On Collaborations: Volume One, writers Steve Pretty, Olly Blackman and Luke Christie have between them penned the outfit's most dynamic material to date. Mm Mm (feat. Angélique Kidjo and Roundhouse Choir) merges Beninese grooves with wah pedal trumpet textures, and the rousing call-and-response betweenKidjo’s soaring vocal and the exhilarating choir adds a richness and depth to the composition. On Snowfire, innovative Norwegian pianist Bugge Wesseltoft brings a euro/nu-jazz feel to the album, while Dennis 'Funkybone' Rollins adds his trademark virtuoso trombone to the carnival-flavoured Ricochet.
New single Netsanet (feat. Mulatu Astatke) is a deep exploration of Mulatu's trademark Ethio-jazz, while Crushing Lactic, composed by Tom Rogerson (fresh from a recent collaboration with Brian Eno) has afrenzied flow, with big horns and driving rhythm section.
Elsewhere, Pete Wareham (stalwart of the London jazz revival) lends his free-flowing sax to What’s Gone Before, leading us into a powerful communion of jazz and brass as Mulatu Astatke’s Derashe takes thelistener down a vibrating rhythmic path while accompanied by blasts of horns and Mulatu’s trademark vibraphone. Two spoken word compositions (Why Yellow and Climbing Up My Own Life Until I Die) featuring York born writer and comedian Rob Auton lend an introspective voice to Collaborations: Volume One.