Galliano release first new album in 27 years – ‘Halfway Somewhere’

UK in store dates begin today

November tour dates listed below

‘Halfway Somewhere’, the new album by Galliano, is out today via Brownswood Recordings. Their first new album in almost 30 years, ‘Halfway Somewhere’ is the sound of a band who continue to break musical ground, sounding just as exhilarating and fresh as they did in their heyday.

​​Often miscast as torchbearers of the Acid Jazz scene of the early ‘90s, Galliano was always far more multifaceted and complex. Both of their time and ahead of it, they created a prescient collage of poetry, astral jazz, cosmic funk, conscious soul, dub reggae and dance floor rhythms. “They were the first group to really make the connection between club and jazz culture – the opening line to a space that would later include groups from The Comet is Coming to Ezra Collective,” says longtime supporter Gilles Peterson.

While age brings its inevitable distractions and distance from the cutting edge of youth, band leader and lead vocalist Rob Gallagher’s genius is in gathering fragments of club culture, documenting his urban environment, and addressing broader global concerns is as sharp as ever, all of which are in abundance on their new album.

The first taste of ‘Halfway Somewhere’ came with the single ‘Circles Going Round The Sun’, a testament to the timeless sound of Galliano, the track has been well supported by BBC Radio 6 and Jazz FM. Following this the band shared their cosmic, uplifting take on ‘Pleasure, Joy & Happiness’, the title track from Eddie Chacon’s 2020 record. A new alpaca filled video has been shared for the single, which can be watched here. Third single ‘In The Breaks’ effortlessly mixes elements of disco and soul into a vibrant four and a half minutes, whilst album focus track ‘Dancin Your Own Time’ has spoken word verses over a irresistible bed of space age jazz funk.

Born out of London’s underground clubs and warehouse parties of the mid to late eighties, with the debut single on the Acid Jazz label in 1988, Galliano came out of a culture that spanned music, dance, fashion, art, design, and the written word.

When they arrived as the first act on Gilles Peterson’s Talkin’ Loud label in 1990 with ‘Welcome to the Story’ (produced by Chris Bangs who invented the term Acid Jazz) dressed in Gabicci sweaters, beads and skullcaps they captured a scene built on re-invention. “We were all playing around with what we could get our hands on whether that was a seventies book on Jamaican style or old Last Poets and Watts Prophets records,” says Gallagher. “We’d been recycling things for a few years but suddenly everything had coalesced and you’ve got an amalgam that seemed quite solid.”

For their first album since ‘Live at The Liquid Room (Tokyo)’ in 1997, Rob Gallagher and his partner, vocalist Valerie Etienne, are joined by Galliano stalwarts Ernie McKone on bass, Crispin Taylor on drums, and Ski Oakenfull on keys (with guests including saxophonist Jason Yarde and percussionist Crispin ‘Spry’ Robinson).

Taking their show on the road around the UK, Galliano have now SOLD OUT five of their UK instore dates, with November UK headline shows on sale now.

Galliano UK instore tour dates:

30 August – Resident, Brighton (SOLD OUT)

31 August – Banquet, Kingston (SOLD OUT)

01 September – Rough Trade East, London (SOLD OUT)
02 September – Vinyl Whistle, Leeds (SOLD OUT)
03 September – Jacaranda, Liverpool (SOLD OUT)
04 September – Vinilo, Southampton
05 September – Pie & Vinyl, Southsea

Galliano UK tour dates:

19 November – Blues Kitchen, Manchester

20 November – Lantern Hall, Bristol

22 November – Shepherds Bush Empire, London