BRDCST curator, a master of circular breathing, and “A one-man astonishment engine” (The New York Times)

With six (!) visits to AB under his belt – of which five solo shows and one as a member of the backing band for Bon Iver – saxophonist Colin Stetson (CA) is no stranger to us. This established connection sparked the idea for a BRDCST curatorship, an invitation Stetson was more than happy to accept.

The American residing in Canada was once described by The New York Times as “a one-man astonishment engine” and a master of circular breathing. The way he plays tenor sax is reminiscent of (free jazz) masters like Evan Parker, Peter Brötzmann and Anthony Braxton. His CV looks impressive due to collaborations with Feist, BadBadNotGood, Tom Waits, Lou Reed, Animal Collective, Keeley Forsyth, David Byrne, LCD Soundsystem, Brìghde Chaimbeul and The National, amongst others.

Stetson also boasts around 15 soundtracks to his name (including a remake of Texas Chainsaw Massacre), he impressively reworked Górecki’s Symphony N° 3 and he celebrates his love of black metal, free jazz, hard bop and noise with his band EX EYE. The recently released The Love It Took To Leave You is his first solo album since 2017.

Finally, in the words of The Guardian: “Stetson manages to walk a line between percussive layering reminiscent of Steve Reich, meditative repetition akin to Philip Glass, and the lyricism of his friend and collaborator Laurie Anderson. Multi-textured and immersive, his work really is like nothing you've heard before.”