Dinosaur - To The Earth (2020) [CD-Rip]

Mercury-nominated, British Jazz supergroup Dinosaur return with the announcement of their highly anticipated 3rd album ‘To The Earth’, which is due for release on Edition Records this May.

The new record celebrates a decade of music-making as a band and is accompanied by a further announcement of new EU and UK tour dates, including their most ambitious UK show to-date at Queen Elizabeth Hall in London.

‘To The Earth’ is vertiginous in its scope carrying the listener through a vast array of moods and themes, whilst also taking the band into new territories across moments of revelatory spontaneous composition. Tracks such as ‘Slow Loris’ see clarinet-like synth blend seamlessly with Conor Chaplin’s bassline whilst the band effortlessly flit between tumultuous and mellifluous motifs. Whereas further into the album tracks such as ‘Held By Water’ sees the band lean the acoustic sound of the new record into new London jazz crossover domain with drummer Corrie Dick’s drum machine-esque rhythms and pianist Elliot Galvin’s almost ambient electronic swells before developing into a more Middle Eastern based Trumpet groove. These intricacies and multifarious journeys are described by jazz pianist Liam Noble in the album’s liner notes as being “peculiarly British” with “a lightness of touch and occasional flirtation with silliness, but never too much.”

Laura cites British musicians such as Liam Noble, Chris Batchelor and Huw Warren as well as Norwegian piano trio ‘Moskus’ and more historic artists such as Duke Ellington, Charles Mingus and Miles Davis all as key influences on this music. However, it’s clear that the significance of these influences is found in Laura and the band’s ability to build on these ideas throughout their flexible career of achievements rather than mimic them.

Speaking about the new album, Laura says:

“My discography to date, as Dinosaur and albums under my name, is the result of an unavoidable necessity to express and share a wealth of musical interests – from folk influenced counterpoint, to song-writing, Stravinsky-inspired harmony to the use of analog synthesis and looped grooves. Whilst this may well dizzy the narrative surrounding my output, jazz (in its most typical form) has always played a huge role in my life and the life of this band.

‘To The Earth’ is simply a collection of joyfully crafted melodies, which we can dive into and explore as improvisers. It makes so much sense that this is the music to surface after a decade of playing together. This way of making music has been there from the very beginning and something we have developed together over the last 10 years.

I am constantly knocked out by the musicianship and sense of ensemble I experience in Dinosaur. Playing with Elliot, Corrie and Conor, feels like putting on the most comfortable pair of shoes – where anything from sitting back in the warmth of it all, running with the smallest of ideas to taking risks can be executed with utmost presence … trust. A space in which the sounds take care of us and we take care of them.”