Backwater Township

About

The artist

Backwater Township is an Indigenous jazz collective based in Montréal and led by Mi'gmaq composer and bassist Corey Thomas. Thomas started the project in 2018 to perform original work and create new arrangements connected to Indigenous jazz history. The collective describes its purpose as challenging elitism and gatekeeping within jazz while making room for musicians who sit outside conventional scenes. Its first self-titled EP appeared in 2018, followed by the album II in 2022 and the EP III in 2023. The music moves through modern jazz, modal writing, ensemble improvisation, and references to Thomas's Mi'gmaq community of Gesgapegiag. Titles such as Tio'tia:ke, Gesalul, and Where the River Widens connect place and language to the group's instrumental writing. Backwater Township has appeared at the Festival International de Jazz de Montréal, Festival Présence autochtone, and regional jazz events in Quebec. A live EP released in April 2024 documented the five-piece on stage. Current official profiles continue to identify the collective with Montréal, and its live calendar shows new Canadian dates in 2026.