Saxophonist Donny McCaslin and his band, featured on David
Bowie's Blackstar, will make their Motéma Music debut with the October 14
release of Beyond Now, a highly anticipated album dedicated to Bowie. Recorded
nearly three months after Bowie's passing, the project is deeply influenced by
their extraordinary experience collaborating with one of the greatest artists
of all-time on his final album.
"It was
like a dream except it was something I never could have dreamed of,"
reflects McCaslin on working hand-in-hand with Bowie on Blackstar. "David
Bowie was a visionary artist whose generosity, creative spirit, and
fearlessness will stay with me the rest of my days. Beyond Now is dedicated to
him and to all who loved him."
Comprised of
core Blackstar personnel, bassist Tim Lefebvre (Tedeschi Trucks Band, Saturday
Night Live), drummer Mark Guiliana (Meshell Ndegeocello, Brad Mehldau), and
Jason Lindner (Now Vs Now) along with guitarist Nate Wood and producer David
Binney, Beyond Now's repertoire is expansive, comprised of two Bowie songs,
covers of Deadmau5, MUTEMATH, and the Chainsmokers, as well as compelling
McCaslin originals including the title composition, inspired by a track
inspired by a song McCaslin recorded for Blackstar that didn't make the album.
Today,
Entertainment Weekly premiered Beyond Now's first single, "A Small Plot of
Land," a cover from Bowie's 1995 release Outside (featuring vocalist Jeff
Taylor). The album pre-order has launched today as well on iTunes; fans will
receive "A Small Plot of Land" instantly when pre-ordering a download
of the album. McCaslin has also announced extensive touring in the US and
Europe through the remainder of the year. See below for a list of U.S. tour
dates, including upcoming appearances at the Newport Jazz Festival, BRIC
Celebrate Brooklyn! and The Charlie Parker Jazz Festival.
* * *
With three
GRAMMY® nominations and 11 albums to his name, McCaslin's path to Bowie and
Beyond Now can be traced back to 2011 with the release of his album Perpetual
Motion, taking on an electric direction for the first time in contrast to his
previous acoustic projects. Two subsequent albums Casting for Gravity (2012)
and Fast Future (2015) released with his working band were directly influenced
by electronica artists (covering groups such as Aphex Twin, Boards of Canada,
and Baths), which netted McCaslin a 2013 GRAMMY® nomination for "Best
Improvised Jazz Solo."
The once in
a lifetime opportunity to work with David Bowie came after composer Maria
Schneider, a longtime collaborator, recommended McCaslin and his group to
Bowie. Schneider and Bowie were collaborating on the track "Sue (Or in a
Season of Crime)," which featured McCaslin as a soloist. In June 2014,
Bowie heeded Schneider's advice and made a visit to hear McCaslin and company
at the 55 Bar in Greenwich Village. Soon after, Bowie began corresponding with
McCaslin over email and sending music, forming a new collaboration and
friendship that transpired through the recording of Blackstar until Bowie's
passing. The result is Beyond Now, which documents "David Bowie's Last
Band" as they were processing both their grief and Bowie's distinctive
impact.
"This
new album is an expression of that journey for all of us," says McCaslin.
"David allowed Blackstar to be what it was going to be regardless of how
people might have categorized it. More than anything, it was his fearlessness
in crossing musical boundaries and genres in his music and life that inspired
the approach I'm taking in Beyond Now. I am indebted to Bowie for showing me
the risks and rewards of going for your uncompromising musical vision."
BEYOND NOW
TRACK LISTING:
1. Shake
Loose (McCaslin)
2. A Small
Plot of Land (David Bowie/Brian Eno/Sterling Campbell/Reeves C. Gabrels/Michael
David Garson/Erdal H. Kizilcay)
3. Beyond
Now (McCaslin)
4.
Coelacanth 1 (Deadmau5)
5. Bright
Abyss (McCaslin)
6. FACEPLANT
(McCaslin)
7. Warszawa
(David Bowie & Brian Eno)
8. Glory
(McCaslin)
9. Remain
(Mutemath)
DONNY
McCASLIN U.S. TOUR DATES:
July 29 -
Newport Jazz Festival - Newport, RI
August 10 -
BRIC Celebrate Brooklyn! - Brooklyn, NY
August 23 -
Cape Cod Jazz Festival - Harwich, MA
August 24 -
Museum of Fine Arts - Boston, MA
August 25 -
Blue - Portland, ME
August 28 -
Charlie Parker Jazz Festival - New York, NY
September
16-17 - Blue Whale - Los Angeles, CA
September 18
- Monterey Jazz Festival - Monterey, CA
September 19
- Yoshi's Oakland - Oakland, CA
September
20-21 - Dazzle Jazz Restaurant & Lounge - Denver, CO
October 12 -
The Jazz Kitchen - Indianapolis, IN
October 13 -
South Milwaukee Performing Arts Center - South Milwaukee, WI
October
14-15 - The Green Mill - Chicago, IL
October 16 -
Des Mounes Social Club - Des Moines, IA
October 17 -
The Washington - Burlington, IA
October 18 -
The Mill - Iowa City, IA
October
19-22 - Jazz St. Louis - St. Louis, MO
October 23 -
We Always Swing Jazz Series - Columbia, MO
October 24 -
Jefferson College Fine Arts Theatre - Hillsboro, MO
November
29-December 4 - The Village Vanguard - New York, NY
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