Blue Note Records continues to set a soulful tone throughout the summer with the release of another single from the highly-anticipated second installment of their Re:imagined series. This time, London-based Afro-Jazz collective Nubiyan Twist offer their spin on legendary trumpeter Donald Byrd’s classic "Chant" on “Through The Noise (Chant 2).”
Whereas the original quite literally marked a bit of a creative transition as one of the gems from the iconic musician’s 1963 album A New Perspective, Nubiyan Twist sought to pay homage by channeling his “voice” through more contemporary mediums. Lead vocalist Nick Richards wrote all new lyrics and notes his fascination with the work of greats like Byrd, John Coltrane and Miles Davis and the fact their brilliance still resonates today.
“Lyrically, I tried to explore the process of feeling like these people were like talking to you from the past," Richards said about his approach to creating the song. "In an abstract way, [I tried] to focus on that weird dynamic of, ‘wow we're listening to people who are long gone, but they are so important to us still. How can we represent that, in an honest way, from our own perspective?”
Of the vibrant track itself, chock full of dazzling keys and lively horns, he also shared, “We were thinking about the unusual marriage of heavy swing found in both jazz and UK garage and 2-step. This was a connection we hadn’t consciously made before but one that became an exciting backdrop for our influences that include broken-beat, afrobeat and bebop.”
Listen to Nubiyan Twist’s Donald Byrd rework on “Through The Noise (Chant 2)” and view the full video of Nick Richards speaking about the track below. The single is available now on numerous digital music platforms in advance of Blue Note Re:imagined II's September 30th release date.
