This nine-piece jazz-fusion collective are midway through a tour marking their fourth album, ‘Find Your Flame’, which has gone down a storm since its release at the beginning of the month. Having seen the group deliver a memorably energetic set at Beckenham’s ‘Naked City Festival’ in 2019, I was curious to see how they had evolved and developed since.
The night’s supporting act was corto.alto, a jazz collective founded by the Glasgow-based multi-instrumentalist, composer, and producer Liam Shortall. The bassy, brassy textures of the set belied the fact that there were only three musicians on stage: Liam on trombone and guitar, Mateusz Sobieski on sax, and Graham Costello on drums. This weightiness came partly from Shortall’s skilful, electronic production, which often veered into heavy dub, and Costello’s dextrous drum patterns. This group are at the frontiers of electronic jazz, and certainly ones to watch.
The most obvious change with Nubiyan Twist since 2019 is the permanent addition of Sheffield-based vocalist Aziza Jaye up front. She is as comfortable spitting bars in patois as she is with silky R&B melodies, and her charismatic presence quickly helped to warm up a slightly shy Cambridge audience.
As for the ensemble, the big-band sound, muscular bass lines and tight musicianship are as infectious as ever, making for an exceptional live experience. The wellspring of musical sounds from which they draw inspiration seems deeper than ever; styles from ethio-jazz to dancehall all found a convincing place within tonight’s musical tapestry, prompting exuberant dancing as the night progressed.
Most of the evening’s songs came from the group’s latest album, with highlights including Slow Breath, an afro-beat number that draws upon traditional Malian musical idioms. A contemplative guitar solo towards its close from the bandleader Tom Excell provided an atmospheric punctuation to an otherwise very full-on musical experience. The fierce Woman was a gritty feminist anthem, for which Jaye channelled her best Little Simz energy, while the horn section blasted triumphantly in support. For the lilting R&B number So Mi Stay (here on YouTube), Jaye encouraged us to “engage our hips”, while Carry Me elicited an audience call and response, which was interspersed with delicious horn licks.
The rousing anthem Pray For Me rounded off this lively evening in suitably enthusiastic fashion.
