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Shake Stew

Shake Stew

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Shake Stew – the Austrian jazz formation between trance, energy, and collective ecstasy

A band that revitalizes modern jazz

Shake Stew is one of the most influential Austrian jazz formations of the present. Since its founding in 2016, the ensemble led by bandleader Lukas Kranzelbinder has earned an international reputation with a distinctive blend of groove, improvisation, and eruptive stage energy. The band represents a concept of jazz that does not confine itself to stylistic boundaries but condenses sound, rhythm, and collective dynamics into an intense live experience.

Shake Stew quickly gained recognition not only as a studio project but especially as a live band, whose concerts thrive on power, precision, and spiritual tension. The lineup featuring two drummers, two bassists, and several horn players creates a sound that is both archaic, modern, and highly detailed. This is where the fascination of this formation lies: Shake Stew does not think of jazz as a museum tradition but as a vibrant, physically tangible present.

The beginnings: Formation, concept, and initial reception

Shake Stew was formed in 2016 and quickly established itself with its first performances as an extraordinary soloist septet. At the center is double bassist, electric bassist, and composer Lukas Kranzelbinder, who shapes the band as a creative force, arranger, and sound architect. The early reception emphasized the unusual instrumentation and the uncompromising approach to rhythmic density and melodic expansion.

The decisive early impulse came with the debut album The Golden Fang in 2017. Even this work made it clear that Shake Stew is neither a conventional modern jazz ensemble nor a pure fusion band. Rather, the group merges elements of Afrobeats, trance-like repetition, energetic improvisation, and precisely placed composition into a unique musical language.

Lukas Kranzelbinder as bandleader and sound architect

Lukas Kranzelbinder leads Shake Stew with the signature of a musician who thinks composition, arrangement, and collective improvisation together. His pieces build on pulsating ostinati, ascending arcs of tension, and a clear dramaturgy that gives structure to each performance. At the same time, the sound remains open enough to allow space for spontaneous moments and individual solos.

The role of the bandleader is expressed not in authoritarian control but in the ability to shape an ensemble with a strong identity. This balance between control and freedom is what makes the music of Shake Stew so compelling. Kranzelbinder knows how to design a collective sound image, in which the individual voices do not disappear but coalesce into a larger, energetic whole.

The breakthrough: From Saalfelden to the international jazz scene

The first major boost in the band's career came with the performance at the International Jazz Festival Saalfelden and the debut album The Golden Fang. From there, Shake Stew rapidly developed into an internationally sought-after live formation. In the following years, the band's path led to renowned festivals and concert venues in Europe and beyond, including Rotterdam, Morocco, Mexico City, Montreal, and Istanbul.

The band was soon perceived as Austria's flagship in jazz. Performances at jazzahead! in Bremen and further festival appearances solidified their reputation as an ensemble with extraordinary stage presence. The combination of technical sovereignty and trance-like intensity granted Shake Stew a position between club culture, festival stages, and improvised avant-garde.

Discography: From debut to anniversary album

The discography of Shake Stew traces a steady artistic development. After The Golden Fang, Rise and Rise Again followed in 2018, Gris Gris in 2019, the live album (A)live! in 2020, HEAT in 2022, LILA in 2023, and the live release Live in Chur in 2025. For 2026, the anniversary album TEN ONE TWO has been announced or released, supplemented by another part of the TEN series in the same year.

These releases demonstrate a band that not only expands its repertoire but systematically deepens its sound language. Particularly noteworthy is the connection between studio-like refinement and the documented power of live recordings. Shake Stew consistently works on a musical identity, in which each album feels like a new chapter without losing the core of the band.

HEAT, LILA and LIVE IN CHUR: the recent phase

With HEAT, Shake Stew reached another peak in 2022. The album is considered a particularly diverse representation of the band's spectrum so far and simultaneously marks a new phase within the lineup. The change in the horn section, with Astrid Wiesinger replacing Clemens Salesny in 2021, brought new energy to the sound and sharpened the delicate balance between raw movement and melodic transparency.

LILA from 2023 and Live in Chur from 2025 continue this path. While LILA emphasizes the evolution of the studio sound, Live in Chur documents the band's unique strength on stage. The release is based on a recording from the JazzChurFestival 2024 and highlights the virtuosity, openness, and focus with which Shake Stew maintains tension even in longer formats.

TEN ONE TWO: the anniversary as an artistic statement

For their tenth anniversary, Shake Stew presents TEN ONE TWO not just as a best-of but as a consciously new double album. The work looks forward and encapsulates the band's stylistic development in an ambitious form. The music combines the characteristic double basslines, trance-like brass textures, driving grooves, and extended solo passages into an epic whole.

The album showcases Shake Stew as an ensemble that has refined its collective language over the years. Improvisation, modular sound layers, and precisely composed passages intertwine, creating a hybrid character: half ritual, half expedition, half high-energy jazz composition. This is precisely the quality of this band, which cannot be reduced to a trend but has built its own musical universe.

Style, sound image, and musical development

Shake Stew stylistically navigates the field between jazz, improvisational music, and a modern, rhythmically charged sound concept that is often associated with Krautjazz. Characteristic are the double rhythm section, the powerful bass foundations, the vibrant horn lines, and a dramaturgy that unfolds over long arcs. The sound often feels hypnotic but never static; it remains in constant motion.

The music thrives on contrasts. On one hand, there is the archaic pulsing, while on the other, there are fine melodic lines and clear compositional control. This tension makes the arrangements of Shake Stew so appealing: they allow for escalation, open spaces for solos, while simultaneously making a strong collective identity audible. The influence of Afrobeats, trance-like patterns, and spiritual jazz is palpable without reducing the band to mere quotations.

Critical reception and international recognition

The press reacted early with great attention to Shake Stew. Even at the first releases, the unusual instrumentation and the band's energy were highlighted. Particularly, the debut The Golden Fang received recognition for its original sound language, while later works such as Rise and Rise Again and Gris Gris further sharpened the group's artistic maturity.

Also, in specialized press and prestigious media, the band's live impact was emphasized. A sound characterized by urgency, rhythmic density, and virtuoso horn work was described. The positive response is reflected not only in reviews but also in numerous festival bookings and presence on international stages, which have made Shake Stew a cornerstone of the European jazz scene.

Awards, prizes, and cultural influence

Shake Stew has received several awards, including the German Jazz Award 2021 in the category “Band of the Year International” and the Amadeus Austrian Music Award 2023. These honors confirm the high status of the formation far beyond the Austrian jazz landscape. They underline that the band is recognized not only by experts but also by a broader music audience.

The cultural influence of Shake Stew lies in the expansion of the concept of jazz. The band brings improvised music into a form that appeals both physically, emotionally, and intellectually. In this way, it exemplifies a new generation of European jazz culture: open to global influences yet firmly rooted in the tradition of live performance, collective interaction, and compositional substance.

Conclusion: Shake Stew is exciting because the band shapes an unmistakable style from musical precision and eruptive freedom. The formation combines artistic development, energetic stage presence, and international resonance into a jazz that does not need to be explained but has an immediate impact in the concert hall. Anyone seeking intense, physical, and highly musical live experiences should definitely see Shake Stew on stage.

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