The theme of the first residency of the Montreux Jazz Festival at London’s South Bank was the legacy of Nina Simone. The choice of Soweto Kinch for the second night of the programme seems particularly appropriate, given both his musical adventurism and his political activism.
Soundtrack To The Apocalypse is the third composition in the trilogy that has included The Black Peril and White Juju. In this work, Kinch has taken the original Greek meaning of the word ‘apocalypse’ which is an ‘unveiling’ , implying in this context a hopeful take on how a change in global attitudes to the disasters of war and effects of climate change might sound and feel.
The composition began with a repeated phrase on Kinch’s alto saxophone played over an electronic soundscape, a phrase that was picked up by the horn section of trumpet, trombone and tuba. The music moved on quite quickly to a more acoustic tune that had Kinch developing a blues line, this time on the tenor saxophone.
The movement between the electronic and the acoustic tunes continued throughout the set and there was also an interesting contrast between Kinch’s rap pieces and Francis Mott‘s forceful vocals in a soul style.
These quite rapid transitions created a series of contrasting episodes in the music that nonetheless maintained a strong sense of cohesion. The only criticism is that some of the pieces could have been allowed more space with more freedom for individual solos.
There were, however, many highlights, notably the layers of sound created by the electronics, but also various acoustic quartet or quintet pieces involving Kinch and Jay Phelps on trumpet playing over the excellent rhythmic support of Rick Simpson on piano, Josh Vadiveloo on bass and Louis Hamilton-Foad on drums. Also impressive were Francis Mott’s soul inflected vocals and a moving rap from Kinch on the theme of restoring justice to politics.
There were also some special moments such as a short section that involved Kinch on the EWI (electronic wind instrument) combining with Hannah Mbuya‘s tuba and Mott’s vocals to create a unique texture; also a short free improvisation with Kinch on tenor saxophone playing over a strong rhythm from Vadiveloo and Hamilton-Foad.
Kinch explained that he felt the music was essentially danceable, and one person near me did get up to dance in the aisle. It would be fascinating to see how the music would go down in a stand up dance venue. It certainly brought together many of the elements of the contemporary jazz and club music scenes in the UK to make a powerful musical statement.

This concert was part of a weekend launching the collaboration between the Montreux Jazz Festival and the South Bank. The initial agreement is for a three year collaboration involving themed weekends such as this one, and involvement of British musicians in the main festival in Switzerland.
