Words by Nick Mee @NickJMee
Elements of club culture, psychedelia and experimental pop have suffused the contemporary UK jazz scene with a buoyancy – and accessibility – you might just have heard about. Indeed, one of last year’s finest albums of any genre was the celestial La Saboteuse by British-Bahraini trumpeter Yazz Ahmed, built on those cornerstones; the composer’s warm Arabic refrains entwining exploratory rhythms that attest to Ahmed’s previous as Radiohead instrumentalist. A quartet of tracks from that album has now been given the remix treatment, including south London DJ Hector Plimmer’s fine repurposing of ‘The Lost Pearl’, which, keeping the original’s feel while setting the spidery bassline and snatches of horns and vibes to percussive breaks, serves as both a standalone classic spin and an alternative gateway to Ahmed’s compositions.
La Saboteuse Remixed is out on 3 August