The return of live jazz: Moses Boyd and Shunaji at Garden Sessions

Last Updated on 09/01/2022

Written Records x Keylime x Noisefirst

To celebrate the return of live music, we’ve teamed up with Written Records and Keylime to highlight the absolute joy that was the Wild Paths Garden Sessions Festival in Norwich. Each team has had the pleasure of speaking with some of the incredible artists who performed back in May. You can catch interviews with ‘“country-kissed” soulful band Chartreuse, nu-jazz artist Freya Roy, and jazz collective Ebi Soda’ over on WR, and with neo-soul folk artist Maya Law, and the organisers of this beautiful festival, on Keylime.

Noisefirst had the joy of talking with Shunaji and Moses Boyd.

An award winning producer, singer and rapper, Shunaji’s sunbeam-infused avantgarde beats and ingeniously sharp lyricism feel at once both accessible and groundbreaking.

The “progenitor of the current London jazz scene”, Moses Boyd’s work as a jazz drummer, composer and record producer has dismantled the limits of genre.

We spoke to both artists about their experience of Wild Paths’ Garden Sessions, a jazz and neo-soul festival that filled a May weekend in Norwich with audible sunshine. The first live gig for many of these artists and their audience post-Covid, the atmosphere was indescribable.

Did it feel strange to be connecting with a live audience after all this time?

Shunaji: I find that in general performing, getting on stage, is always a novel experience for me personally. There’s the impact of realising that you’re going to perform for a crowd, an audience of people you’ve often never met before – but adding on the fact that we haven’t done it in quite a while, it was quite extraordinary. Trying to get the reaction and understand how people are connecting and relating to the music can create a bit of anticipation, but the audience was really understanding and warm, and everyone seemed to be having a great time. So I wouldn’t say strange, but definitely something that you need to adjust to again; as with anything, when you’ve fallen out of practice with something you kind of have to start a little bit more from the basics of it. I enjoyed performing at the festival. It was really cool, and the whole journey of touring was amazing.

Moses: It did initially, but I was surprised by how quickly it started to feel normal again, both as a musician technically playing, and also the motions of a festival, like being back stage. It’s surprising how quickly you slot into what was once your reality.

Was there anything about performing that you didn’t realise how much you valued until live spaces were taken away?

Shunaji: I think it was being in the presence of other artists and performing acts, so I really enjoyed watching Maya Law and Ebi Soda and Moses Boyd. It was just amazing, and I think more than the act of performing – which is of course a great gift and privilege – being able to watch other people do their thing and being in that space receiving music, that’s something that as artists and performers it’s easy to forget about – that you’re also an audience member at the same time. And especially as an emerging artist, it’s about that comradery and that shared experience of putting on a show with other people – and I really missed it, because there’s so much inspiration that comes from watching other people perform. I think it’s hard, at least for me, to get that inspiration just from being stuck inside my own house, in four walls, so having outside influences is really helpful.

I also love the ability to express myself and share my music with people without any strings attached or expectations, especially in the context of a festival. They’re different to headline shows, and I really enjoy festivals for that reason, because there are so many opportunities: people are there that might never have heard of my music before, and then suddenly you can create a connection. So that was pretty cool.

Moses: I think I didn’t realise how much I valued and missed interactions and banter. Even the journey up, just being in a van with your friends – I haven’t done that in over a year. Or walking through the festival and meeting the food vendors – it’s all the little things that I didn’t realize I missed. Obviously performing is great but that’s the obvious one. It’s the other little things that really make a festival, you know – just talking to people afterwards backstage, bumping into different bands and other artists – I missed that man, for sure.

Do you think this period has changed your relationship with music at all?

Moses: I don’t know if this period has changed my relationship with music. I’ve always valued it and always been very grateful, but I think it’s just more life, more grateful for life. Every day that we’re here is another blessing, and with that comes the opportunity to play and do shows, but it’s not just music that I see this period has changed – the appreciation of life has grown for sure.

Shunaji: The experience has definitely changed my relationship with songwriting, but generally I’m at a point in my life where there’s so much that I’m learning about myself and my intentions. I feel like I’m way more thankful for the opportunities that I get, and in songwriting I try to relieve pressure from the act of making a great song.

I think the pandemic has really helped me become more aware of how everything is attached by this really thin string. I think before lockdown and the pandemic there were so many things that we took for granted, and when those were taken away from us it gave us the opportunity to appreciate the chaos and the unpredictability of our lives as well. So that’s what I’ve realised, and that’s how my relationship with making music has changed, because now I’m just trying to really enjoy my life instead of thinking about the next achievement or the next milestone. It relates to gigging as well, because there was definitely a point in my music career (it still feels amazing to say that) where I was gigging so much that gigs kind of became like a chore, or something to get done, and I had a conversation with my bandmates who also had similar experiences. I think being able to step back from that and actually see the experience of live performance in a different light is really good, because you don’t want to miss those moments and you want to be able to fully enjoy them. So this period has helped me realise what I’m able to do and the things that I have, and those opportunities are not taken for granted. That’s something I hope doesn’t go away as restrictions lift and we all kind of forget about this experience.

What was the most meaningful part of the festival experience for you?

Moses: When everybody got up and danced – I mean how long has it been since I’ve seen that? It was just really nice to see people let their inhibitions loose. Obviously people were being very respectful at the beginning, staying in their bubble sat down, but there was no rule that said you couldn’t express yourself, so to see people realize and take full advantage of that – that was very beautiful.

Shunaji: I felt really looked after by the organisers; I thought everyone was friendly, and that goes a really long way in making artists feel comfortable, because transfers can be long and you can feel really stressed, or you get performance anxiety, so feeling like everything is looked after and taken care of is a great relief, especially for independent touring artists. Another thing I really enjoyed about the festival was just watching the other artists perform, so Maya Law, Ebi Soda and Moses Boyd, and at the end of Moses’ set I was just so happy that everyone started dancing (I mean I was dancing the whole time because I just can’t sit down to music that’s so percussive and drum based). But I feel like it was a really nice demonstration that, yes, we can abide by the rules, but there are no rules stating you have to sit down in an outdoor space, and sometimes rules are made to be broken. I feel when you’re at an event like that listening to Moses Boyd you just have to dance, so it was nice to see a natural defiance in our own self limitations, and it was quite a transcendental experience for me.