Nick Walters - Singularity (feat. Tenderlonious, Tim Carnegie & Thibaut Remy) [CD]

D.O.T. RECORDS

£11.70

Format: CD
Catalogue No.: DOT002CD
Release Date: 25 Feb 2022
Genre: Jazz & Electronic

Nick Walters returns to his D.O.T. Records imprint with a suite of forward thinking, cosmic, electronic-jazz experiments, inspired by NASA & the concept of gravitational singularity. Each track on “Singularity”, his first home studio produced album, is built around an audio sample recorded by NASA in space, then expertly transported back to earth by Walters via some magical trumpet and synth work on his newly purchased Juno-106. The album features key contributions from Ruby Rushton drummer Tim Carnegie, 22a Music’s Tenderlonious on flute and some sublime guitar work from Thibaut Remy

T/listing :
A1 Cosmos
A2 Interstellar Void
A3 Penrose
A4 Event Horizon
B1 Enceladus
B2 Supernova
B3 Sagittarius A* B4 Entropy

'Singularity' is an album inspired by the concept of the gravitational singularity, thought to be found at the centre of black holes, also thought to be the initial state of the universe at the beginning of the Big Bang. These are the points where current scientific understanding breaks down, where general relativity meets quantum mechanics and current theories are unable to comprehend how density or the curvature of spacetime can reach infinite levels. The album is dedicated to Professor Roger Penrose, the scientist who alongside Stephen Hawking did so much to develop theoretical understanding of singularities and black holes, and rightful recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physics in 2020.

Each track features an audio sample recorded by NASA and made available for download and further artistic use. They include samples taken by the Cassini spacecraft as it studied Jupiter, Saturn, and their many moons, whistler waves picked up by NASA's Van Allen Probe as it passed around Earth, and interstellar plasma sounds picked up by the Voyager probe after leaving the Solar System. The tracks and album grew gradually over time in an organic process, with key assistance provided by Ruby Rushton drummer Tim Carnegie, whose powerful and lively drumming added real impetus and energy to the programmed drum parts. Tenderlonious added beautifully melodic flute parts to four of the tracks, while Thibaut Remy featured on three tracks with some exquisite guitar work. Walters’ newly purchased Juno-106 provides most of the backdrop with plenty of spacey synth sounds perfect for the realisation of the project.

SINGULARITY
1. Cosmos – a free-wheeling, energetic track, inspired by the vastness of the universe
2. Interstellar Void – meditative improvisations around a simple piano riff, evoking a spirit of journeying and exploration through space
3. Penrose – features a sample of Roger Penrose talking about what a singularity is
4. Event Horizon – utilises a West African 12/8 rhythm, inspired by thinking about what it's like to cross the event horizon and enter a black hole
5. Enceladus – a free-jazz inspired track imagining the approach to Saturn's ice-covered moon Enceladus, with its spectacular water plumes
6. Supernova – a frantic and energetic track in the lydian mode, propelled by Tim Carnegie's powerful drumming
7. Sagittarius A* - a meditation on the supermassive black hole found at the centre of our own galaxy, the Milky Way.
8. Entropy – a melancholic track inspired by the concept of entropy and its inexorable path towards to heat death of the universe

The artwork by Lorna Robertson matches the music, utilising a NASA image taken by the Hubble Space Telescope, combined with hand drawn elements inspired by the visual style of Kubrick's classic film '2001: A Space Odyssey'. On the front cover she depicts a spacecraft journeying towards a bright star, controlled by operating a Juno-106, the analog synth so important to the sound of the album. The reverse shows a spaceman, trumpet in hand, ready to leave the safety of the ship to explore.

““Mr Walters, an OG and incredible musician. Fundamental in UK jazz”” KAMAAL WILLIAMS

““Walters is majestic, leading a hugely enjoyable cosmic journey of exciting, melodic and spiritually uplifting contemporary jazz”
UK VIBE

““Beat Caffeine’s Number 1 EP of 2020, yet again proving that Nick Walters is one of the most groundbreaking musicians currently in the UK Jazz scene”
BEAT CAFFEINE

“Top U.K trumpeter & composer with a truly distinctive sound”
JAZZWISE