Mura Masa Stops off in Bradford on his 'Local' Tour

Mura Masa takes the north by storm on a three-leg tour, 'Local', powered by Relentless. We were lucky enough to catch his Bradford show.

The Guernsey-born producer and songwriter has worked with some massive names – PinkPantheress, Ice Spice and A$AP Rocky, to name a few – but turns his focus to championing local acts in a three-stop tour across Stockton-on-Tees, Blackpool and Bradford. Recognising the obstacles faced by grassroots musicians occupying the musical scene outside of the nation’s capital, 'Local' is the artist’s way of “put[ting] cash directly into the hands of artists and members of the scene who could really use it right now… [and] a good opportunity to create movement around these under-sung scenes” (The Face).

The Bradford leg of the project has been curated in collaboration with local artist and filmmaker ZMARAKS, who was charged with sourcing the local talent. I was lucky enough to catch up with the artist on the night, who shared that the event’s selection of acts was intended to “evoke the microcosm of the Bradfordian sound” and to demonstrate the innovation coming from the city. The artist praises their home city, commenting that “a lot of people have a lot to say about Bradford, but people speak about things they don’t know about…but it’s its own little rarity”. The night certainly offered a taste of the diversity of the Bradford music scene.

YinYangBoyz with guest, Quade PoundSign, opened proceedings with an hour of high-energy bassline, two-step and breakbeat tracks. They had the difficult job of warming up a kindling crowd in an intimate venue, but did so very well. The boys had great presence, seemingly unbothered whether there were 10 or 10,000 people in the room.

10pm saw the entrance of Lloydfears, dapped out in a suit, cufflinks and pocket square, dressed down with a pair of Nike Teks. Lloyd’s experimental sound is a one-man soundscape; a backdrop of static with a rapid fluttering bassline accompanied the artist snaking through the crowd, performing a seemingly nonsensical monologue. Though the delivery was undeniably passionate, I had no idea what the fuck was going on. Either way, I was moved by his performance, which I think was the point. The artist joked, “look at all your faces, you look like you’ve never seen anything like this in your life”. You’re not wrong there mate. He later moved into free-flowing rap verses, accompanied by bassline and garage backing. A set to remember, for sure.

Next up was GLOR1A, whose politically charged performance was comprised of strong vocals and an even stronger bassline. She is an extremely captivating performer, combining visual artistry and interpretative dance with a soulful and passionate vocal

performance.

Next, the first full-blown DJ set of the night came from co-organiser, ZMARAKS. They boasted wicked sets of bassline, bouncy two-step and hardcore groove. I would say it was during this set that the crowd really started moving. In our earlier chat, the artist remarked of the set: “I have commitment issues because I hate sticking to a genre” calling their performance “ADHD blends”. The set certainly was varied, offering jungle, bass and killer remixes.

Then came the act we’d all been waiting for – the tempo was definitely brought up a few notches with the opening of Mura Masa’s set. Some fire remixes of Shy Girl, Clairo and Charli XCX massively appealed to me as a pop girly. He then moved into songs that were giving classic 90s rave vibes, effortlessly blending one track to the next. A challenge to follow the event’s organiser, young Bradford (Howarth) local, Stave, well and truly held his own. To me, this was a criminally underrated set; the many that left after Mura Masa missed out on arguably the best set of the night. He slowed it right down with a jazz piano opener that soon erupted into an R&B remix that got the crowd moving instantly. Despite some technical difficulties, Stave it carried with off with professionalism beyond his years, still managing to create an incredibly memorable, high-energy set of bassline, garage and house.

Those who stayed far enough into the night were later met with an experimental, bass heavy set from RUFUS! Arguably reminiscent of ghetto tech, the locals packed in for a final boogie.

All in all, the night proved that you don’t need to go to London to find amazing artists out there who can carry their own in the big leagues.

Even though some of the tracks weren’t what I would normally listen to, nothing beats going out and hearing it live and supporting a great initiative to champion the local. Feel like you’ve missed out? Mura Masa is working with creative studio, Toothgrinder, to document the experience in a digital zine to document the experience and address how to help grassroots music communities going forward.

Words by Esther Fenwick

Special thanks to Benvy Edington & Camara Inglis