OUT NOW N∆BOU:UNPERSUADABLE EXTERN

Unpersuadable Extern: Single release date: October 31st 2025. Purchase here

Indigo: Album release date: January 30th 2026 Preorder here

Label: Edition Records

Indigo the third album from N∆BOU - quartet led by Belgian trombonist and composer Nabou Claerhout, marks a striking new phase in her creative evolution. Following Hubert (2019) and You Know (2021), Nabou Claerhout presents a refreshed N∆BOU line-up with Trui Amerlinck (double bass), Gijs Idema (electric guitar) and Daniel Jonkers (drums).

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The album explores change, renewal and shifting human connections, building on the strong foundations N∆BOU has established in Belgium and the Netherlands while signalling Claerhout’s growing international reach. It is an album of metamorphosis: new collaborators, new perspectives, and deeply personal compo- sitions transformed into music that feels raw yet refined, intimate yet powerful.

The soundworld of Indigo moves between dreamy atmospheres and melancholic resonance, from lyrical, contemplative passages to playful, groove-driven energy. Haunting tributes such as Light Blue Shawl (for Stijn) and Consent (for Stijn) sit alongside the structural suite of Ruin & Redemption, Lost Soul and Consent, each piece reimagining itself through form and texture.

Claerhout’s trombone remains the guiding force, shaped by subtle effects and ghost-like solo interludes that thread fragility, weight and release into the music. With its balance of intimacy and power, Indigo signals a bold step forward, an album that opens Claerhout’s music to new audiences with a compelling and resonant voice.

Following two critically acclaimed albums, trombonist Nabou Claerhout is taking the next step with her quartet, N∆BOU. Indigo an album that simmers and sparkles, giving jazz the oxygen it needs to breathe and transform, will be released in January 2026.

The title is no coincidence: when the colourless sap from the leaves of the indigo plant comes into contact with oxygen in the air, it turns vibrant colours after a fermentation process. This metaphor runs through the entire album, which moves between darkness and light, mourning and beauty, tension and breathing space.

At its heart is a suite of four interwoven pieces – ‘Lost Soul’, ‘Ruin & Redemption’, ‘Consent’ and ‘Light Blue Shawl’ – that resonate with each other both thematically and musically. Motifs return in new forms, melodies are turned upside down and chords shift subtly. The result is a continuous sound story that reveals itself layer by layer.

However, Indigo is more than just a conceptual exercise; it is personal. Two songs are dedicated to Stijn, Nabou’s childhood friend whose sudden death left a deep impression. ‘Light Blue Shawl’ refers to the uni- form scarf of their youth movement, a symbol of an unbreakable bond. Consent sounds, unintentionally but unmistakably, like a reflection of that loss.

The unique sound of N∆BOU is the result of the close collaboration of a quartet of musicians. Trui Amerlinck (double bass) has been a permanent fixture in the band since its inception, providing a reliable foundation with her soft, steady playing. Gijs Idema (guitar), one of the original members, has been shaping the quar- tet’s sound from the outset. Although his studies in New York temporarily interrupted their collaboration, he returned to bring new depth to the ensemble. Daniel Jonkers (drums) brings an intuitive, almost primal drum sound that always reconnects the music with its essence and heart. Together, they create a sound that is both versatile and uniquely recognisable, providing a foundation on which composer Nabou Claerhout’s trombone can float, whisper and tell stories.

While others start with the melody, N∆BOU often starts with the rhythm, which gives their music a capricious and layered quality. On Indigo, the sound is richer, warmer and more emotional than ever. It ranges from introspective depths to unexpectedly light-hearted moments, almost nodding to country music.

Indigo is an album that constantly shifts between contrasts — dark and light, loss and beauty, experimenta- tion and melody — taking listeners on a personal and musically layered journey of transience.

Just like those three sides of the triangle in the band’s name, Antwerp based trombone player Nabou Claerhout surrounded herself with her three favourite musicians to found her own group N∆BOU. With Trui Amerlinck on double bass, Gijs Idema on electric guitar and Daniel Jonkers on drums, this quartet unites some of the most diversely talented young musicians in the Benelux. N∆BOU rapidly made their way up in the newest jazz-&-beyond wave, catching the attention of both the audience and sector professionals thanks to their refreshing trombone sound, innovative use of effects and original approach of compositions.

With ‘Hubert’ (2019), the band showed their unique sound for the first time on a praised debut EP, and then in 2021, with the first full album ‘You Know’, they measured themselves internationally and visited an impressive series of renowned venues and festivals: the foursome has already played at Ancienne Belgique, Gent Jazz Festival, North Sea Jazz Festival, HA Concerts, Cologne Jazz Week, Edinburgh Jazz Festival, EJC showcase Ghent, Münster Jazz Festival, La Petite Hall Paris, OLT Rivierenhof, Bimhuis, Transition Festival, Brussels Jazz Weekend, KAAP, Leuven Jazz, and many more.

On these first releases and during their live shows, the band’s strong interplay and interesting interaction creates both up tempo grooves as well as a more contemplative atmosphere. Their exploration and stret- ching of the boundaries of both the trombone and the jazz genre, awards N∆BOU with a unique position in today’s scene.

Thank you to Aubergine Artist Management for sharing with us