In the past, the London jazz great Shabaka Hutchings has been one of the driving forces of bands like Sons Of Kemet and the Comet Is Coming. Shabaka is now a first-name-only guy, and he released his solo debut Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace earlier this year. On that record, Shabaka worked with people like André 3000, Moses Sumney, and Floating Points. The album’s highlight might be “Body To Inhabit,” a poetic and incendiary collaboration with the abstract New York rap great ELUCID. Have you heard this thing? You should really hear this thing.

Next month, Shabaka will follow Perceive Its Beauty, Acknowledge Its Grace with a new EP called Possession. ELUCID will also appear on that record, as will Esperanza Spalding and an as-yet-unnamed special guest. On opening track “Timepieces,” Shabaka creates a contemplative instrumental, while ELUCID’s Armand Hammer billy woods gets intensely vulnerable. It’s powerful, and it makes me wonder if there might be a full Shabaka/Armand Hammer record somewhere down the line. Below, check out “Timepieces,” the Possession tracklist, and Shabaka’s upcoming tour dates.

TRACKLIST:
01 “Timepieces” (Feat. billy woods)
02 “I’ve Been Listening” (Feat. Elucid)
03 “To The Moon” (Feat. special guest)
04 “Cycles of Growth” (Feat. Esperanza Spalding)
06 “Reaching Back Towards Eternity” (Feat. Nduduzo Makhathini)

TOUR DATES:
11/16 – Katowice, Poland @ JazzClub Hipnoza
11/19 – Utrecht, Netherlands @ Hertz
11/23 – Brussels, Belgium @ Flagey
11/27 – Manchester, UK @ Albert Hall
11/28 – Bristol, UK @ St. Mary Redcliffe
11/39 – London, UK @ Royal Festival Hall
12/12 – Tokyo, Japan @ WWW X
12/14 – Beijing, China @ Omni Space
12/16 – Shenzhen, China @ B10
12/18 – Shanghai, China @ Modern Sky Lab
2/27 – Columbia, MO @ The Blue Note (True/False Film Festival)
3/01-02 – Durham, NC @ Missy Lanes
3/06 – Melbourne, Australia @ Northcote Theatre
3/07 – Brisbane, Australia @ Princess Theatre
3/08 – Sydney, Australia @ City Recital Hall
3/10 – Adelaide, Australia @ WOMADelaide
3/12 – Perth, Australia @ Freo Arts Centre

The Possession EP is out 12/6 on Impulse! Records. Check out our recent Shabaka interview here.