The state between us

"The Matthew Herbert Big Band are attempting something that so far seems beyond our politicians: "To work out what a new kind of relationship with our European neighbours may look like." This BPI-funded project has taken Herbert to Syria, China and Russia and has provided work for more than 1,000 musicians from across the European Union. It's certainly a very big Band, although the project has perhaps lost some impact by no longer coinciding with the now-delayed Brexit. Still, as the wheels of democracy grind, The State Between Us certainly offers space for reflection ... However, with too many dirge-like instrumentals, the album is overlong, under-focused and, like the Brexit process, hard work".

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"At two hours long, The State Between Us ought to waver in focus or intensity, but Herbert has never sounded more at home. Safe in the knowledge that most British people, for better or worse, can't help but engage with the subject, he taps into a small, honest hope that would be inexplicable as a thinkpiece. On "You're Welcome Here," for instance, Debebe-Dessalegne sings, "We can stay here in the music," while an angelic choir serves as propaganda for the redeeming qualities of community. Like a sardonic opera, Herbert's grand vision could easily live on as a post-colonial, anti-nationalist allegory. Yet it's just as reassuring to imagine that, one day, Brexit's toxic memory will fade, his field recordings will lose all poignancy, and the trees will again sound just like trees, nothing more and nothing less".

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"The State Between Us is a genuinely collaborative effort, featuring over one thousand musicians and singers drawn from across Europe with notable contributors such as Rahel Debebe-Dessalegne, Arto Lindsay, Merz, Patrick Clarke, and highly respected solo instrumentalists Enrico Rava, Byron Wallen, Sheila Maurice Gray, and Nathaniel Cross. A double album, the 16 tracks come in at a not often seen one hour and 58 minutes. Clearly, Herbert and colleagues have a lot to say".

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