If you've got this far, reward yourself with an exclusive DISCOUNT on our merch shop. How does 15% off for the next week sound to ease those GDPR blues?
Not only that, but we've also just put together some very special new packages, meaning that you already get amazing discounts on special edition double vinyl/T shirt or CD/T shirt combos. Perfect for the HCB fan, or better still, soon to be HCB fan in your life. Or, indeed, you. Spoil yourself, eh?
And of course, as ever, you get the extra warm feeling that you are supporting independent musicians, and cutting out the middle man. Seriously, you wouldn't believe the difference in what comes back to us between a direct purchase and a purchase via one of the big resellers. So your direct support really helps us. And as a 9-piece touring instrumental band, that support is absolutely crucial to help us keep doing our thing...
Oh, and if you're not feeling warm enough inside yet, remember that all of our T shirts and babygrows (yep, we have babygrows!) are Fairtrade organic cotton. And super comfy.
HCB with Sophie Ellis-Bextor, featuring dance cameos from TWO astronauts, Jim Al-Khalili, Dara O'Briain and Brian Cox.
Meanwhile, check out this new video of us performing with Sophie Ellis-Bextor at Brian Cox and Robin Ince's Compendium of Reason at the Hammersmith Apollo at the beginning of the month (featuring dance cameos from TWO astronauts, countless world famous scientists, some of the country's leading comedians, and led by Dance Captain Charlotte Church. It was that sort of night). And, of course, check out our 2018 dates, including our massive show at the Forum in London on 16th February. Brass out!
Steve HCB
If you want some festive brass in your life, be sure to check out our take on some festive tunes, filmed in a cave in 2015
*If you are in the southern hemisphere, just remember that the warm feelings described here don't actually warm you up, they just make you feel good. But our T shirts, vinyl, CDs and babygrows are all super cool, so there is plenty for you with your lovely hot weather, too. If in doubt, remember that the warm/cool thing is really just a bit of word play, and our products neither warm you or cool you, but are all excellent. Sorted?
T shirts
Our Fairtrade, organic cotton T shirts are available in a range of colours and adult and kid sizes. Check 'em out!
Yep, it's true, we have babygrows. Available in long sleeved, or short sleeved in hot pink or blue, these are super comfy and hardwearing organic, Fairtrade cotton.
“An ingenious blend of showmanship and intelligence”THE SUNDAY TIMES
“An infectious tumult of horns and drums”i
“More good brass form the east London funksters”EVENING STANDARD
“Swings irresistibly”FINANCIAL TIMES
“Upbeat, witty and rather beautiful”SUNDAY EXPRESS
After the stunning success of their critically-acclaimed third album Sharpener, London’s brass juggernauts Hackney Colliery Band blaze back onto the scene with their first live album, released 12th May via Veki. With BBC Radio 2 describing them as “one of the best live bands we have in this country”, their live shows have become legendary, selling out venues across the UK and Europe, and playing main stage festival shows (Womad, Wilderness, Love Supreme, Field Day) to huge popular and critical acclaim. Recorded over three shows in 2016 and early 2017, the recording captures the band on peak form. Playing largely original material from Sharpener and their second album Common Decency, they also dust off some crowd favourites including their unique mash up of Prodigy covers, rousing versions of Blackstreet’s No Diggity and Nirvana’s Heart-Shaped Box, and concluding with an acoustic version of Toto’s Africa as they parade through the crowd at the end of the set. To celebrate the release of this unique live record, Hackney Colliery Band are playing their biggest headline show to date when they hit the legendary KOKO in London on 26th May. With all of their recent London shows selling out months in advance, including the 800-capacity Village Underground, and a few surprises and tricks up their sleeve, their KOKO show will undoubtedly be a real highlight of 2017, and a chance for fans to hear the real thing in person in one of London’s most iconic venues.
Hearing the band playing live is a very different experience from listening to their three studio albums; it becomes immediately obvious that, far from locked-down studio heads, these are some serious jazz improvisers, here stretching out on extended solos, and with a restless energy for pushing the groove and form in new directions. But this consummate musicianship and skill is always worn very lightly: the band have always managed to present complex music in an extremely playful, fun way, and to a very broad demographic, which on these recordings takes in young east London hipsters and Oxfordshire retirees with equal ease. Front man Steve Pretty’s interactions with the crowd, particularly towards the end of the set, raise the energy levels still further, and those with a good ear can listen out for some heart-warming moments from the audience, like the somewhat slurry man a little bit too close to the sound desk microphone singing along to Heart-Shaped Box, or the room gradually falling silent during the mesmerising introduction to the album’s only ballad Reawake. And it’s these quirks, these little imperfections, that make this album special. Rather than going through the recordings with a fine-tooth comb removing the trumpet cracks, sax squeaks or drum mishits which are inevitable in a 90-minute power set with seven brass musicians and two drummers, the production is minimal. This gives a rare ‘warts and all’ insight into how the band sound live. Steve Pretty, the band’s frontman said: “We’ve always prided ourselves on putting on a really great live show, and the exciting thing about live gigs is that anything can happen. Unfortunately, that means that if I missed a note somewhere, that will now live with me and annoy me forever, but we wanted a really honest portrayal, with no overdubs or excessive production, just capturing the energy of the room”. With the brass band revival in full swing, Hackney Colliery Band manage to occupy their own very distinctive space. Washes of Scandinavian-influenced electronica collide with extended contemporary jazz improvisation, dancefloor-friendly beats contrast with pounding rock rhythms, and Balkanesque melodies nestle up against soul and hip hop grooves. This set owes as much to modern European jazz and American alternative rock as it does to New Orleans second lines or the traditional British brass bands to which their name pays tribute.
