Alfa Mist at Gorilla

Johnny James, Managing Editor
David Muggeridge

Alfa Mist at Gorilla, Manchester 17 May 2019 Tickets from £13 — Book now

Inching ever closer to the likes of Kamaal Williams and Shabaka Hutchings, Alfa Mist is an increasingly significant player in London’s flourishing jazz scene.

A thing of deep catharsis, best enjoyed in the quiet of the early hours.

Marrying soulful hip-hop with jazz harmony, the young pianist and producer started carving out his distinctly London-tinged style back in 2015 with debut EP, Nocturne. Melancholic and introspective, this soundtrack-worthy collection of night-time musings put him on the map, helped along by the collaborative efforts of people like Tom Misch and Jordan Rakei. The track ‘No Peace’, featuring Misch, is particularly smooth, and like many tunes on the album is a thing of deep catharsis, best enjoyed in the quiet of the early hours.

Two years later and it was time for Antiphon, a record in which Alfa really laid himself bare. Structured around intermittent conversations between the artist and his brothers about family, respect and mental health, Antiphon feels like a refuge for Alfa and his openly-admitted struggles with depression and insomnia. With a core instrumentation of mellow Rhodes, exploratory, snare-led percussion and simple, dulcet guitar, the album is a gorgeous expression of loneliness, and by its close, you feel reluctant to untangle yourself from its warm embrace. The eerie and sprawling ‘Potential’ is particularly great, as is ‘7th October’, a track in which Alfa, with impressive dexterity, turns his hand to rapping.

After a couple more singles in 2018, including a lovely collaboration with Yussef Dayes, Alfa released details of his next album earlier this month. Named after the theoretical breakdown of the basic elements of conscious experience, Structuralism is based around conversations between Alfa and his sister which explore the East London artist’s battles with self and the societal pressures that inform our own conscious experience. Its lead single ‘Retainer’ is as meditative, probing and as eloquent as his best work. A track of two halves, it opens with a Blue in Green-esque trumpet-led groove, before a cinematic string section mournfully re-imagines the material and the track spirals into an emotionally-drenched guitar and piano improv. It really is stunning, and an exciting sign of things to come from Alfa.

The album will be out on the 26 April, well in time for you to get to know it before his gig at Gorilla on the 17 May. Don’t miss your chance to catch this young artist hitting full stride.

Alfa Mist at Gorilla, Manchester 17 May 2019 Tickets from £13 Book now

Where to go near Alfa Mist at Gorilla

Dog Bowl bowling alley and restaurant Manchester.
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Dog Bowl

A bar and 10-pin bowling alley combined, Dog Bowl is a neon-lit venue that serves up cocktails and Tex-Mex food to go with your time on the lanes.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
Black Dog Ballroom NWS

Black Dog Ballroom is a three-level bar, club and restaurant complete with roof terrace covered to provide protection during Manchester’s rainy season.

Photo of people going through Cornerhouse's front doors
Manchester
Cinema
Cornerhouse

Cornerhouse on Oxford Street was an independent cinema, gallery, restaurant, bookshop – oh yes, and also a Manchester institution. It has now closed it’s doors, relocated and reinvented itself as HOME.

City Centre
Bar or Pub
The Temple

Originally called The Temple of Convenience owing to its former life as a public toilet block, this is a tiny bar with some of the finest bathroom graffiti in town.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
The Thirsty Scholar

Friendly pub under a railway arch serving vegetarian and vegan pub food, as well as hosting regular live music.

Palace Theatre Manchester
Manchester
Theatre
Palace Theatre

A Manchester landmark for almost 130 years, The Palace Theatre is reopening in early August 2021 with a few small but vital changes to ensure a safe and pleasant experience for all.

City Centre
Restaurant
The Refuge

The Refuge is a restaurant and bar based at Kimpton Clocktower Hotel, specialising in bright, exciting small plates.

Bundobust Oxford Road
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Bundobust Brewery

Launched in 2021, the Bundobust Brewery makes modern beer with their vegetarian and vegan food menu in mind.

City Centre
Bar or Pub
Peveril Of The Peak

Iconic Manchester pub adorned with the sorts of bottle green, yellow and brown Victorian tiles that are a reclamation yard’s dream – this gem of a boozer is named after Sir Walter Scott’s novel of the same name and was a favourite hang-out of Eric Cantona.

Manchester
Café or Coffee Shop
Burgess Cafe Bar
at IABF

Small but perfectly-formed café – which also serves as the in-house bookstore, stocking all manner of Burgess-related works, along with recordings of his music. It’s a welcoming space, with huge glass windows making for a bright, welcoming atmosphere.

Rain Bar pub in Manchester
City Centre
Bar or Pub
Rain Bar

This huge three-floor pub, formerly a Victorian warehouse, then an umbrella factory (hence the name), has one of the city centre’s largest beer gardens. The two-tier terrace overlooks the Rochdale canal and what used to be the back of the Hacienda, providing an unusual, historic view of the city.

What's on: Music

Until
ActivityManchester
DJ Gym at Hatch

Learn some DJ and production skills with DJ Gym Manchester, based in the culturally infused surrounds of Hatch.

from £269
Until
MusicManchester
RNCM Autumn Season

The RNCM’s Autumn Season brings with it an incredibly diverse programme of live music from across the genre spectrum. Here are our highlights.

from £8.50

Culture Guides

Music in Manchester and the North

Spotlighting global artists who all, in one way or another, break the mould, we preview the best gigs happening this side of Christmas and beyond.