JJJJJerome Ellis will release their new album, Vesper Sparrow, via Shelter Press on November 14th. The album is a continuation of Ellis’s interdisciplinary practice—one that inhabits the porous boundaries between silence and possibility, sound and philosophy. It is here, within these sonic dialogues, that the Black disabled Grenadian-Jamaican-American artist crafts a sophomore record that is both an intimate meditation and a sonically expansive work.
“Vesper Sparrow,” the title track, serves as a perfect entry point into Ellis’s conceptual world; the album notes explain: The song is deliberately sequenced within the album, which is comprised of two complete thoughts and hinges on a recorded stutter. JJJJJerome splits the composition “Evensong” into four-parts, placing tracks three and four (“Vesper Sparrow” and “Savannah Sparrow”) in-between. “The stutter becomes a structuring moment,” they explain, regarding the opportunity to fill the time opened up.
The track features Haruna Lee, James Harrison Monaco, Ronald Peet, and S T A R R (busby), showcasing Ellis’s ability to adapt their artistry to any medium—bridging performance and music to create something entirely new. The piece works as a microcosm of the album’s broader themes, weaving together atmospheric soundscapes with elements of spoken word, electronic textures, and traditional instrumentation. It is in this shared space that the collaborators give form to the album’s core ideas, translating the stillness into a vibrant sonic dialogue.
The track’s themes are deeply rooted in Ellis’s connection to Black religious tradition and inheritance, with a reverence for both the earth and their ancestors. This profound sense of spiritual and cultural legacy builds upon the foundations laid by their acclaimed debut record, The Clearing, which writer Claudia Rankine lauded for its “restless interrogation of linear time.” With a career marked by presentations at prestigious institutions like the Whitney Museum and the Venice Biennale, Ellis continues to push the boundaries of sound and storytelling; “Vesper Sparrow” promises to offer a further profound and moving listening experience.
