Levitation Orchestra | “Sanctuary” Album Launch
What happens when ten virtuoso musicians create music collectively with no room for ego? Islington Assembly Hall plays host to the result, a set bursting with ideas, each given space to flourish.
Levitation Orchestra has no star, no front-man; their core philosophy when writing and performing is egalitarianism. While band leader Axel Kaner-Lidström guides the broad structure, each member contributes integrally to the writing process. Their third LP Sanctuary marks five years of operating with this idea, a commitment that’s paid dividends in its execution.
James Akers delivers a sinuous saxophone introduction, a torrent of notes flooding the hall. As the solo reaches a surely lung-bursting length the band breaks into A Small Truth. With so many performers, it’s easy to miss subtle flourishes playing out across the stage—while Lluís Domènech Plana tears it up on the flute, bassist Hamish Nockles Moore holds down the rhythm section with fluid confidence. Harpist Marya Osuchowska meanwhile plucks dreamy harmonics that cut through overlapping melodies shared across the horn section.
While conventional band setups place the singer front and centre, vocalist Plumm contributes no less vitally to the rich texture of the set. During Another Way her precision and clarity plays well off the fuzzy, dissonant guitar lines offered by Paris Reyne. Alternating between sung lyrics and rhythmic syllables, Plumm might double a saxophone part before taking the lead in quieter moments.
It’s during such a lull that the band thanks music educator Paul Griffiths for shaping their communal writing style. Griffiths was himself inspired by a performance from The Sun Ra Archestra in 2013, prompting him to pass on the values of exploration, diversity and collaboration set out by the visionary composer.
These principles are typified most clearly in the closing song, Sanctuary. The audience joins in a sung melody as Harry Ling glides over the drum kit in a wash of shimmering cymbals. While there’s certainly some pitchy voices in the crowd, in these numbers they all contribute to a cohesive whole. Across the night it’s the most direct indication that music belongs to everyone.