Today marks the release of HIVE1, the label debut from Tyondai Braxton. Written and recorded throughout 2013 and 2014, the recording comprises eight pieces that were originally conceived for a performance work called HIVE that debuted at New York’s Guggenheim Museum in 2013. Q magazine calls the new album "a sonically absorbing experience." NPR says: "[W]hat sets this album apart is its playfulness—the feeling that experimenting with sound is a joyful game." Braxton gives the Canadian premiere of HIVE at the Mutek festival in Montreal later this month and performs the piece for three nights at The Kitchen in NYC in early June

Tyondai Braxton's Nonesuch debut album, HIVE1, is due out next week. But you don't need to wait till then to hear it: the album is streaming in full all this week as an NPR First Listen at npr.org. "New sounds continually spark like fireworks inside HIVE1's shifting, stereo-spanning mix, which is especially intoxicating through headphones," says NPR Music's Marc Masters. "[W]hat sets this album apart is its playfulness—the feeling that experimenting with sound is a joyful game rather than an academic exercise."

Tyondai Braxton shares a new track, "Gracka," from his Nonesuch debut album HIVE1. "'Gracka' is a nickname for my wife Grace and it reminds me of her," says Braxton. "The piece emulates her always surprising, always beautiful spirit and down to earth nature." Hear the track here. Braxton also announces the Canadian premiere of HIVE at Montreal's MUTEK Festival on May 30, followed by a three-night HIVE residency at The Kitchen in NYC, June 4–6, and solo dates in Copenhagen, Ghent, and London. 

The 2015 Big Ears Festival takes place in Knoxville, Tennessee, this weekend including performances from artists-in-residence Kronos Quartet, Laurie Anderson, Rhiannon Giddens, Sam Amidon, and Tyondai Braxton. Big Ears is held in venues throughout downtown Knoxville. Click here for a schedule of the Nonesuch artists' events at this weekend's festival. 

Nonesuch releases HIVE1, the label debut from Tyondai Braxton, on May 12, 2015. Written and recorded throughout 2013 and 2014, the recording comprises eight pieces that were originally conceived for a performance work called HIVE that debuted at New York’s Guggenheim Museum in 2013. The work evolved into HIVE1, which is available to pre-order with an instant download of the album track Scout1. Braxton will perform HIVE each day of his three-day residency at the Knoxville Museum of Art as part of the Big Ears festival in March.