The New World of Corto Alto

In 2024, Liam Shortall undertook the ambitious project “30/108”: to bring to light thirty compositions in as many days, starting from one hundred and eight fragments stored on his hard drive. In that same year, Corto Alto was nominated for the Mercury Prize, confirming the flourishing of Glasgow’s particularly vibrant jazz scene, thanks in part to the Royal Conservatoire. Shortall attended the Conservatoire, whilst also embracing the city’s club scene, fusing it with sampling, dub and hip hop. His talent had already been recognised in 2023, when he made his debut with “Bad With Names”, an album recorded in his flat. Shortall had at least two impressive credentials: he is the youngest ever graduate of the Royal Conservatoire’s programme, having enrolled at just sixteen, and he had secured a position as a trombonist in the Scottish National Jazz Orchestra. On that album, Corto Alto’s background was evident, though it leaned towards fusion and hip hop.

‘Memories, nostalgia and gratitude for what I have’ were the fundamental elements that gave rise to that collage of childhood snapshots known as “Some Small Fortune”. The title track is a string instrumental that introduces fourteen short and eclectic tracks, striking a fine balance between experimentation and pop. This is also down to the artists chosen for the collaborations. The captivating “April” revolves around the voice of Anaiis, a Franco-Senegalese singer-songwriter based in London. Vector raps over the menacing Afrobeat of “Go”, whilst Eriff’s voice, hailing from the Scottish hills of Galloway, pours into the haunting “Nothing”. But the album maintains its intensity even when Corto Alto goes it alone: “Temple” offers glimpses, amidst its bizarre progression, of fragments of dub crumbling from the jazz interludes, before taking a drastic turn towards the end. As if we were switching between radio stations, “Don’t Listen” is the soundtrack to a journey by Mura Masa through the Mashreq, whilst “Paper” captures the sound of the end of an evening when the energy subsides and a gentle melancholy begins to take hold.

The French poet René Char wrote that ‘our heritage is not preceded by any will’; it is up to each generation to reinvent the meaning of its own past. Corto Alto is an excellent example of this, because when we use certain terms – such as ‘roots’ – all too often our gaze is fixed on what has been; we fail to see a horizon where possibility takes the shape of a challenge, a challenge directed first and foremost at ourselves. Shortall transforms nostalgia into living matter onto which to imprint an anarchic present; he bends jazz to the harsh law of the club’s linear rhythm and plays with voices and genres: ‘Something’ bears a strong influence from Kevin Parker (Tame Impala), whilst in the closing track ‘Noblehill’, virtuosity is overshadowed by Jacob Alon’s York-esque vocals. In this sense, “Some Small Fortune” is an album that showcases the overflowing creativity of a young artist: whilst not always perfectly focused, this is already material with a future.