released February 23, 2024

Brackish (ft. Sasha Berliner)
Dyab (ft. Larnell Lewis)
Late to the Game (ft. David Osei-Afrifa)
Libra (ft. Hailey Niswanger)
Scorpio (ft. Sarah Thawer)
Song Needs Title (ft. Allison Au)
It's that Dream Again

Arthur Pascau Smith - guitar, composition (tracks 2, 3, 6)
Jeff Gammon - bass, composition (tracks 1, 7)
Justin Gorrie - alto saxophone, guitar, EMEO, composition (tracks 4, 5)
James Huumo - keyboards
Colin Parker - drums

featuring:

Larnell Lewis - drums (track 2)
Sasha Berliner - synth vibes (track 1)
Sarah Thawer - drums (track 5)
David Osei-Afrifa - keyboards (track 3)
Hailey Niswanger - tenor saxophone, clarinet, bass clarinet, flute, wind arrangement (track 4)
Sarah Thawer - drums (track 5)
Allison Au - alto saxophone (track 6)

Produced by Arthur Pascau Smith.
Post-production and mix by Daniel Klenner on Pender Island.
Recorded by Dave Sikula at Monarch Studios in Vancouver, BC.
Mastered by Elisa Pangsaeng at CPS Mastering in Vancouver, BC.

Additional drum recording (track 5) by Sam Madill at Steakhouse Studios in Los Angeles, CA.
Additional recording by Arthur Pascau Smith at Wetfoot Media in Montréal, QC.

Music composed by: Jeff Gammon (1, 7); Arthur Pascau Smith (2 ,3, 6); and Justin Gorrie (4, 5)

Filmed and edited by Trent Freeman.

Album artwork by Ivan Louey @ilouey.
Cover layout and logo design by Arthur Pascau Smith.

We acknowledge the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.

'Lift' is the latest album from Vancouver/Montréal based fusion-heads Last Ark Out. The album is a feat of remote creative collaboration. With 6 unique guest artists from around North America, the album delivers a potent mix of jazz, groove, rock, and funk influences that highlight Last Ark Out’s unique take on modern instrumental music.

After releasing their 2017 album Wake and performing around Vancouver for a few years, the band was invited to attend the Banff Centre for the Arts’ Winter Music Residency in January 2020 where they began composing music for a new album. Of course, these plans were cut short by the COVID pandemic, but in mid-2022, after some time wondering when they would be able to create together again, the band received a Canada Council for the Arts Digital Now grant to fund the creation of the multimedia project that would become Lift.

The pandemic brought about a series of profound technological shifts in the music scene. With so many musicians unable to perform as usual, many of them set out to learn how to record themselves at home in their own studios. The members of Last Ark Out decided to lean into this shift by collaborating with artists from outside their usual circles. The result is a remarkable 7 song video album, featuring in-studio performances by guest artists via a stack of vintage Atari and CRT displays.

The album features blistering performances by Larnell Lewis (Snarky Puppy, Laila Biali), Sasha Berliner (Tyshawn Sorey, Nicholas Payton), and Hailey Niswanger (Esperanza Spalding, Terri Lyne Carrington), as well as JUNO-award winning saxophonist Allison Au, viral drum sensation Sarah Thawer, and Montreal keyboard stalwart David Osei-Afrifa.

Long distance collaboration demanded a new approach to composition and arranging, so the members of Last Ark Out dove into the discography of each guest artist in order to create something that would showcase their unique talents, leaving them the space to be more than just a soloist. The result is an album unlike anything released in recent memory by one of Canada’s most exciting new jazz groups.