Emboldened, by Steve Banks

Emboldened

by Steve Banks

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Compact Disc (CD) + Digital Album
6-panel gatefold style sleeve, with artwork by Enric Alberti

Includes unlimited streaming of Emboldened via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

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Streaming + Download

Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.

Purchasable with gift card

£7 GBP or more

1.	Emboldened Suite: Fear 07:28	buy track
2.	Emboldened Suite: Belief 07:55	buy track
3.	Emboldened Suite: Unity (Prologue) 01:27	buy track
4.	Emboldened Suite: Unity (Main Theme) 06:48	buy track
5.	Two Brothers 07:51	buy track
6.	Just Listen 09:38	buy track
7.	Always For You And Forever Yours 05:45	buy track

about

Guitarist Steve Banks releases his debut album, Emboldened, in May 2023 on Stoney Lane Records - a striking collection of original works inspired by an emotional reflection to the response of individuals and society to adversity.

An expansive musical voice developed over years of diverse experience, Banks’ Emboldened delivers a compelling, distinctly lyrical and personal sound, presented amongst a quintet of acclaimed UK musicians and band leaders.

“This excellent debut album as leader is well worth the wait and delivered with an original voice. Banks conveys an authenticity that brings a fresh voice to the world of jazz. An invigorating listening experience with clearly defined energy and character, there is a delight in its originality” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- UK Vibe

“All the compositions are heartfelt and honest, as are the performances. A chronicle of hard-won optimism and hope. An elegant response to troubled times”⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Jazz album of the month
- BBC Music Magazine

"Purposeful precision and smart invention . . . tightly written, long unfolding melodic structures weaving the musicians into braided soundscapes . . . deserving of a much wider audience” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- Jazzwise

“Emboldened is a truly distinctive and personal work that should leave you captivated from start to finish. Featuring lively improvisation and flawless collaboration between each player, the result is an immersive listening experience. Listening to these tunes feels like you’re experiencing the view of a breath-taking natural wonder; it makes you feel smaller as your world expands” 9/10
- Blues and Soul Magazine

“An excellent debut recording. Banks has developed a strong individual voice as an intelligent composer and distinctive guitar stylist. He plays with a controlled intensity; fluent, joyous and, at times, stratospheric” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
- The Jazz Mann

“Here’s a UK guitarist you might want to give a second and third listen to. Steve Banks is at his most panoramic and soaring with a tone and style caught somewhere between Steve Hackett’s fusion and Pat Metheny’s wondrousness”
- Jazz Weekly (USA)

The Steve Banks Quintet 2023 UK tour includes performances of Emboldened alongside the premiere of brand-new music.

2023 also brings a new collaboration between Steve and composer/drummer Jonathan Silk arranging Steve’s music for jazz orchestra, scheduled for performances in 2023-24.

Banks’ captivating style and versatility have made him an increasingly in-demand guitarist in the UK, most notably playing electric, acoustic, baritone and nylon string guitars on Sara Colman’s releases 'What We’re Made Of' and 'Ink On A Pin', with credits as composer, co-composer and arranger. Both albums received critical UK/US acclaim including Jazzwise Magazine’s ‘Top 10 Albums of 2018’ and ‘Best of Jazz’ on Bandcamp. From his hometown of Bristol, Banks also remains a consistent member of the band of bassist and composer Greg Cordez (Ropeadope).

credits

released May 26, 2023

Steve Banks - Guitar
Rebecca Nash - Piano
Sam Crockatt - Saxophone
Henrik Jensen - Double Bass
Mark Whitlam - Drums

Recorded at Samson Studios, Birmingham, England
Mixed by Olly Samson
Mastered by Peter Beckmann, TechnologyWorks
Cover art by Enric Alberti
Design by Tom Chapman

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about

Steve Banks Bristol, UK

"Banks conveys an authenticity that brings a fresh voice to the world of jazz. There is a delight in its originality” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ UK Vibe

“All the compositions are heartfelt and honest, as are the performances. A chronicle of hard-won optimism and hope. An elegant response to troubled times”
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Jazz album of the month BBC Music Magazine

"Deserving of a much wider audience” ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Jazzwise ... more

steve-banks.co.uk

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Steve Banks recommends:

Ink On A Pin
by Sara Colman

"An album of engulfing beauty" Jazzwise Steve Banks
go to album
What We're Made Of
by Sara Colman

"One of the particular strengths of the collection is its refusal to be corralled by convention. At the heart of it is Colman’s unfailingly beautiful, richly expressive voice" Jazzwise ★★★★ Steve Banks
go to album

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