Stewart Smith

Since: 2026 | Position: Contributor | Reviews Albums | Location: Newcastle | Page Views: 12

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About Me

Writer on jazz, improvised and experimental music based in Newcastle, UK

I am a writer on jazz, improvised and experimental music based in Newcastle, UK. My tastes lean avant-garde, with a particular interest in musicians who challenge orthodoxy and dissolve genre boundaries. I've written for The Wire, We Jazz, Bandcamp Daily, The Quietus, and run a newsletter, Ion Engine. In 2021, I curated Jazz At The Third Eye, a project exploring the musical legacy of Glasgow's pioneering multi-arts centre. In addition to sharing archival materials through blogs and an online broadcast, I commissioned responses to the archive from contemporary Glasgow musicians and artists.

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Explorer

Points Earned

325

Favorite Musicians / Bands

Alexander Hawkins

Alice Coltrane

Amir ElSaffar

Anna Hogberg

Anna Webber

Anthony Braxton

Arthur Doyle

Cecil Taylor

Darius Jones

DoYeon Kim

Irene Schweizer

Jaimie Branch

Joe McPhee

John Butcher

Lukas Koenig

Mariam Rezaei

Nels Cline

Pat Thomas

Robert Wyatt

Sachiko M

Sakina Abdou

Tyshawn Sorey

Wendy Eisenberg

MORE FAVORITES

My Jazz Story

I'm originally from Scotland and grew up in the 90s listening to rock and hip-hop. I was always curious about jazz, and checked out Kind of Blue and Love Supreme as you do, but the first jazz album that really clicked with me was Mingus Ah Um. I came to love Miles and Trane soon enough, but Mingus was the one. The energy, the sheer range, just magical. The jazz samples in hip-hop certainly planted seeds, as did the likes Sonic Youth talking up free jazz. Robert Wyatt was another gateway, introducing me to the great South African and UK players who played on his records. I had my free jazz epiphany seeing Hamid Drake play a festival in my hometown of Stirling back in 2004. He remains one of my very favourite musicians. Having access to festivals like Le Weekend, Instal/Arika, Kill. Your Timid Notion, as well as organisations like Glasgow Improvisers Orchestra and Tony Bevan's Help Me I'm Melting sessions, has shaped my aesthetic values and my sense of jazz, improvised and experimental music as a community. Advice to new listeners? Keep an open mind and ears, don't be afraid of feeling uncomfortable, but also don't worry about "understanding" it: just let it flow over you and you'll find something to hang onto.