HAYWARDxDÄLEK is the brand new collaborative record from acclaimed This Heat drummer and creative force Charles Hayward, and rapper and producer Will Brooks (aka MC Dälek). Combining the daring improvisation with hip-hop-informed sampling, this new record promises to be thrilling tour de force journey into an uncharted new world of sound and possibility. The collaboration came together through Samarbeta, a residency and artist development programme produced by From the Other in Salford, UK. The bulk of the music was recorded live in September 2023, with Hayward improvising on drums and synthesizer, while Brooks played an SP-404 sampler and an iPad loaded with Samplr sampling software. Written over two feverish days in a studio at Islington Mill, the songs came to life in a blur of inspiration. They were recorded soon after in the New Adelphi Studios at the University of Salford, before the duo spent just one day shaping a live version, which they debuted at Fat Out Fest.
The entire process, from first note to live performance, unfolded in a single, whirlwind week. Brooks then took the live recording back to his Deadverse Studio headquarters in Union City, New Jersey, for mixing and adding lyrics for tracks such as “Between the Word and the Drum”, “Asymmetric”, and “As Children Chant”. The resulting body of work sees Charles Hayward and MC Dälek bridge generations and continents, uniting South East London and New Jersey in a scintillating exploration of rhythm, abstraction, and sonic architecture. It is a striking record that traverses the lines between hip-hop, noise-rock, ambient soundscapes, and free improvisation. Below this article, you can listen to the record’s first single, “Breathe Slow”.
HAYWARDxDÄLEK will be released on December 5th via Relapse Records. Pre-orders are now available here.
