Blue Lab Beats NEW ALBUM ‘VOYAGE’ TO BE RELEASED ON OCTOBER 18TH

London duo Blue Lab Beats have been taking jazz into the stratosphere with a futuristic melting pot fuelled by hip-hop, Afrobeats and electronica. The joyous, celebratory nature of recent releases ‘Vibe Central’, ‘Lipstick’ and ‘Hi There’ have inspired a fresh wave of radio support from a range of influential fans who have joined their journey: Huw Stephens at Radio 1; Phil Taggart, Goldirocks, Jamz Supernova and Moses Boyd at 1Xtra; Jamie Cullum at Radio 2; and a playlist at NME Radio. Plus Blue Lab Beats were asked to feature in a new APPLE ADVERT alongside Stormzy, Skepta, Mark Ronson, Paul McCartney and more. 

Now Blue Lab Beats again take flight with their eagerly anticipated second album ‘Voyage’, which will be released on October 18th via All Points/ Blue Adventure and pre-ordered HERE.  Nominated for The Digital Award at the Jazz FM Awards, producer NK-OK and multi-instrumentalist Mr DM have produced a set which maximises the potential that they demonstrated with their debut album ‘Xover’.

‘Voyage’ has been launched with the new single ‘Stand Up’ with features a triple-threat of brass extraordinaires in the shape of Kaidi Akinnibi, Sheila Maurice-Greyand Richie Garrison. It’s a track which has the Blue Lab Beats manifesto down to a fine art: it’s both experimental and immediately accessible, precise yet full of swinging groove, engagingly danceable but cerebral too.

Those traits are defining features throughout an eclectic collection. Other worldly pairing ‘Galactic Inferno’ and ‘Galacto Funk’ are early standouts, feeling like neo-soul tinged theme songs for as yet unmade sci-fi adventures, while ‘Ocean’ and ‘Memories’ possess more of a timeless flair.

Blue Lab Beats also get the best out of their varied vocal collaborators too, providing the perfect soundbed for Sampa The Great to deliver her distinctive vocals with ‘Next (Wake Up)’. Dropping the pace and darkening the tone on ‘What R U Here For’ also brings out the best from the featured artists: Nice The Guy’s rhymes fitting in perfectly alongside Jaz Karis’s luscious soul. Arguably best of all is ‘On and On’ featuring Saffron Grace, which could provide Blue Lab Beats’ first major crossover moment.

The collection is bookended by two previously released tracks. The first full song ‘Hi There’ kicks off proceedings with the air of a summer road trip, while ‘None Of That’ brings down the curtain with a jazzy twist on West Coast hip-hop.

Official website
Spotify
Facebook
Instagram
Twitter

About Author