Today's Song of the Day, as chosen by Kevin Cole, host of Drive Time on KEXP, is "Dawn Lit Metropolis" by Ill Considered, from the 2020 album Band Selects on Ill Considered / New Soil.
This week's Songs of the Day were selected by KEXP DJ Kevin Cole, host of Drive Time, spotlighting artists playing Tremor Festival, March 28 to April 1, São Miguel Island, Azores, Portugal. Check out their wonderful and wildly eclectic line-up of experimental and groundbreaking bands and artists across genres here.
Ill Considered are a UK-based improvisational jazz outfit that’s become a cult favorite after releasing nine albums between 2017-2019 of deep grooves made up completely on the spot. Led by Idris Rahman on sax, Leon Brichard on bass, Emre Ramazanoglu on drums, and Yahael Camara-Onono on percussion, the group’s recordings sound so tight it’s tough to believe that they weren’t written and rehearsed prior but that’s part of the magic of Ill Considered.
We’re taking it back to the beginning for our Song of the Day with “Dawn Lit Metropolis,” originally released on their 2017 self-titled record. The opening track off the LP, the song softly saunters in with a mischievously plucked upright bassline and a lone mournful brass. Frantic yet delicately pattered drums join in as the song builds over the course of its four-and-a-half-minute running time (a rather brief track for this group). It’s proof that sometimes less is more, with just bass, brass, and drums carrying the song its entire length, and can be just as - if not more- compelling a listen.
