Crisis & Opportunity, Vol.4 - Meditations Myele Manzanza

• 1 Crayford's Room 07:05
• 2 Winter 07:48
• 3 Something Old Something New 06:36
• 4 Interlude 01:16
• 5 Meditations 07:54
• 6 Homesick 07:04
• 7 Crisis & Opportunity 08:04
• Total Runtime 45:47

Info for Crisis & Opportunity, Vol.4 - Meditations

Over the past two years, the first three instalments of his lauded 'Crisis & Opportunity’ record series saw Myele garner praise from Mary Anne Hobbs, Cerys Matthews, Jamie Cullum, Huey Morgan, The Guardian, Complex, Jazz FM, Lefto, Worldwide FM, Jazzwise and more. The latter of these offerings extended Myele's sound deeper into the electronic world, venturing further into dance & club territory. From this underground energy, the steady swing of life’s pendulum reaches its apex, so we see Myele revert to a purely acoustic line-up, channelling a focused and razor-sharp return to his Jazz roots on ‘Crisis & Opportunity, Vol.4 - Meditations’. Showcasing an incredible level of musicianship between three musicians at the top of their game - including Matthew Sheens (Ross McHenry, John Patitucci) on piano and Matt Penman (Joshua Redman, SFJAZZ Collective) on double bass - the trio exchange motifs over the length of 7 tracks.

On the forthcoming full-length record, Myele explains: ‘ With this album, I’m yearning for the music itself to hold space. The title 'Meditations' suits the more interior mood of the music too. This is a solitary & introverted album compared to my previous works. I’m not trying to entertain you. I’m not trying to make you dance. Not on this record. With the interference of modern technology on our lives and how so much of our attention is tethered to the digital world, perhaps this album is a small rebellion against that. At least in the sense that it’s a purely acoustic album. It relies on the interplay of three musicians, listening to each other and making spontaneous decisions in order to execute the music. The quality of the sound directly reflects each person’s artistry, command of their instrument, physical technique and mental acuity.”

Opening proceedings with frenetic rhythmic improvisation, complimented by melancholic and cinematic layers of sound, ‘Crayford’s Room’ is a tribute to Myele’s musical mentor back in New Zealand. Remembering his time as a student in Wellington, Myele shows his deep connection to his origins, manifesting itself as lament on ‘Winter’ and ‘Homesick’. Introducing hypnotic, contemplative melodies take centre stage on ‘Something Old Something New’ (the first single to be released from the project)’ It maintains a sense of tension and intrigue throughout, and intensity rises to a crescendo sending sonic particles sprawling into space.

Intuitive, darker and deeply contemplative, Myele Manzanza shares his innermost thoughts on ‘Crisis and Opportunities Vol.4 - Meditations’. He divulges ‘The personal angst and existential frustration I was going through across 2020 - 2022 I believe is well reflected here. The album is deeply informed by the musicianship and sound of my trio, Matthew Sheens on piano and Matt Penman on double bass. Knowing that musicians of their calibre were going to be involved gave me licence to go further in my writing, deploying odd time signatures, sharing the melody roles across the piano and the bass, and delving deeper into the nuances of what the acoustic piano / bass / drums trio can do. The compositions present a challenge even to the best musicians, and I knew that it was essential to have a team on this level to really move the music beyond an academic exercise and draw out the emotion and colour from the material.’

Rhythm resides deep within for drummer and composer Myele Manzanza. It is the universal life pulse that governs movement, an intuitive connection between body and sound that produces his genre-spanning, infectiously vibrant music. Having established himself as one of the most energetic and exciting Jazz musicians within the thriving worldwide scene, the New Zealand-born, London-based artist has made a major impact upon the global music landscape. A founding member of Electric Wire Hustle, he has eleven solo releases to his name and racked up tours and collaborations with Jordan Rakei, Theo Parrish, Miguel Atwood-Ferguson, Recloose and Amp Fiddler amongst others. Having developed a strong live presence in his new London base, his band has shared stages with the likes of Hiatus Kaiyote, The Bad Plus, Alfa Mist, and drawing packed houses to esteemed venues such as The Jazz Café and Ronnie Scott’s where he hosts a monthly residency.

Myele Manzanza, drums
Matthew Sheens, piano
Matt Penman, double bass

Recorded at Brooklyn Recording, New York City, 9th of January 2022
Recorded by Andy Taub
Mixed by Patrick Philips
Mastered by Shawn Hatfield at Audible Oddities
Produced by Myele Manzanza

Myele Manzanza
At just 25 years old the musically prolific Myele Manzanza has not only held down the drums as part of New Zealand’s Electric Wire Hustle for the past 5 years but has also drummed for many other NZ bands including Olmecha Supreme, Sheba Williams, The Recloose Live Band, The Jonathan Crayford Trio as well as for his father – Sam Manzanza’s Rhythm Africa Band & countless other musical projects. Myele only started playing drum kit at age 14 but has been hand drumming traditional African rhythms with his father Sam Manzanza from a young age. “Growing up music and rhythm was all around me and I understood it from a very early age. Through my father I learnt the language of the drum probably at the same time as I learnt to talk! My dad was one of the first Africans to perform traditional African & High Life music live in New Zealand & he has been a tremendous influence & inspiration on my career as a musician.”says Myele. Since graduating from the New Zealand School Of Music with a Degree in Jazz performance in 2008, Myele has dutifully dedicated himself to learning the new discipline of digital music production. In 2010 Myele was the only New Zealander selected to participate in the Red Bull Music Academy in London where he picked up a wealth of knowledge & skill from the many other participants from all over the world and expert lecturers such as Flying Lotus, Roots Manuva, Cluster, Moodyman, Dr Peter Zinovieff and DJ Zinc. The rest of the year was spent living between Berlin & New York & touring with Electric Wire Hustle with laptop in hand. The fertile breeding ground of creativity of these cities provided the seeds of musical inspiration to put together his first album aptly titled ‘One’.

This album contains no booklet.