Following on from the dizzyingly experimental heights of I Seduce, multidisciplinary Afrofuturist artist Nwando Ebizie returns with a new single The Swan, taken from her debut album of the same name, forthcoming on Matthew Herbert’s label Accidental Records in 2022.

A nomination for The Ivors Composer Awards (Sound Art) for her radiophonic piece: Fire Prevention has also just been announced.

The Swan offers a further dive into the mythology of the album of the same name. Nwando takes on multiple personas and voices in a play of call and response, bringing a whole society to life, from delicate, dreamy sung vocals, to the direct and emphatic Celebrant. Nwando’s chants are insistent and mesmerising, both inviting and rejecting the listener. Keen ears may notice the youthful, slightly unhinged chorus that rings out from I Seduce returns here in a supporting role.

With The Swan, Nwando invites the listener to delve into the core of an alternate reality society, bringing to life this ritualistic track, and to glimpse a long-forgotten initiation ride. The song was originally inspired by sister stories from Clarissa Pinkola Estes such as Women who run with the Wolves, and The Mistaken Zygote, and her retelling and interpretation of The Ugly Duckling, the archetype of the Swan.

From its strange netherworld, in an unknown space and time, The Swan leads the listener on a journey through the psyche, towards a truth. Morphing and growing until it almost exists in our world - drawing you into a club banger with its rave-inspired synths and deep bassline.

Dancing, singing, praising - this is to remake the world in the image of the Swan. This collaboration with Hugh Jones has led it along a merry path towards a techno club in East London. The singers and dancing pour their rituals out to invoke their transformative rites.