Kieran Hebden has drawn mixed reviews for his series of albums with experimental/free jazz icon Steve Reid. On the one hand, you can’t really hate on a good jazz record. But on the other hand, it’s been, like, “When’s all this nonsense going to stop so the new Four Tet album can come out?” Save for a nice little EP earlier this year, Hebden has set aside the click-hopping folktronica of Four Tet for these collaborations.
So on November 18, Domino Records will issue another one in the form of NYC. Here’s an excerpt from the press bio:
Domino Records is pleased to announce the release of NYC on November 18, 2008. The album was recorded by Hebden (also known by the name Four Tet) and Reid over two days in February, 2008. The choice of the recording location and studio is at the heart of what the new record is about. Think of a studio that’s seen Missy Elliot, Miles Davis, The Roots, Chic, Steve Reich, Ron Carter, and Joe Henderson record classic sides, then try to imagine a duo whose sound is so open-ended and original that it would be a surprisingly short step to connect them to anyone of those names – a sound that fuses the digital slash-and-staple of sampling and the irresistible momentum of jazz drumming, all without ever forgetting that there’s such a place as the dancefloor. The studio is Avatar, in Manhattan’s Hell’s Kitchen; the duo is Kieran Hebden and Steve Reid.
“Steve wanted to do something with the sound and feel of his home city,” explains Kieran. The whole set, down to the choice of tracks and their sequencing, was influenced by New York City’s (in)famous energies. “NYC is where giants walked the streets, the greatest musicians in the world could be heard on any given night; James Brown, Coltrane, Hendricks, Dylan, Sarah Vaughn and on and on. New York City is always in the rhythms” adds Steve.
“When I first started going to New York with Steve he showed me a different side to the city. He told me endless stories about the music that has come from there that he experienced, about life growing up there, and he also introduced me to old friends and musicians who know another city than the younger generation I know,” explains Kieran.
“Everything we did when making the record from choosing the studio to the food we ate to mixing the sounds to the order of tracks was done with New York in mind,” he continues. “The artwork for the album is made from pictures taken during the recording. The titles of the songs come from places where Steve is from and my visits. ‘Between B & C’ is where I stayed with a friend during the recording and ‘arrival’ and ‘departure’ are there because New York has only ever been about a week long trip for me that I make a few times each year. I know the city in short bursts.”
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