Photography KAROLINA WIELOCHA
Styling LADY BARBARA AYOZIE FU SAFIRA
Getting to know the jazz collective bringing healing vibrations from London to the world
London’s current jazz scene is being revolutionised by a new breed of musicians who are radically shifting the way this genre is experienced and perceived. Blurring the lines between spectator and performer, ideas like oneness and unity are forming in clubs across the capital. Head to Matchstick Piehouse in Deptford, South East London on a Wednesday night and you’ll find yourself at the epicentre of an expanding community. Steam Down is a weekly event and a collective of musicians, singers, poets and MCs devoted to providing a space for release and transformation through music.
In exploration of their African roots and London’s subcultures, the sonics of Steam Down veer between grime, afrobeat, punk-psychedelia and neo-soul, attracting a diverse audience who are looking to offload their stresses. Piercing saxophone wails, an eruption of call and response mantras and palpitating West African rhythms controls a sea of writhing bodies, an experience founding bandleader Ahnansé describes to me as “spontaneous magic, a moment where we don’t know what we’re going to be creating on stage and nobody in the audience knows either.”
The musicians who perform at Steam Down weeklies, among them Benjamin Appeah,Doom Cannon, Afronaut Zuu and Tinyman, have all cut their teeth on the live circuit,equipping them withtheknow-how to create a genuine connection with theirguests. “Noordinary musicians are part of the project; they’ve all spent years working on their craft andlearning how to improvise,” Ahnansé says. “The event is created from knowing how to havea conversation with each other on stage. We’re public speakers but through ourinstruments.”
Ahnansé is keen to point out that Steam Down has no room for pretentious attitudes, eitheron stage or off. Before a session begins, with the help of some regulars who knowthe ropes,Ahnansé lays out a few guidelines that attendees must abide by in order to unlock the fullhealing potentials of the evening. Firstly,if you want to talk, go outside. Secondly, treateveryone with respect and lastly,make sure you’re here to enjoy yourselves.“That wholestatement is just to bring everybody’s energy into a central point to make sure people canenjoy feeling the emotions that heal us, you know.”
Last year was tumultuous for us all, shuttering the UK’s live music venues and bringingpolitical unrest to the surface. Some musicians used the time for an extended pause, othersscrambled to find new ways to lean into their community through virtual platforms. Even asthe world opens up, musicians are now having to reshape what it looks like to be aperforming artist amid a pandemic. “It’s no different with Steam Down, we’re still figuring outhow to find our feet but I’d say the powerful thing for us is that we have a regular space tocome and be together. To be there every week in atime when there’s been so many upsand downs for a lot of creatives, has been a real saving grace for us.”
STEAM DOWN’S ‘FIVE FRUIT’ EP is out now on DECCA Discover it here.
Since their conception in 2017, Steam Down have grown from small local venues to major festivals across the world, received two Jazz FM Awards and had Kamasi Washington pop in for an evening session. In the process, they have become an influential force in the UK jazz scene along the likes of Tomorrow’s Warriors, Shabaka Hutchings, Nubya Garcia, Ezra Collective and more. I wonder if Ahnansé always intended for Steam Down to make such an impact. “Making records and touring was always a part of the plan. I don’t think that I saw ithappening as fast as it did and the UK jazz scene exploding is also what helped us move asfast as we did,”he muses.
And now the band have finally delivered their debut EP ‘Five Fruit’. Housing a short collection of sounds and lyrics that aim to target the spirit and aid emotional transformation, the project was also partially shaped by the pandemic. The track ‘Empower’ surges with uplifting affirmations layered over frantic percussions. “We’re in a time where people are a bit depressed, we’ve been locked in and need a sense of empowerment to get through it, especially when it seems like there's no end. I think we’re past that now but it was important for me that this project fits with the time.”
If you’re listening to ‘Five Fruit’ maybe sit down and chill in your bath with some incense and set the mood”
Staple Steam Down anthems ‘Can’t Hold Me Back’ and ‘Free My Skin’ featuring AfronautZu, Tinymanand Shumba Maasai also make it onto the EP. Elsewhere ‘Untie’ is led by thedelicate tones of Lady Shaynah,who urges for gentleness when overcoming difficultsituations,and the title track is all about being open to exploring the journey of the whole EP.As for where to play this record, Ahnansé has a suggestion. “If you’re listening to ‘Five Fruit’maybe sit down and chill in your bath with some incense and set the mood, then you will probably get more out of it.”
The band are now gearing up for their UK tour in November, which will no doubt grow theirdedicating following along the way. But for him, nothing beats the intimacy of their homecrowd. “There’s been so many of our weekly nights where it felt like the audience and theband have become one.There’s a level of being comfortable when it feels like home. So,when the special things happen in your own house it can be life changing.”
Photography KAROLINA WIELOCHA
Styling LADY BARBARA AYOZIE FU SAFIRA
Words BLESSING BORODE
