Mackwood – Thunder feat. Eerf Evil & Kianja

Drummer, producer, songwriter and bandleader Mackwood announces details of his debut album Master Changes, out 17th October via 5dB Records. The announcement comes accompanied by new single ‘Thunder’, featuring rapper and Silhouettes Project founder Eerf Evil and acclaimed singer-songwriter and Omar collaborator Kianja.

Inspired by the UK‘s rich electronic and soundsystem culture, Mackwood warps what we usually understand as jazz into thrilling new shapes and unpredictable forms, melding modern production with live instrumentation from his 6 piece band at West London’s 5dB Studios. Named after a sci-fi novel about a nuclear apocalypse, Master Changes, is influenced not only by a vast range of music, spanning from Curtis Mayfield to Nubya Garcia and Holst to Four Tet; but also by literature and wider conversations on identity, connection and the human condition.

Having cut his teeth drumming and producing for some of the UK’s most exciting and forward thinking artists, including Col3trane, Nilufer Yanya, Jordan Rakei, Eliza and Blue Lab Beats, as well as creative collectives like Levitation Orchestra and The Silhouettes Project, the release of Master Changes signals a new era with the London native now at the forefront.

“The process of making this album has felt like a lot of experimentation and scrapbooking, but there are core energies joining from one idea to another. I deliberately drew on a wide range of ideas over a period of time, but arranged and played it all with the same set of musicians, so the sound world is always shifting around the same core palette. Excited to see it come to life!”

Speaking on the album, Mackwood explains:

Cathartic new single ‘Thunder’ highlights Mackwood’s ability to marry multiple influences, combining intricate, bass-heavy production and dynamic live drumming with Kianja’s soulful vocals and Eerf Evil’s stirring bars.

“Thunder was actually my first experience blending songwriting with arranging and producing with my band. The writing came from conversations with Kianja and Eerf Evil about some conflict that we’d all experienced last year, and the individual and collective agency that helped us through it. Hearing Annie Mac’s selections early on clued me in to UK dancefloor sounds like Skream, Magnetic Man and SBTRKT, and having Kianja and Eerf Evil join me has been a pleasure cos they’re both big parts of UK music.”

Mackwood says:

Growing up in a music-loving family of English, Lithuanian Jewish and South African heritage in Shepherd’s Bush, where local music lessons weren’t just classical piano, but also west African drumming, an obsession with rhythm from a young age resulted in Mackwood going on to study with Tomorrow’s Warriors and then at the prestigious Guildhall School of music. This diverse upbringing led to him combining his formal training with elements of the breaks, soul, dubstep, drum & bass and house of his formative years to create his own progressive take on modern jazz.

Previous singles ‘Habits’ ft. anaiis and Quinn Oulton and ‘Yella!’ ft. Charlie Stacey have seen early support from BBC 1 Xtra, BBC 6 Music, The Independent, Wonderland, Gilles Peterson‘s Worldwide FM & more. Having already graced festival stages including Cross The Tracks, Wilderness and Brick Lane Jazz Festival this spring, Mackwood and his formidable live band will play a headline show at Peckham Audio on 22nd October to celebrate the release of Master Changes.

Stream / Download: https://symphony.to/mackwood/thunder