Yungest Moonstar Feat. Thasup Sfaciolate Mixtape

Drummer/producer Makaya McCraven traveled to London in October of 2017 to record material for a new album (which has since been titled Universal Beings & will come out on International Anthem in Fall of 2018). Over the course of 3 days in London, Makaya connected with first time collaborators (Theon Cross, Nubya Garcia, Joe Armon-Jones, Soweto Kinch, Ashley Henry, Daniel Casimir and Kamaal Williams), and in addition to the Universal Beings studio sessions, did 2 improvised performances as part of a 2-night showcase called CHICAGOxLONDON presented by International Anthem & EZH Mag at legendary UK Jazz hub Total Refreshment Centre (TRC).

New Orleanean trumpeter Nicholas Payton has built a dazzlingly eclectic body of work over the past 20 years, exploring everything from Dixieland standards to warped, Prince-inflected soul. Maybe his most ambitious project yet, Afro-Caribbean Mixtape juxtaposes spoken-word collage (“Jazz Is a Four-Letter Word”) with riffs on South American music (“La Guajira”), and pre-electric Miles Davis ballads (“Othello”) with trip-hop abstractions (“Kimathi”). The result is a compelling musical essay on tradition and innovation.

Remember that mix tape your friend made you way back when - the one that's etched in your soul? Martin Sexton's new album Mixtape of the Open Road is that musical cross-country trip, blazing through all territories of style, as you cruise through time and place. This record is a charm bracelet of twelve gems all strung together with the golden thread of what Rolling Stone calls a "soul marinated voice."