Tom Skinner - Kaleidoscopic Visions // LP/CD In Stores September 26th
(( LP in situ at Capsule Records in Brighton ))
Tom Skinner
Kaleidoscopic Visions
LP, CD, DD available worldwide September 26th, 2025
(full album available on streaming platforms October 17th)
Today, Friday September 26th, London-based drummer-composer Tom Skinner releases Kaleidoscopic Visions, his second solo album via Brownswood Recordings and International Anthem, on vinyl LP, CD, and digital download.
Additionally a third single from the album – "The Maxim" featuring Meshell Ndegeocello - is out on all DSPs today, with the full album to follow on streaming platforms Friday October 17th. "The Maxim" also comes via video directed and edited by Sam Blair using recovered Super 8 film footage originally shot by Skinner's grandfather.
Skinner also gears up for a run of US shows in October, with dates in Chicago, New York, and Philadelphia, plus a performance at Queen Elizabeth Hall as part of the EFG London Jazz Festival. Details and links below.
Listen to "The Maxim”
and purchase Kaleidoscopic Visions here
(( firm grip on a Tom twofer at Dead Air Records, Liverpool ))
!!! Buy it IRL !!!
Kaleidoscopic Visions is available in record stores worldwide this Friday September 26th, three weeks before the full album hits streaming platforms.
To stimulate the time tested, tactilely invigorating, poetically consumerist, wholly humanity-affirming experience of buying records from your friendly neighborhood record store... we've compiled below (and here on our website) a list of independent record shops that confirmed they are stocking the album this weekend. Support local business, support brick/mortar mom/pop and the essential historical, archival, cultural industrial work being done at indie record stores, buy this album IRL !!
London, UK - Sister Ray Records
London, UK - Sounds of the Universe
London, UK - Stranger Than Paradise Records
Long Beach, CA - Fingerprints
Los Angeles, CA - Amoeba Music
Loveland, OH - Plaid Room Records
Madison, WI - B-Side Records
Manchester, UK - Piccadilly Records
Medford, OR - Biscuits & Vinyl
Milan, IT – Volume Dischi & Libri
Milwaukee, WI - Lilliput Records
Minneapolis, MN - Electric Fetus
Montpellier, FR – Le Discopathe
Montreal, QC - Atom Heart
Montreal, QC - Aux 33 Tours
Montreal, QC - Le Vacarme
Montreal, QC - Sonorama Disques
Montreal, QC - Victor Victor Victor
Mooresville, NC - Sell Your Soul Records
Naples, IT – Fonoteca
Nashville, TN - Grimey's
Nashville, TN - Vinyl Tap
New York, NY - Rough Trade
Nottingham, UK - Rough Trade
Odessa, ON - Something Else Records
Olympia, WA - Rainy Day Records
Opelika, AL - 10,000 Hz Records
Orlando, FL - Park Ave. CD's
Ottawa, ON - Birdman Sound
Paris, FR – Bar Italia Records
Paris, FR – Gibert Joseph Saint-Michel
Paris, FR – Ground Zero
Paris, FR – Miniwax
Paris, FR – Souffle Continu
Phoenix, AZ - Stinkweeds
Pittsburgh, PA - The Government Center
Portland, ME - Bull Moose Music
Portland, OR - Jackpot Records
Portland, OR - Music Millennium
Princeton, NJ - Princeton Record Exchange
Provo, UT - 3hive Record Lounge
Quebec, QC - Explosive Groove Disquaire
Rennes, FR – Blind Spot Les Angles Morts
Rome, IT – Bluetopia
Rome, IT – Discoteca Laziale
Rome, IT – Radiation Records
Saint-Hyacinthe, QC - Fréquences Le Disquaire
Salerno, IT – Disclan
San Diego, CA - Folk Arts Rare Records
San Francisco, CA - Amoeba Music
Scottsdale, AZ - Passenger Seat Records
Seattle, WA - Hex Enduction Records & Books
Seattle, WA - Royal Records
Seattle, WA - Silver Platters
Seattle, WA - Sonic Boom Records
Somerville, MA - Vinyl Index
St. Jean-sur-Richelieu, QC - Le Noise
St. Louis, MO - Euclid Records
St. Petersburg, FL - Daddy Kool
Taylorsville, UT - Graywhale
Thun, CH – ZIG ZAG records
Toronto, ON - Dead Dog Records
Toronto, ON - Rotate This
Toronto, ON - Sonic Boom
Totnes (Devon), UK - Drift Records
Vancouver, BC - Audiopile Records
Virginia Beach, VA - Paladin Vinyl
Wallingford, CT - Redscroll Records
West Palm Beach, FL - Rust & Wax
West Seattle, WA - Easy Street Records
Winnipeg, MB - McNally Robinson
Aachen, DE – Tam Tam
Albany, NY - Sound House Records
Amiens, FR – La Malle à Disques
Amsterdam, NL – Concerto Recordstore
Amsterdam, NL – Velvet Music
Asheville, NC - Harvest Records
Austin, TX - Breakaway Records
Austin, TX - End of An Ear
Austin, TX - Waterloo Records
Baltimore, MD - Sound Garden
Bari, IT – Centro Musica
Bari, IT – New Records
Bayonne, NJ - 14a Records
Berkeley, CA - Amoeba Music
Beverly, MA - Big Fun Records
Biarritz, FR – Aberdeen Records
Bloomington, IN - Landlocked Music
Boise, ID - Record Exchange
Bologna, IT – Disco D’Oro
Brest, FR – Bad Seeds
Brest, FR – Dialogues Musiques
Brighton, UK - Resident Music
Bristol, UK - Rough Trade
Brooklyn, NY - Finer Sounds
Brooklyn, NY - Psychic Records
Burlington, VT - Pure Pop Records
Calexico, CA - Café 1946
Calgary, AB - Blackbyrd Myoozik
Calgary, AB - Melodiya Records
Catania, IT – Rock 86
Cesena, IT – Libreria The Book Room
Charlotte, NC - Lunchbox Records
Chemnitz, DE – Underworld
Chicago, IL - 606 Records
Chicago, IL - Dusty Groove
Chicago, IL - Rattleback Records
Chicago, IL - Reckless Records (Belmont)
Chicago, IL - Reckless Records (Loop)
Chicago, IL - Reckless Records (Wicker Park)
Chicago, IL - Tone Deaf Records
Cincinnati, OH - Shake It
Cremona, IT – Master Music
Dallas, TX - Josey Records
Davenport, IA - Ragged Records
Dearborn, MI - Dearborn Music
Denver, CO - Twist & Shout
Dundee, UK - Assai Records
Düsseldorf, DE – A&O Medien
Edinburgh, UK - Assai Records
Edmonton, AB - Blackbyrd Myoozik
Edmonton, AB - Listen Records
Encinitas, CA - Lou's Records
Éragny, FR – Le Grand Cercle 95
Faenza, IT – Casa Del Disco
Fingerprints - Long Beach, CA
Fredericton, NB - Backstreet Records
Geneva, CH – Bongo Joe
Genoa, IT – Disco Club
Ghent, BE – Music Mania Records
Golden Valley, MN - Down in the Valley
Grand Rapids, MI - Vertigo Music
Grenoble, FR – Le Mange Disque
Guadalajara, Jal - Tea Recs
Iowa City, IA - Record Collector
Kamloops, BC - Barnacle Records
Kingston upon Thames, UK - Banquet Records
Lawrence, KS - Love Garden Sounds
Leeds, UK - Crash Records
Lille, FR – Le Furet du Nord
Little Canada, MN - Cheapo Discs
Little Rock, AR - Control
Liverpool, UK - Rough Trade
London, UK - Phonica Records
London, UK - Rough Trade
Kaleidoscopic Visions showcases London born/based drummer/composer/bandleader Tom Skinner drawing together the many threads of his career as one of the UK’s most versatile and free-thinking contemporary musicians. Performing and recording with Sons of Kemet, The Smile, David Byrne, Meshell Ndegeocello, Alabaster DePlume, Floating Points and Peter Zummo as well as a wide range of collaborations across London’s vibrant improvised and electronic scene, Skinner’s diverse touchpoints are brought together in an album of quiet power and profound truths, reflecting his journey so far and opening the road towards what is to come.
Where Skinner’s 2022 debut Voices of Bishara drew inspiration from Abdul Wadud’s 1978 cello masterpiece By Myself, Kaleidoscopic Visions shifts toward more personal, fully composed material — brought to life by the intuitive improvisations of both long-time bandmates and new high-profile collaborations. As writer Piotr Orlov reflects in his notes on the album, the result is a record that chronicles “the importance of considering the view from the middle of one’s own life, taking stock alongside memories and family, heroes and friends new and old.”
As such, Kaleidoscopic Visions unfolds across two distinct sonic landscapes. Side A presents entirely instrumental compositions performed by Skinner's live Bishara band — bassist Tom Herbert, cellist Kareem Dayes, and Robert Stillman and Chelsea Carmichael on various woodwinds and reeds — with electric guitar on two tracks courtesy of Portishead's Adrian Utley. A drummer-composer bringing his wealth of experience to bear on the role of bandleader, Skinner composed primarily on guitar, embracing the freedom that came with writing on his secondary instrument.
These compositions include "Auster," dedicated to late novelist Paul Auster, and "Margaret Anne," which honors Skinner's mother Anne Shasby, a former classical concert pianist prodigy who abandoned her own promising career in the face of systemic misogyny, only to impart on her son what Skinner calls "the gift of music."
Skinner’s musical world opens further on Side B, where a collection of poised vocal collaborations stretch out from jazz and improvisation towards a more dream-like, soulful sound. The centerpiece is "The Maxim," a ten-minute collaboration with Meshell Ndegeocello, a dubby, spacious meditation on life and death, delivered with a free-spirited grace. For Skinner, working with Ndegeocello — whom he first saw at Glastonbury as a teenager in 1994 — represents a full-circle moment, indicative of the indirect paths and inspirational detours that have shaped his life.
The album goes on to feature South Carolina-based singer Contour (Khari Lucas) who appears on the low-lit soul ballad “Logue,” and closes with “See How They Run” featuring London keyboardist-vocalist Yaffra (Jonathan Geyevu). It is the album’s most overtly lyrical track, an articulate exposition of jazz-inflected spoken word that speaks not only to the genre-fluid nature of the music but the breadth of Skinner’s palette.
This should come as no surprise. On Kaleidoscopic Visions, one of London’s most vital musical figures gives us a sparkling glimpse of the multi-coloured lens through which his unique sound is now refracting.
...Upcoming Live...
In October, Skinner visits the US for a few showcase dates in Chicago, Brooklyn, and Philadelphia, all of which he'll be doing with a unique ensemble of Chicago and NY based musicians.
Personnel the US shows:
Tom Skinner - drums
Chelsea Carmichael - tenor sax & flute
Joshua Abrams - bass
Ishmael Ali - cello
Mai Sugimoto - alto sax / flute (Chicago)
Ingrid Laubrock - tenor and soprano sax (NYC / Philly)
Then he returns to home for a performance at Queen Elizabeth Hall as part of the EFG London Jazz Festival with his regular working ensemble featuring Tom Herbert, Kareem Dayes, Robert Stillman and Chelsea Carmichael.
Dates and links below:
Listen Up!
Kaleidoscopic Visions
Listening Session
with Tom Skinner
at Finer Sounds Brooklyn
Join us for an intimate RSVP-only experience as we play Tom Skinner’s second solo album, Kaleidoscopic Visions (out September 26th via Brownswood Recordings & International Anthem), in full. Due to limited space, we’ll be hosting two listening sessions at 6:00 PM and 7:00 PM. RSVP to reserve space!
Afterwards, head over to the Ace Hotel Brooklyn lobby for DJ sets from Tom Skinner and Omo Igi from 8PM to 12AM. This portion of the night is open to the public—no RSVP required!
Finer Sounds is located at the Ace Hotel Brooklyn
252 Schermerhorn St
Brooklyn, NY 11217, USA
(( photo by Jason Evans ))
…about Tom Skinner…
London based drummer, composer and producer Tom Skinner has been a vital and central figure in the burgeoning underground music scene in London throughout the last 20 years.
In 2012, Skinner released his debut self-titled solo record under the alias Hello Skinny to critical acclaim, MOJO Magazine describing it as “…existing in that fertile zone where jazz, dub, techno and avant-pop deliquesce into an exhilarating free-for-all.” The second Hello Skinny album Watermelon Sun, released on Gilles Peterson’s Brownswood label in 2017, featured a collaboration with acclaimed veteran New York composer and trombonist Peter Zummo.
Tom is also an original member of award-winning band Sons Of Kemet alongside band-leader and frequent collaborator Shabaka Hutchings. Their third album Your Queen Is A Reptile [Impulse! 2018] garnered worldwide critical acclaim including a Mercury Prize 2018 nomination. Their last album Black To The Future [Impulse! 2021] was met with rave reviews, NME giving it 5 stars, claiming the album to be the band at their “most dynamic and urgent”.
In 2022, Tom released his eponymous debut Voices of Bishara via the three label collaboration of Brownswood, International Anthem & Nonesuch Records. It was inspired by and named in reference to cellist Abdul Wadud’s 1978 solo album By Myself, which was privately pressed on Wadud’s label, Bisharra. Featuring Kareem Dayes on cello, Tom Herbert on bass, Shabaka Hutchings and Nubya Garcia on woodwinds, the album was called “a terrific affirmation of what makes Skinner so interesting as both a drummer and now a composer” by Treble. Following the album’s release, Tom reformatted his Voices of Bishara ensemble for live performances, with woodwind players Chelsea Carmichael and Robert Stillman in place of Hutchings and Garcia.
Between 2021-2024, Skinner was active as co-leader of The Smile with Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead. Across those 3+ years The Smile toured extensively and released three critically-acclaimed albums (A Light for Attracting Attention, Wall of Eyes, and Cutouts).
Throughout his career, Skinner has performed and recorded with many other notable musicians including Alabaster DePlume, Ruth Goller, Graham Coxon, Grace Jones, Kano, Zero 7, Floating Points, The Invisible, Meshell Ndegeocello, David Byrne, and many more.
Deluxe Vinyl Package
Kaleidoscopic Visions comes on a Limited Edition 140-gram Yellow vinyl LP inside a heavyweight reverse-board jacket, with an insert sheet, obi strip and poly-lined innersleeve. Pressed on 'biovinyl' at Optimal in Germany, with lacquers cut at Electric Mastering in London.
Available on Limited Edition Yellow Color vinyl for $29 USD.
Also available on Classic Black vinyl for $26 USD.
*** also available ***
Tom Skinner
Voices of Bishara
(released November 2022)
The title of Tom Skinner’s first release under his own name is a reference to cellist Abdul Wadud’s ultra-rare 1978 solo album By Myself, which Skinner listened to repeatedly during lockdown. Wadud’s album was privately pressed on his own label, Bisharra, and whilst Skinner’s title uses the more conventional spelling of this common Arabic name, they both have the same intention or meaning: it translates as ‘good news’, or ‘the bringer of good news’.
This album – which features Shabaka Hutchings and Nubya Garcia on woodwinds, Kareem Dayes on cello, Tom Herbert on bass, and Skinner on drums – is a classic-sounding record that connects backwards to Skinner’s 2017 Hello Skinny collaboration with American composer and Arthur Russell-collaborator Peter Zummo on Watermelon Sun. It links sideways to Makaya McCraven’s beat maker-inspired treatments of jazz sessions, and it offers a musical bridge to Sons of Kemet’s most meditative moments.
The result is a tight, hypnotic and unique 31-minutes of music. Voices of Bishara is sculpted around timeless and deeply emotional music that contains masses of movement and exceptional harmonic depth and texture. It sweeps and soars through soundworlds, rich in musicality and always anchored by the deep doubling of cello and bass.
