HEAR MY NEW ALBUM ON BANDCAMP - HERE

Stephen Godsall's new album moves the banjo into new territory, miles away from its traditional roles in bluegrass, jazz and traditional music. Here are widescreen soundscapes, furious fugues and rhapsodic tunes, all placing the banjo in new contexts.

There are driving, riff driven grooves alongside dreamy ambient pieces, with contrasting tense and lush harmonies to match. Each track explores different tone combinations – banjo alongside flugelhorn, Wurlitzer piano, piccolo, Hammond organ, tenor sax and more. Rhythms feature shifting tempos and time signatures alongside dramatic syncopation.

Composer and multi instrumentalist Godsall explains; “I've been drawn increasingly to the banjo when I've wanted to highlight a melody. The clangorous tones, rhythmic incisiveness and relative unfamiliarity give it a stand-out character. It seems to me that banjo is underused in modern jazz and improvised music, particularly in Europe. And it's so expressive – different tones, articulations and string bends.”

Opening track “Erratic” is a trio for banjo, bass and hand percussion, introducing “sprung rhythm” which combines swing and tempo modulation. Electronics open out the soundscape, with echoes which shift pitch and speed as they fade away. “The last hillwalker” explores the melancholy of a changing world, through a spacious duet for banjo and flugelhorn, hauntingly played by guest Steve Waterman alongside some wide-angle “campanella” style arpeggios.

“Beacons” explodes the traditions of Welsh music with mountainous clawhammer playing and sitar-like sympathetic strings, vibrating from the “tingling skin” of the banjo. “Welsh Highland” evokes the wheezing, clanking and moaning of a narrow gauge railway rolling through the hills, shifting speed and intensity as it navigates sharp bends. It's also a feast of counterpoint, with electronic bassoon, organ, bass, piccolo, metallic percussion and nylon strung guitar.

“Outside” combines the core band of Stephen Godsall banjo, Richard Godsall piano/organ and Andrew Godsall drums, with guest vocalist Laura Taylor. It's a new take on the “Wuthering Heights” story; “Sometimes you have to step outside, to see which way the wind blows”.

“Deciduous” is another rhapsodic duet; Ian Ellis guests on tenor sax and plays the Autumnal theme before unleashing gusts of virtuosic improvisation on this one-take wonder. Another duet, “Sea song” is for the surprisingly rare combination of banjo and ukulele banjo – free tempo and free improvisation evoke crashing waves and unpredictable voyages; this is no cruise ship!

“The Force” lives up to its title with drums and bass pitching 7/8 time against 4/4, while the banjo drives chiming chords over the top; imagine a cross between hip hop grooves and Hot Club jazz.

“Hitting the small time” has drums duelling with banjo, a collision of riffs, fills and Hendrix style chording with organ holding the whole thing together, and electronic spices creating another rare soundscape.

Returning to the more gentle acoustic group of banjo, nylon guitar and ukulele, “Forest Fugue” explores the warm sonorities available from this combination of instruments before accelerating into fugal counterpoint. Closing track “Birthday yodel” uses the same instruments with various yodelling techniques for a joyful combination of traditional English and Austrian tunes.

The album includes extensive sleevenotes and artwork illustrating the story behind each track.

out now ⟶