Album Release Event: October 2 at Roulette in Brooklyn

Watch Never-Before-Seen Fly or Die Footage & Performances By Rob Mazurek, Ambrose Akinmusire, Dave Ballou, Plus More Surprise Guests

Tickets + More Info Here

Today, International Anthem releases jaimie branch’s Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)). The record is the late trumpeter and composer's third and final album with her Fly or Die quartet composed of Lester St. Louis, bassist Jason Ajemian, and drummer Chad Taylor.

Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) has already been deemed “an authentic expression of the trumpeter’s incandescent life force” (Chicago Reader) and “one of the most vibrantly alive collections of music I’ve heard all year” (Stereogum). The Guardian calls it “A testament to her dynamic mastery and storytelling scope.”

Listen to Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) here.

The Chicago Tribune, her hometown paper for many years, vividly detailed the vibrant life she lived on the anniversary of her passing. Hannah Edger writes:“jaimie branch isn’t the kind of musician you talk about in the past tense…The trumpeter brought a blistering, fearless sound to every project she touched."

Read The Chicago Tribune’s feature here.

In an extensive review, The New York Times’ Giovanni Russonello called the album “electrifying” and wrote that, “If we’re lucky, Branch’s impact will be felt for years. Not just in the sound of improvised music, but in the fervor and hope — the all-on-the-table abandon — that improvisers put into attacking their craft.

Read the full NY Times review here. 

A Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) album release event is set for October 2 at Roulette in Brooklyn. This record release show will begin with never-before-seen footage of branch and her band's final concert together, during which they played Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war)) in full (the only time the band ever did) to a live audience at Bemis Center for the Contemporary Arts in Omaha, Nebraska.

Directly following the screening will be live performances by Rob Mazurek, Ambrose Akinmusire, Dave Ballou, and other surprise guests, all of whom will come together to pay tribute to their friend, student and collaborator, jaimie branch.More information on October 2 album release event here.

Proceeds from the event will go towards The jaimie branch Foundation. The jaimie branch Foundation was established to ensure the energy, legacy and power of jaimie branch live on. The executive and artistic boards are made up of close family, friends and collaborators of branch. A few projects are underway, including an artist residency that will allow one solo artist to visit, work and even stay in the same cabin that branch occupied in Talkeetna, Alaska during the summer of 2020.

For more information, go to jaimiebranch.com and donorbox.org/the-jaimie-branch-foundation.

about jaimie branch

At the age of 39, jaimie “breezy” branch had already established herself at the vanguard of modern jazz composition, blurring genre boundaries and performing with an inimitable power. branch was also a tireless collaborator, who worked with samba icon Elza Soares; noise icons Wolf Eyes; indie stars like TV on the Radio, Yo La Tengo and Spoon; British dub producer The Bug; the First Nations rock collective Medicine Singers; and various International Anthem labelmates, including Jeff Parker, Ben LaMar Gay, and Alabaster DePlume, among so many others. She even made a post-mortem appearance on Talib Kweli & Madlib’s album Liberation 2 released earlier this spring, playing trumpet in a stunning co-composed duet with Madlib on keys.

Read jaimie branch’s full bio here.

Praise for Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die ((world war))

“Electrifying…If we’re lucky, Branch’s impact will be felt for years. Not just in the sound of improvised music, but in the fervor and hope — the all-on-the-table abandon — that improvisers put into attacking their craft.”

— New York Times

“Amazing...A celebratory blast of punk jazz energy, one of the most vibrantly alive collections of music I’ve heard all year. Listen to it, and remember jaimie branch as a shooting star who passed by too quickly.”

— Stereogum

“jaimie branch isn’t the kind of musician you talk about in the past tense…The trumpeter brought a blistering, fearless sound to every project she touched."

— Chicago Tribune

“A testament to her dynamic mastery and storytelling scope. The final cry of a formidable talent.”

— The Guardian

“A final glimpse of Jaimie Branch’s meteoric talent...an authentic expression of the trumpeter’s incandescent life force.”

— Chicago Reader

"These nine songs burst about with full-throttle, hellion-rowdy, freaky consciousness-expanding shaman type verve.”

— Treble

"The interplay between the core quartet of branch, Lester St. Louis, Jason Ajemian, and Chad Taylor isn’t something that can be manufactured with a detailed score; there’s an understanding and a spirit between them that practically spills out of the album."

— I Care If You Listen

“An eclectic modern adventure in protest jazz.”

— Monolith Cocktail