Music / acid jazz
Dundundun unlocked
As a core member of Bristol collective Worm Disco, Jackson Lapes had a really great 2019. The Worm crew had promoted a string of successful Future Jazz live events, their Wormhole stage had been a Glastonbury highlight and Jackson himself had managed to fit in a tour drumming for a theatre company. With preparations in hand to launch their Worm Discs record label at the Bristol Jazz and Blues Festival in March 2020 and a diary full of festival activity to follow it seemed another bumper year was in prospect … Hey ho. “This is not a good time for the music industry,” Jackson observes with admirable understatement. “It is what it is, I guess. But it has given us more time to focus on the record label without all the live stuff to organise.”
Dundundun EP released on Worm Discs from Friday March 19
And among the first fruits of that endeavour comes the debut EP release on Friday March 19 from Dundundun, a new percussion-driven spiritual jazz outfit heading into the cosmos in pursuit of the great Sun Ra. Being a fivesome with links to The Heavy, No Go Stop and Dele Sosimi the band’s sound is a splendidly grooving mix of Afrobeat, fusion jazz and retro-synth flourishes, all very much to the fore on Dun In Outer Space, their remake of a classic Sun Ra anthem. It’s already had radio play from TomRavenscroft and Gilles Peterson (“This is SO good” GP) but how does a new band come together in a year of socially distanced lockdowns? Dundundun’s percussionist – one Jackson Lapes – filled us in:
“Originally there was a percussion group with a couple of horns called Kola Roasta but we only ever did about one gig a year. About 18 months ago we formed this new electro-acoustic line-up, made the recordings (for Dun in Outer Space) in January 2020 but then never got to do a gig … for obvious reasons. The analogue sound comes from Dorian (Childs Prophet, keyboards) using a classic Moog synth and a Prophet, and Brian (Hargreaves, tenor sax)’s effects pedals emulate older sounds too.”
is needed now More than ever
Jackson Lapes (far right) with the rest of Dundundun
While the danceable core recordings have the natural sound of a live recording both the title track and B-Side also come as remixes, with Worm-friendly local hero Pete Cunningham providing a predictably high-energy Ishmael Ensemble rework of the Sun Ra number, Brian’s tenor sax roaring through cascading electronica. For Anansi, the other track, the band went to Glasgow based DJ/producer Rebecca Vasmant for a lush soul-jazz treatment complete with Alice Coltrane style harp. “We met Rebecca at the We Out There Festival in 2019 and stayed in touch. She’s also starting a record label so we’ve been sharing tips and helping each other out.”
So, if we dare to look for light at the end of the Wormhole – what’s the plan for Dundundun? “Well were definitely planning to record some more material as soon as we can, and gig-wise we hope to be playing as soon as it is allowed. We want to get at least a couple of Bristol gigs in this year.” And for the Worm Disco crew? “We have a few more recording projects from Bristol in development and we’ll be organising live gigs at Strange Brew and other venues. People need to keep an eye on our Facebook page and the label’s Bandcamp site.”
The Dundundun EP is available through Bandcamp and Rough Trade from Friday March 19. Worm Disco’s first 2021 gig will (hopefully!) be Get The Blessing at Strange Brew on Wednesday May 19.
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