COVER FEATURE
ARCHIPELAGO ALI WELFORD TALKS TO THE TYNESIDE ALT. JAZZ TRIO ABOUT THEIR EVER-EXPANDING SOUNDWORLD AND HONING THEIR GRIPPING AND AUDACIOUS NEW RELEASE IMAGE BY VICTORIA WAI “There’s not so much of a band culture in jazz,” says Archipelago bass player John Pope. “Usually, outfits are led by and centred around the work of one individual, but our set-up is more like that of a DIY rock group.” This statement rings true throughout a conversation which paints Archipelago far from your average act, jazz or otherwise. Although led ostensibly by writer, saxophonist and clarinet player Faye MacCalman, the impression is of a uniquely compatible trio (completed by percussionist extraordinaire Christian Alderson) whose talents and personalities each form an equal, integral cog. All three speak eloquently and at similar length. Certainly, you get a sense of the chemistry which makes them such a stirring live draw, and which in Echoes To The Sky has manifested in a second album as
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compelling and adventurous as any the North East has produced over recent years. “I was really nervous about bringing songs to this band. My background in free improvised music meant that I was used to playing with people who were particularly adverse to that kind of thing,” Faye recalls, on the origins of this connection. “To me, though, improvised music was beginning to develop ‘a sound’ – it didn’t really feel free anymore – so I wanted to explore a different approach which would be more honest to myself. I did worry that John and Christian would be like ‘Ewww! We don’t play songs!’ but once it became obvious that wouldn’t be the case, it became easy.” Of course, this methodology hardly denotes a dearth in creativity. Indeed, whether on stage or in the studio, Archipelago remain a
