Poet and vocalist Saul Williams and revered percussionist-producer Carlos Niño have today released “The Water Is Rising / as we surpass the firing squad . . .”, the potent second single from their forthcoming collaborative album. The track features a compelling spoken-word performance from fellow poet aja monet.
The single, released via International Anthem, is a piece of two halves. It opens with monet’s soft, apocalyptic reading from her notebook, her words drifting over a bed of hovering vibraphone from Maia and ethereal, swirling woodwinds courtesy of jazz titan Kamasi Washington and Aaron Shaw. Williams follows this foreboding vision with a solemnly hopeful parable.
The track features on the duo’s first joint album, Saul Williams meets Carlos Niño & Friends at TreePeople, set for release on August 28th. The record captures a unique, one-off performance recorded live beneath the trees of Coldwater Canyon Park, Los Angeles, on December 18, 2024. Organised by Living Earth, the concert saw Niño assemble a stellar ensemble of collaborators, including Nate Mercereau, Andres Renteria, and Francesca Heart, to create a sprawling, electro-acoustic soundscape for Williams’s inspired poetics.
Williams and Niño’s new work promises a transcendent fusion of profound poetry and improvisational brilliance, rooted in a friendship stretching back to the late 1990s.
“The Water Is Rising / as we surpass the firing squad . . .” is out now. Saul Williams meets Carlos Niño & Friends at TreePeople is available for preorder here.
UPCOMING SHOWS
Saturday September 27th – Walk The Block Festival – Seattle WA
Tuesday September 30th – Yoshi’s (night 1) – Oakland CA
Wednesday October 1st – Yoshi’s (night 2) – Oakland CA
Thursday October 2nd – TreePeople (night 1) – Los Angeles CA
Saturday October 4th – TreePeople (night 2) – Los Angeles CA
Monday October 13th – City Winery (night 1) – Atlanta GA
Tuesday October 14th – City Winery (night 2) – Atlanta GA
Wednesday October 15th – Neighborhood Theatre – Charlotte NC
Thursday October 16th – Black Cat – Washington DC
Friday October 17th – City Winery – Philadelphia PA
Sunday October 19th – Sultan Room – Brooklyn NY
Thursday November 6th – Pitchfork Festival – London UK
Saturday November 15th – Le Guess Who? Festival – Utrecht NL