Matt Carmichael is coming to Kings Place and launching a new album

Welcome to the latest episode of Harmonious World, where I interview musicians about how their music helps make the world more harmonious.

I chatted with sax player Matt Carmichael back in March 2025 and it was great to speak with him again as he prepares to release his new album - Held in the Dark. Matt is beginning the new season at London’s Kings Place on Sunday 20 September, with the Kings Place Jazz Orchestra.

Thanks to Matt for allowing me to play extracts from Red Sky (the first single from Held in the Dark) alongside our conversation.

*** On 24 September 2026, I will be recording an episode in front of an audience with pianist, organist and composer Rufus Frowde - you can get your tickets here! This event is part of Hitchin Creative's Online & IRL programme, bringing live creative events to audiences both in person and online.

Thank you for listening to Harmonious World. Please rate, review and share: click on the link and subscribe to support the show.

Don't forget the Quincy Jones quote that sums up why I do this: "Imagine what a harmonious world it would be if every single person, both young and old, shared a little of what he is good at doing."

Transcript

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Hilary 0:22

Hello and welcome to the latest episode of Harmonious World. My name is Hilary Seabrook. I'd like to take this opportunity to say thank you to all my supporters. Harmonious World is doing really well, and we're getting loads and loads of downloads. And it's really nice to hear from people who've enjoyed particular episodes, and there have been some great ones recently, so I hope you have enjoyed some of those conversations. Today's conversation is with Matt Carmichael, who is a Scottish sax player who I first chatted with in March 2025 when he had a new album out, and he's got another album on the way in October, so I'll be talking to him about that, but I'm also talking to him about his appearance at King's Place, which, if you know me, you will know that's one of my favourite venues. They're really upping their game in terms of jazz, and next week I'm going to be talking to Hannah Hutton, who is the jazz programmer at King's Place. So that's that'll be good, but I'm gonna find out today from Matt why he's playing at King's Place, why it's an important venue, and what he's bringing along. So the exciting news at King's Place is some great jazz programming coming up, and that includes Matt Carmichael with the King's Place Jazz Orchestra on the 20th of September. So get your tickets for that. Links are all in the show notes, and I hope you enjoy listening to my conversation with Matt. What you're listening to now is Red Sky, which is the first single from Held in the Dark, which is coming out in October. I hope you enjoy listening to my conversation with Matt Carmichael. How are you doing? It's been just over a year since we spoke before.

Matt 2:28

Yeah, no, it's not it's not been long. Uh I think I saw you maybe at Claire maybe we met at Clare Corps, and then there was a podcast after then.

Hilary 2:38

Yeah.

Matt 2:39

And uh yeah, no, I've been doing good still, still up in Glasgow playing music and uh yeah, yeah.

Hilary 2:48

Yeah, so this is really exciting. So I'm talking to you about your soon to come uh album, so Held in the Dark, which is coming out in October, and before that, your appearance at King's Place in September.

Matt 3:02

Yeah, yeah.

Hilary 3:03

Okay, so let's start with uh well, let's start with the King's Place thing. That's really exciting. They've got some great artists coming up there.

Matt 3:13

Yeah, uh it was nice nice to be asked uh doing this sort of jazz orchestra project with some of my music, and I think there'll also be some of Callum Io's music as well, uh, which will be which would be great. It's amazing to be asked for. I mean, these sort of larger ensemble things don't come across that often, that they're very expensive and lots of people involved, so it's it's always a nice occasion, and uh there's some amazing musicians in the lineup. So yeah, happy to really, really happy to be doing it and uh yeah.

Hilary 3:45

Yeah, bringing a bit of Scottish jazz and uh and and your I really like your balance between uh jazz and folk, Scottish folk. So Fergus McCready is on your your album. Yeah, he's presumably not going to be in the uh in the concert at King's Place.

Matt 4:05

Yeah, he's he's actually doing that as well, which will be nice. It's um always helpful with these large ensemble things to have. I mean, it'll be the kind of a quick, quick day, there'll be a short rehearsal on the thing. So it's nice to have some people who already understand the music and a lot of the music. I guess I write a lot of that music on the piano, so a lot of the aesthetic, and um yeah, a lot of the direction comes from there. So it's I think that that's a big help um in terms of bringing the getting the sound right for that sort of thing. So that'll be fun.

Hilary 4:38

Oh yeah, so that's great that Fergus is gonna be there. I I I'm a huge fan of his playing. I think he's an extraordinary musician. I really do. So yeah, and and obviously the rest of the um that's a great jazz orchestra that Callum's sort of pulled together with Hannah at King's Place. So you've got some of the best musicians playing at the moment.

Matt 5:00

Yeah, uh, I guess I guess London for the sort of thing, the the sessionslash jazz sort of musicians in that big band environment, they're uh some of the best in the world. And um yeah, it's amazing to have that sort of high-quality band playing and playing your music, so you get to sort of hear it realized um in the best best possible way. Um trying to think who's on the on the lineup. I've not I think Hannah Hannah sorted it, but there's some amazing people. I think James Cope's a trumpet player, Ryan Quigley, Graeme Blevins, um Alex Clark's saxophone player. Um yeah, I need to check, but there's a lot there's a lot of amazing musicians in the lineup, which would be great.

Hilary 5:47

Yeah, and uh and obviously Callum. Yeah, he's he's an amazing band leader and writer and arranger and all the rest of it. So you're gonna do a combination of your stuff, of Callum's stuff. Um are you gonna be doing things from the new album or are you leaving that until October?

Matt 6:05

Yeah, a a mixture of things. Um I guess I've done a few big band projects in the past. I've kind of wrote some new I wrote I've wrote some arrangements of a few of the tracks from the new album for this and uh some previous stuff as well. So kind of a mix mix of things across the di this discography. Um yeah, which would be great. And it's um been fun to write some new stuff. Don't always get the chance to hear it live, so may as well make the most of try something new.

Hilary 6:35

Absolutely, and there's nothing quite like hearing that big band sound, the the sort of full jazz orchestra sound. It's a real opportunity, isn't it, to to to make the most of that.

Matt 6:48

Yeah, and uh, I guess it's an interesting challenge. I guess I've grown up playing in big bands, very much sort of in the jazz tradition, like Juke and Charles Mingus, all the sort of traditional people. So bringing this music which isn't formed in big band in a big band environment, to recreating it in that environment and the challenge of making it sound good for that ensemble, but also making it sound true to my own music. So I guess that's in the past it's been sort of the challenge or the balance and things you have to learn how to meet things in the middle to make the best sort of outcome. So yeah, it's interesting to have another shot today with uh this one.

Hilary 7:28

Yeah, yeah, and King's Place is such a nice venue. One of the things I like about it is not only is the venue, I mean, it's extraordinary in terms of acoustics and layout and everything else, but the people that they've got working there are just so good.

Matt 7:44

Yeah, I can't I don't think I know a few of the people met Hannah online and met uh I think Sam McShane used to work up in Scotland, and she was great, and Rob Farhat used to work there. But yeah, it's a it's a really cool venue, and um I've seen a I've maybe seen a couple of gigs there. Um yeah, so I've not actually played myself, so uh well first time yeah, brilliant.

Hilary 8:13

Uh and then you've so you've obviously been writing new stuff for the new album. So that's coming out middle of October. Uh Held in the Dark. So what what's the story behind that album?

Matt 8:29

Yeah, uh I guess it's um musically speaking, it's kind of uh slight departure from the Scottish jazz sort of sound. There's a lot of music influenced by sort of singer-songwriter aesthetics, there's sort of a double guitar, uh some acoustic guitars, electric guitars, um, but also has the sort of core band sound that's been in the past. Um, so it's it's yeah, that's sort of the slight change in depart in departure. I describe it sort of the aesthetic of a singer-songwriter album, but sort of the freedom of jazz, and it's also there's no there's no lyrics or singing, but in that sound world, um, I guess, yeah, I guess it kind of just reflects the the story behind the music, it's kind of reflects the time sort of supporting someone through uh a lot of sort of health health issues. Um and it's sort of I guess I guess it just reflects what's going on in your life, and it's sort of um that's part of the story with that one. But um yeah, looking forward to getting out. It's um it'll be it's in next next month or so there'll be a show at London Jazz Festival in in Edinburgh and Glasgow for like the launch and then more of a tour next year in March, um, which will be sort of announced soon. So um yeah, look at looking forward to getting out there.

Hilary 9:54

Yeah, fantastic. And so Red Sky is the single that you've released just to sort of tease us, and I really like that. One of the things I really like about it is that double guitar uh because it sort of takes a while for you to actually appear as you know for the sacks to come in, and I really like that. I I always like that when it's not kind of hey, it's me, here I am, it's all about me. And I what made you do that?

Matt 10:16

Yeah, I guess the way I mean I play it very much play jazz, I can I play as like a solo saxphone player and do sort of that thing, but I don't even know if there's a solo on that album of me playing saxophone. I guess I'm writing music that I want to hear, and uh there's no I don't want to hear a saxophone solo on this album, even like the best saxophone player in the world, or just for the vision of this album and the aesthetic. There's there's lots of improvisation and some other soloist bits, so it's kind of more of a meeting, it's not like the traditional format of jazz where there's sort of head solo, there's like a lot of collective improvisation, a lot of jazz, because we're all grounded in jazz, and that's in the foundation. But the for the the the vision and the aesthetic of this album that didn't seem didn't seem right. So yeah, I guess it's it's it's just the way I kind of write music. I'm not trying to prove anything as a saxophone player, or I'm just kind of trying to create the music that I've sort of clear my head and the vision and trying to uh get it to come across in the in the most clear way.

Hilary 11:26

Yeah, I actually spoken to a few sex players recently and they are all about the music, and that that the saxophone is part of that, but it's only a part of it when you're s when you're writing, when you're composing, it's only a part of it. Um and I find that really interesting. I I I think that's much more interesting than than a uh an album which comes out which is all about like here is me, and you know, there are some people that you know there's a trio underneath or something.

Matt 11:55

I mean, I I love listening to that sort of music as well. Like there's so much amusing music music now there, but yeah, music I'm sort of hearing at the moment isn't isn't like that.

Hilary 12:05

Yeah, brilliant. Um, so we've there's a lot coming up, obviously. So there's King's Place on the 20th of September, there's the album coming out in October, you're at the Jazz, the London Jazz Festival, yeah. In November, and so then we need to look out for this tour in the new year.

Matt 12:23

Yeah, I think that that's that that pretty much sums up the things going on. Yeah.

Hilary 12:29

Brilliant. Okay, well, I I hope that I get to see you at some point. So uh look forward to that.

Matt 12:35

Yeah, that'd be nice, nice to catch up again.

Hilary 12:56

So this is a little bit more of Red Sky. Uh, do check out all the links in the show notes. And thank you so much for the support, for sharing this, liking it, writing a review, supporting me on Patreon. It was great to chat with Matt Carmichael about all of those things that he's got coming up. King's Place, the album, the launch in Scotland, but then also hopefully some new dates in the new year. So, watch out for that. I'll be reviewing stuff along the way on my website. All the links are in the show notes. Thanks for joining me once more for Harmonious World.