Sloth Racket is a band of UK improvisers led by baritone saxophonist Cath Roberts, with Sam Andreae on alto saxophone, Anton Hunter on guitar, Seth Bennett on bass and Johnny Hunter on drums. They play Cath’s compositions, combining written fragments with graphic notation to explore the balance between freedom and structure. The results are always different, and so far have ranged across musical territories taking in fiery free jazz, minimal improv textures and heavy riffs.
The band formed in 2015 when Jazz North East invited Cath to present a new project at Gateshead International Jazz Festival. Everyone agreed this had to be more than just a one-off, and they went on to appear at Brighton Alternative Jazz Festival, London Jazz Festival and LUME Festival, as well as touring the UK every year. Sloth Racket’s third studio album A Glorious Monster is out on the Luminous label.
‘Lurching between riff and abstraction…maintains an elegant balance between emergent melody and the wilder activity at its fringes’ The Wire
‘Consider this an important contribution to the debate about spontaneity versus form.’ ★★★★ Jazzwise