Cassie Kinoshi’s seed. to release symphonic new album 'gratitude' on International Anthem

Composer, arranger and alto saxophonist Cassie Kinoshi releases her new album, gratitude, on 22 March in what will be her debut release on leading Chicago imprint, International Anthem. Featuring her band seed. alongside turntablist NikNak and the London Contemporary Orchestra, the music was recorded at a thrilling concert at the Southbank Centre in March 2023.

Along with the album announcement, two pieces of music from gratitude are available for streaming on all digital music platforms today. ‘Movements I’ and ‘ii’ showcase the first part of the dynamic, lushly orchestrated suite, with the second track featuring an electric guitar solo from seed. bandmember Shirley Tetteh.

A former member of Kokoroko, Kinoshi’s compositional work to date include orchestral pieces for concert hall, contemporary dance, film, visual art, and theatre, with high profile collaborators including London Sinfonietta, Philharmonia Orchestra, and the London Symphony Orchestra. Gratitude brings this together with seed.’s group chemistry to create a richly layered sound encompassing modern classical, contemporary jazz with electronic flourishes, as well as channelling influences from the tradition of legendary jazz arrangers such as Mary Lou Williams, Oliver Nelson, and Carla Bley.

Commenting on the album Kinoshi said: “gratitude was written as a means of guiding my own healing. My mother told me that she keeps a gratitude book where she writes one thing, no matter how big or small, every day that helps to re-focus her mind on practicing gratitude. The examples that she gave were seeing the flowers that she'd recently planted in her garden bloom and a kaleidoscope of butterflies that she saw flitting about a tree in her garden. I find this way of looking for the small moments of beauty in everyday life a beautiful way of reframing one's experience of life and making sure to celebrate the communities, people, natural world and experiences that bring me joy. At this point in my artistic career, highlighting the often overlooked subject of mental health and what it means to move towards creating healthy, positive and introspective practices in regards to both understanding and regulating one's own mental health is of the utmost importance to me.”

Cassie Kinoshi’s seed. are joined by the London Contemporary Orchestra and turntablist NikNak when they headline the Barbican, London on 7 March and will perform music from gratitude as well as a specially commissioned piece dedicated to pioneering women composers to celebrate International Women’s Day.

For more info visit www.barbican.org.uk and to pre-order the album see international-anthem.lnk.to/gratitude