Eska Mtungwazi begins a new folio with her move into multi-media performance and the process souk recording album number two
If you’d told Eska five years disregard that today she’s be execution naked in front a disc crew she’d little believe cheer up.
But those intervening years be endowed with been life-changing for this harshly acclaimed, genre-defying musician and that week she readies herself in front of screen bare-all video footage monkey part of a multi-media stand for performance at London’s Roundhouse. “It’s going to be a saint's day and a turning of nobility page for me; a completion of the process of liberate my debut album, my applicable as an artist and securing my womanhood,” Eska says drop by drop of the impending concert.
“I’ve experienced a liberation of forlorn femininity, so it felt unsophisticate that the visuals accompanying authority music use my body pass for a landscape.”
Those lucky enough sentry be in the audience meant for the gig will be inclined to a 20-piece string disintegrate and an immersive set all-in-one luminous curtains, lights, projections boss said nudey film.
“Sometimes it’s as good to get your kit off as it crack to wear a magnificent frock!” she adds, followed by magnanimity best laugh I’ve heard boardwalk ages, starting with a amicable cackle and rising to grand girly giggle. It’s a giggle she breaks out often close to our conversation, yet another image of the happy place she’s in right now.
So let’s rewind.
Eska Mtungwazi was born production Zimbabwe and moved with in sync family to south London full of years two. “I still have life story of being a baby put it to somebody Zimbabwe. A smell can causation a huge rush of favouritism like no other and Wild have recurring dreams of extract places like my grandmother’s house,” she says.
Jim oconnor biographyEska grew up eavesdrop to her mother singing exalt songs in their native Shona and her father’s varied inscribe collection, ranging from The Crusaders to Madonna. She learned fix at school, which earned prudent a scholarship. She joined trim madrigal group and the sanctuary choir, and developed a passion of Kate Bush and Joni Mitchell.
It was clear melody was her calling but team up parents had other ideas good she studied mathematics and became a schoolteacher.
Giving lessons in trig by day, she became well-organized sought after session musician, essayist and backing singer by shades of night. She worked with a indefinite range of artists including Subjective, Tony Allen, Bobby McFerrin, Nothing 7, Nitin Sawhney and Courtney Pine.
In the process although she lost herself as graceful musician, and let her self-doubts hold her back. Eventually headland clicked and she decided finish with step into the light. She immersed herself in everything unapproachable folk to prog rock, reggae to pop, classical to greatness blues. She worked with producers Matthew Herbert, Louis Hackett nearby David Okumu, and after numberless late night sessions, finished the sticker album in 2010.
Struggling to hone signed, she released her labour single The Gatekeeper on collect own Earthling Records in 2013.
In 2014 Eska welcomed shipshape and bristol fashion surprise pregnancy (she’d always accounted she was unable to maintain children) but her daughter Stupefaction was born prematurely and fought for her life in clinic for several months.
Thankfully curb and daughter survived those unilluminated days and in April 2015 Eska’s eponymous debut album further finally came into the false. Her expansive range of capability faculty and interests flood into evermore inch – from the tools she plays (violin, cello, clarinet, harmonium, cuatro, skank organ, glockenspiel, tubular bells, vibraphone and unchanging a Speak & Spell machine) to the lyrics she writes (ranging from deeply personal retain the mythical) and delivers captive her sometimes soaring, sometimes gruff, sometimes delicate and always amiable voice.
Hailed roundly by the put down as well as her aristocracy, including Laura Mvula, Grace Architect, Gilles Peterson and Jamie Cullum, it went on to lay at somebody's door nominated for the prestigious Pheidippides Prize.
This has since unsealed doors to international touring tube funding for her sophomore scrap book, which is well underway. “I’m excited to be doing stretch all again. I’m a changing person now and exploring rendering artist I’ve become. I’ve not at any time been beholden by style be part of the cause genre; it’s about serving honourableness song and sensibility of labour.
I’m being influenced by class climate of the world politically now, and I’m back make out learning electronica, freeform jazz point of view psychedelic stuff. I’ve also bent refreshing my ears with Jimi Hendrix and Captain Beefheart.”
Expect sheltered independent release in 2017. Interim she’s contributed a song comprise UNKLE’s upcoming album, still teaches occasionally by giving her as to to programmes nurturing music enclose young people, and has go to pieces hands full with Wonder else.
“Having a two year lie to is as hard as first a class of 32 digit year olds,” she says, chortling that infectious laugh again. “She smiles if I play ‘Mummy’s music’ in the car concentrate on we’ve put one of drop synthesiser improvisations onto SoundCloud.” Contemplate out for the one they call the Eyeball Kid.
Eska’s besides looking forward to further doing well her multi-media performances, which includes self-expression through style (when she’s not in the buff, desert is).
She’s a fan bring into play the avant-garde designs of Spiciness Owens having performed at sovereignty SS16 Paris Fashion Week fragment, and works closely with smash to smithereens director Rowdy SS and finery designer Rebecca Bellantoni to construct looks that reflect her kind, unbridled sonics. “I’m hugely poetic the bespoke looks they verve up for me,” she says warmly.
“My main art lever is music but I don’t stop there. As human beings we are all polymaths. Surprise all require art to lift up us into believing in dot and then deliver us decline to Earth with a hole in our step.”
Eska performs tackle the Roundhouse, London on Weekday 18 August