Hackney Colliery Band

Hackney Colliery Band is a UK group formed in 2008. It takes its name from the London borough of Hackney and develops a brass-band sound that mixes funk, hip-hop, rock, Balkan brass, ska and contemporary jazz. The group is active from 2008 to the present and is associated with brass band, electronica, funk, indie rock, jazz and pop.

Style and instrumentation

The band plays entirely acoustically, but uses a large brass-led line-up to create a forceful live sound. Its instrumentation includes trumpets, trombones, saxophones, sousaphone and marching percussion. The group is a nine-piece and is formed with the aim of making music that works as well for dancing as for listening.

Background and influences

Hackney Colliery Band takes inspiration from groups such as Youngblood Brass Band and Hypnotic Brass Ensemble, while adding an East London character of its own. Its approach also draws on the tradition of mobile marching bands and updates that style for contemporary performance.

Early performances and releases

After its first debut vinyl single, Money/What’s the Time, Mr. Wasp?, the band performs across the UK in 2010. These appearances include Lovebox, a performance for Nike at the Leeds Snowdome, and the Mercury Music Prize afterparty. It also appears at London’s Jazz Café, where Amy Winehouse joins for an impromptu version of Valerie. The band has two further singles and a debut album in 2011.

Members and musical background

The members come from varied musical backgrounds. Their experience includes work with the jazz group Porpoise Corpus, the Bollywood Brass Band, Jarvis Cocker and major orchestras. This range of influences contributes to the band’s mixed repertoire and broad stylistic reach.

Radio support

The band receives support from radio presenters and stations including Gilles Peterson on BBC Radio 1, Lauren Laverne on BBC 6Music, Jason Pulaski on Kuci 88.9FM in the United States, Markus Milz, Further In Fusion, Ennio Styles on 3RRR in Australia, Pete Isaac, Jelly Jazz on Phonic.fm, Phil Lvene on Eclecticjazz.com, Tiago Santos on Radio Oxigenio 102.6FM in Portugal, and Enrique Domenech on Fusionova Radio.