Ruta Di - Onwards & Upwards (2026) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Auguries of Innocence
02. Song for My Grandmother
03. Seven Cliffs and the Sea
04. Deep Green Forest
05. Too High
06. Things We Don't Say
07. Atbėga Elnias Devyniaragis
08. Oi Tu, Eglala
09. Lela's Dance
10. Onwards & Upwards

They say the human voice is the most flexible and versatile of all musical instruments. Judging by her impressive new album Onwards & Upwards, London-based Lithuanian singer-songwriter Ruta Di certainly thinks so. For this is an album where the voice is front and centre (nothing unusual in that), but here she has largely eschewed the limitations of written lyrics for wordless vocals where you are invited to attach your own stories. And like abstract art, you are not just curiously intrigued, but are drawn in to search for your own connections with the music which makes it such a very personal experience.

This is Ruta Di’s third album, but the first to adopt this approach, which she terms “Voice Beyond Words”, explaining: “This album began with a melody I wrote after my grandmother passed away. I wanted to write a song for her, something that could express what I was feeling. I searched for words many times, but none of them felt true enough. Eventually, I left the melody without lyrics… when I began performing the piece live, I noticed that people connected with it deeply. Without words, listeners seemed to find their own meanings inside the music.”

She has a voice that holds your attention and a range and purity of tone that carries you with it on the wordless numbers, impressing particularly on the pieces that build and take off. And there are a number of those, as the compositions meld Lithuanian folk themes with an energy-driven contemporary jazz sound and rock sensibilities, all played with an excellent band that fleshes out and develops the compositions to their full effect. Ruta Di’s voice is always the lead instrument, but there is also plenty of room for ensemble workouts and solo contributions, including from special guests Alan Short on flute and alto sax, Duncan Eagles on tenor sax and Leo Richardson on baritone sax, as well as from Ruta Di’s own guitar.

The opening track ‘Auguries of Innocence’ opens with a spoken word recitation of fragments of William Blake’s famous poem of the same title around which Genockey scatters his drums in enthralling response. It is an unconventional opening which puts you on notice that something different might follow. And so it transpires as we enter Ruta Di’s world; a place where conventional lyrics are largely redundant, replaced by her own expressive, universal language that speaks directly to you.

On ‘Song for my Grandmother’ where it all started, after an opening of hushed pulsing vocals we are swept away with soaring emotion. Indeed, it is hard to imagine lyrics having such an impact. ’Seven Cliffs and the Sea’ was inspired by the Seven Sisters white chalk cliffs in East Sussex and fittingly builds drama around an expanding melody. ’Deep Green Forest’ has the feel of a charming folk dance where all are welcome. Here the forest is definitely a happy rather than a dark foreboding place.

Not all of the tracks focus on wordless vocals. There are a couple of versions of Lithuanian folk songs where the emphasis is reversed, where Ruta Di’s respectful vocals anchor the pieces, giving the band scope to stretch out. It is the collective sound that particularly impresses on these pieces where vocals are one part of the mix. There is also a curious version of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Too High’ where Lithuanian folk meets soulful funk, employing both atmospheric wordless and conventional vocals, and probably goes down a storm live.

But it is the wordless vocals that particularly stay with you. On ‘Lela’s Dance’ Ruta Di’s voice traces an intricate stepped melody to emerge as a heartfelt call that carries through. And it all finishes strongly on the title track ‘Onwards & Upwards’ which builds from quiet beginnings to become a soaring anthem.

This album is quite a listening experience where a categorisation of “vocal jazz” would simply not do it justice – it is very much more than that. A case of onwards and upwards for Ruta Di.

Ruta Di (voice, guitar); Jakub Cywinski (double bass); Giovanni Crescenzi (bass guitar); Finn Genockey (drums); Alan Short (flute, alto saxophone); Duncan Eagles (tenor saxophone); Leo Richardson (baritone saxophone)