Surprise Chef share new single ‘Iconoclasts’

by the partae
Photo credit: Izzie Austin
PRAISE FOR SURPRISE CHEF

[On Daylight Savings]…”It’s a warm hug of a record that perfectly encapsulates the unshakeable Melbourne spirit. As the days grow warmer and the evenings get lighter, Surprise Chef are bringing uplifting jazz-funk optimism to a city in need of some love and healing”
NME 

“Cooling, jasmine-scented, time-warped instrumentals” 
MOJO

“…known for their superbly blissed out jams, matching Curtis Mayfield melodics against Madlib style beats.”
CLASH

“[Money Music] is a bassline-driven mid-tempo tune that catches you from the first note and carries you through all the gorgeous changes.”
Beat Magazine

Naarm/Melbourne instrumental soul and funk five-piece Surprise Chef have shared new single ‘Iconoclasts‘, taken from their forthcoming new album Education & Recreation, out October 14 on Big Crown Records, marking their debut for the lauded Brooklyn-based label.

Following previous singles ‘Money Music‘ and ‘Suburban Breeze‘, ‘Iconoclasts’ is the embodiment of “cinematic soul”. Moody and spacious instrumentation that at times is met with heavy drum beats that send the listener on a trip through their mind. Surprise Chef pull influence from the likes of David Axelrod to The Soulquarians, topping it off with their own distinct flavour.

Surprise Chef’s music is based on evoking mood; their vivid arrangements utilize time and space to build soundscapes that invite the listener into their world. The quintet’s distinct sound pulls from 70s film scores, the funkier side of jazz, and the samples that form the foundation of hip hop. They push the boundaries of instrumental soul and funk with their own approach honed by countless hours in the studio, studying the masters, and perhaps most importantly, the “tyranny of distance” that dictates a unique perspective to their music.

Hailing from just outside of Melbourne, Australia their first two albums, All News Is Good News and Daylight Savings amassed a die-hard fanbase and brought their sound from their home studio to every corner of the globe. The band is now signed to Big Crown Records, joining a lineage of contemporary and classic sounds that have influenced Surprise Chef’s music since their formation in 2017.

Surprise Chef is Lachlan Stuckey on guitar, Jethro Curtin on keys, Carl Lindeberg on bass, Andrew Congues on drums, and Hudson Whitlock—the latest member who does it all from percussion to composing to producing. Their self proclaimed “moody shades of instrumental jazz-funk” have a bit of everything: punchy drums, infectious keys, rhythm guitar you might hear on a Studio One record, and flute lines that could be from a Blue Note session. But when you step back and take in the entirety of their sound and approach, you’ll hear and see a group greater than the sum of its parts.

In many ways Surprise Chef embodies the idiom “the benefits of limits.” They were limited in that there weren’t many people making or talking about instrumental jazz/soul/funk in Southeast Australia, let alone putting out records. This left them to develop their sound and approach in a kind of creative isolation where a small circle of friends and like-minded musicians fed off each other. “Being in Australia, being so far away, we only get glimpses and glances of this music’s origins,” Stuckey says. “But hearing a label like Big Crown was one of the first times we realized you could make fresh, new soul music that wasn’t super retro or just nostalgic.”

This approach is on full display throughout their new album Education & Recreation. Tracks like ‘Velodrome‘ pair chunky drums with an ear-worm synth line that has all the making of something you would find on an Ultimate Breaks & Beats compilation while numbers like ‘Iconoclasts’ show their knack for tasteful use of space. From the crushing intro of ‘Suburban Breeze’ to the floaty mellow bop of ‘Spring’s Theme‘ Surprise Chef has weaved together an album that takes you through peaks and valleys of emotion and provides a vivid soundtrack that will pull you deeper into your imagination. There is a beauty in the vast space for interpretation of instrumental music and they are adding a modern classic to the canon with this new album. Turn on the record and enjoy the ride, wherever it may take you.

Education & Recreation by Surprise Chef
is out October 14 on Big Crown Records / Inertia Music
Pre-order: https://ffm.to/surprisechef
Surprise Chef
Education & Recreation Australian tour 2022

Thursday, October 27 | Princess Theatre |  Brisbane, QLD**
Friday, October 28 | Coorabell Hall | Coorabell, NSW
Saturday, October 29 | Tomas Surfboards | Noosa, QLD
Sunday, October 30 | Black Bear Lodge | Brisbane, QLD
Friday, November 4 | Torquay Hotel | Torquay, VIC
Saturday, November 5 | Coburg Velodrome | Melbourne, VIC
Friday, 18 November | Theatre Royale | Castlemaine, VIC
Friday, 25 November | The Estonian Hall | Adelaide, SA
Saturday, 26 November | Freo.Social | Perth, WA
Saturday, 3 December | Oxford Art Factory | Sydney, NSW

**supporting Kamaal Williams

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