When Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label released its compilation of London jazz, We Out Here, a year ago, it featured some of the scene’s brightest stars: saxophonist Nubya Garcia channelling Sonny Rollins on Once; Ezra Collective feeling a Fela Kuti Afrobeat on Pure Shade; and elder statesman Shabaka Hutchings with bebop clarinet licks on Black Skin, Black Masks. But Kokoroko’s seven-minute closer Abusey Junction was the earworm, a salve for the city’s chaos. Since then, this poetic, guitar-led track has garnered more than 23m plays on YouTube.
This Afrobeat eight-piece band have become known for the measured intricacy of their compositions, which interweave Oscar Jerome’s lyrical guitar with bandleader Sheila Maurice-Grey’s harmonic brass changes, all underpinned by percussionist Onome Ighamre and drummer Ayo Salawu.
Kokoroko’s forthcoming self-titled debut EP achieves a perfect blend of West African rhythm and improvisatory flair, imbued with Abusey Junction’s meditative mood. Backing vocals create a communal energy, tender on Ti-ide and forceful on Uman, all the while maintaining a deft sense of groove. This female-led, multicultural collective of under 30s is a vital example of not only jazz’s new form but the shape of things to come for British music.
The Kokoroko EP is released on Brownswood on 8 March. Kokoroko play London’s Moth Club on 5 March
