Ned Collette has long established himself as a songwriter whose literate, evocative songs are paired with music that's both adventurous and eclectic. His albums exist inside a dynamic flux of folk, jazz and avant rock, and his long list of regular collaborators include members of the Dirty Three, The Necks, the folk singer Leah Senior, and many other luminaries of contemporary music.

Collette’s songwriting, combined with his early background in improvised and experimental music, has resulted in eight albums of uncompromising vision, released on a variety of international labels. These are produced mostly out of his studio in Berlin, where he has been based since 2010. Funny, haunting and sad, often all at once, the songs nonetheless manages to remain plain-spoken and uncluttered. His newly released album Mixed Light, along with 2024’s Our Other History and 2018’s double LP Old Chestnut rounds out a series of complex folk song-cycles featuring byways of diverse experimentation. His live performances drift between delicate, intimate folk and sonic exploration, which has seen him appear at festivals throughout Europe, Australasia, Japan, South America and the United States.

For this special concert at Phoenix, Collette will appear with Chris Abrahams on piano, Ben Bourke on bass, Leah Senior on vocals, and Joe Talia on the drums. Abrahams and Collette have been developing their own language around these songs ever since their first collaboration on Old Chestnut, and the rhythm section goes back to the very beginnings of Collette’s musical output. A very rare combination, not to be missed.