Much time and column space has rightly been given to the explosion of jazz that is rippling along British shores, emanating from the boisterous South London scene. However, it is not alone. Just across the North Sea over in Belgium, birthplace of the saxophone, another sustained wave of young and established jazz talent is pushing the genre forward.
Whether the flute-driven jazztronica of Belgian-Ghanaian act ESINAM, the heavily improvisational Steiger (who title their songs things like ‘Absolution of a French Fry’), or the atmospheric post-rocky dérive of Nordmann, there is much to choose from in this small land.
STUFF. is one of the bands at the heart of the movement. Emerging from the vibrant Ghent jazz scene in the Dutch-speaking part of the country in the early 2010s, STUFF.’s music is full of sparkling keys, electronic wind instruments, and pulsating rhythm sections that feel like communications from a Telstar.