Momoko Gill
“No Others”
Strut Records (pre-order here)
It opens with a rigid, groovy bass-and-drum line completely in sync, carrying you artfully to Momoko Gill’s quietly powerful vocals.
“They’re fighting, trying to explain / like they want to trade…”
You’re likely getting a taste of Momoko for the first time. “No Others” is one of the early offerings from her upcoming debut solo album, the simply titled “Momoko,” out on Jan. 31 via Strut Records. Like on an old-school 1970s folk record, her face plastered on the cover. It’s a bold introduction, musically and visually.
As a self-taught everything (drummer / producer / songwriter / vocalist), Momoko has been dubbed by her label as “one of the UK electronic and jazz scene’s best kept secrets.” She’s collabed with other artists of note for a while now – Alabaster DePlume, Coby Sey, Tirzah. Her stunning collaboration this year with producer Matthew Herbert on the album “Clay” put the brightest spotlight on her yet.
She capitalized on that buzz, announcing her solo album shortly after "Clay" started to gain critical acclaim and love from casual listeners as well.
This album is all her. That drum line in the beginning of “No Others”? That’s Momoko on the kit, having spent years touring as a drummer for others. The entire track feels like a smoky, small-club tribute to spiritual jazz classics like Donald Byrd’s “A New Perspective.”
Under Momoko’s spell, “No Others” is a much funkier and more focused version of the music that came before her and clearly inspired her. The sparse, sparkling keys that float through the back half of the track are a wonder. That’s her, too.
I’m ready to devour the rest of Momoko’s upcoming album – and I think the rest of the world is ready to take notice, too.
