Mercury Prize winners Ezra Collective have released their latest single ‘Well Organised’, a track which traces the roots of the band’s musicality and helps them find “hope within the treble and the bass”. The jazz quintet has been building a compelling catalogue of future classics, blending elements of Afrobeat and soul into their sound, attracting an audience eager for more.
And more is what we’ve been blessed with in the form of ‘Well Organised’, featuring Jamaican singer Lila Iké – bringing life to the track slated to be a late entry to our top songs of this summer. The single remains a constant ode to the rhythms of the Caribbean, which are still embraced by the grassroots London music scene to this day. The constant return of the steelpan theme throughout the track reminds us all that the sounds and inspirations of your heritage are never far away.
‘Well Organised’ is the second single in the run-up to the release of Ezra Collective’s newest project ‘Here Because of Hope’. Predicted to be a pan-diasporic album which emphasises the journey of individuals and collective groups, tracking their experiences ranging from suffering to optimism and placing music as the eternal thread weaving through it all. Alongside the new sound comes a refreshed visual landscape; Ezra Collective’s music video for their latest single celebrates the power of community in bringing individuals together.
This is everything we want from Ezra Collective, retaining the rhythmic playfulness and bursts of the horn section while pushing their art both musically and lyrically to reflect their own stories. The band are serving their purpose in perhaps the most fitting way – having named their group after the biblical prophet Ezra who studied the works of those who came before, Ezra Collective have evoked the work of Jamaican reggae legend Max Romeo to stand on the shoulders of giants.
If ‘Well Organised’ is a microcosm of the upcoming album, then the release date of the 18th of September is one to mark in the calendar. Juxtaposing pain and triumph to balance the past and the future is a delicate task undertaken by five musicians entering a new phase of their lives. Taking both new tracks and older fan favourites on a world festival tour before returning to the UK and Ireland for a headline tour next spring will take Ezra Collective’s sound and community to new heights.
Joseph Madden
Image: Sergio Pontier
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