Pioneering composer and Mutantrumpet inventor Ben Neill joins forces with acclaimed Ethiopian electronic artist Mikael Seifu for Nefasphere, a long-awaited collaboration arriving on all major streaming platforms September 16.
The track is available in two distinct versions: the Worldwinds Mix and the Moire Mix.
The project bridges continents and generations, combining Neill’s richly layered ambient sensibilities with Seifu’s signature Ethiopiyawi Electronic style, which is a synthesis of Ethiopian musical tradition and forward-looking global sound design.
The collaboration stems from a creative relationship spanning over a decade, beginning when Seifu was a student of Neill’s at Ramapo College in New Jersey. Over the years, the two have exchanged ideas and envisioned a project that would unite their distinct musical voices. Now, with Nefasphere, that long-envisioned project comes to life—marking not only their first official collaboration, but also Seifu’s first release since his acclaimed 2016 EP Zelalem (RVNG Intl).
Mikael Seifu reflects on the collaboration:
“This long overdue collaboration with Ben Neill marks for me a rebirth into a continued conversation I’ve had the honour of engaging in with him since my college days.
I cannot overstate the inspiration that Ben maintains on my musical thought to this day, be it personal or communal. Nefasphere for me is a reflection of the power of honest mentorship full of mutual respect and insight that continue to shape me, and hopefully, others.”
Ben Neill comments:
“This collaboration with Mikael Seifu is deeply meaningful to me. Mikael was one of the first students I taught as a professor 15 years ago, and I recognized his talent back then. Our creative connection always stood out from the hundreds of students I taught. We’ve stayed in touch ever since, always talking about collaborating, and Nefasphere marks the first concrete realization of that long-standing conversation.”
The title Nefasphere derives from the Amharic word nefas, meaning wind, breath or spirit. In Ethiopian cosmology, elemental forces are understood as both physical and spiritual. An apt metaphor for a composition that feels both ancient and futuristic. The Worldwinds Mix offers a focused, meditative flow with pulsing polyrhythms and breath-like textures, while the Moire Mix layers additional electronic detail to evoke interference patterns and depth.
Nefasphere represents not only the first official collaboration between Neill and Seifu, but also a meeting of generational perspectives, global musical traditions, and experimental improvisation across continents.
Listen to “Nefasphere (Worldwinds Mix)” and “Nefasphere (Moire Mix)” on all streaming platforms starting September 16.
Nefasphere Reviews
Vents Magazine: “Nefasphere: Ben Neill and Mikael Seifu Breathe Life Into a Cross-Continental Soundscape”
When two artists separated by an ocean but united by a long creative dialogue finally meet in sound, the results can feel at once inevitable and revelatory.
“Nefasphere” – released in two versions, the Worldwinds Mix and the Moire Mix – is exactly that: a deep, slow burning convergence of Ben Neill’s ambient, Mutantrumpet driven world and Mikael Seifu’s signature Ethiopiyawi Electronic style.
The title, derived from the Amharic word nefas (wind, breath, spirit), frames the piece perfectly.
Like breath, “Nefasphere” is cyclical and shapeshifting, a living exchange between the musicians. Neill’s Mutantrumpet supplies undulating acoustic drones and melodic gestures that are sampled and folded back into themselves, while Seifu threads in intricate polyrhythms and airy textures drawn from Ethiopian tonalities and his own forward looking sound design.
Beat.com: “Nefasphere” – A Conversation Across Oceans
Ben Neill’s ambient futurism meets Mikael Seifu’s Ethiopiyawi rhythms in a two part release that bridges continents, generations and genres.
In an age of scroll by singles, Nefasphere invites you to linger. Its details bloom slowly, revealing small shifts in tone and pattern that reward repeat listens. It’s also quietly emotional. Like a document of mentorship becoming collaboration, of ideas passed back and forth across time and distance until they cohere into a common language.
Independent Artist Buzz: Ben Neill and Mikael Seifu Build a Transcontinental Sound-World of Breath, Memory and Electricity
Some collaborations arrive with a press release and vanish into playlists. Others are inevitable, like tectonic plates finally locking into place.
“Nefasphere” is the new two track project from pioneering composer and Mutantrumpet inventor Ben Neill and Ethiopian electronic visionary Mikael Seifu, and it belongs firmly in the latter camp.
This record bridges genres, bridges time, mentorship and geography and it sounds ancient and startingly new all at once.
