The Bad Plus 'Suspicious Activity?' album

Not exactly a bull in a china shop, more a like a rhino in an outlet mall, The Bad Plus have spent the last few years busting up any and all preconceived notions of what an acoustic jazz trio ought to be. You don't need a lab coat or any particular listening pedigree to appreciate the partnership between bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson and drummer David King. Regardless of how you might describe The Kind Of Music You Like, this acclaimed trio's passionate, eclectic language speaks directly to you and to anyone with a functioning heart, ears and nervous system.

Since their proper formation in the year 2000, The Bad Plus have released two independent discs and two more for Sony/Columbia. On the latter pair of albums—2003's “These Are the Vistas” and 2004's “Give”—they collaborated with renowned producer and restless studio maestro Tchad Blake. (His work on “Give” yielded a Grammy nomination.) This spring, they'll be working with Blake yet again on a new disc for Columbia scheduled for release in the Fall of 2005. In the meantime, fans can look forward to “Blunt Object: Live in Tokyo” available online March 15 th , 2005.

On the road, The Bad Plus have laid waste to a wide variety of physical structures, witnessed by audiences that vary wildly in size, shape, temperament and citizenship. Do they play jazz clubs? Yes. Rock clubs? Yes . Festivals from Bonnaroo to Bumbershoot? Damn straight. Opening slots for alt-rock heroes the Pixies? Uh-huh. Dreamy residencies at New York 's legendary Village Vanguard? Several. Private parties attended by the likes of Jake LaMotta and George Steinbrenner? Well, once. Crackling collaborations with the distinguished Mark Morris Dance Group? Go ahead and Google it . The backyard of a Wisconsin restaurant owned by the former bassist for Hüsker Dü? We don't make this stuff up. Has there been any setting anywhere in which The Bad Plus has not thrown down with mighty force? No, there has not .

If you've read about The Bad Plus in magazines, you probably know they play some covers. If you've read about The Bad Plus in particularly good magazines, you also know that they mostly play their own material, with all three members recognized as first-rate composers. Regardless of authorship, the band brings a winningly disparate body of influences to the stage. This is not a jazz trio for whom being “rock-influenced” means simply playing loud or referencing Zeppelin. With deep experience writing and performing across several genres, these guys are shrewd, hearty improvisers with the ability to build, contort, distort, destroy, rebuild and reinvent without losing grasp of The Song.

Oh, and please note: The Bad Plus is a band in the most communal sense. Don't think Iverson is somehow the leader just because he's the one wearing a suit. Don't label Anderson as the dutiful “fulcrum” just because he happens to stand in the middle and doesn't say much. And don't mistake King for a paroled miscreant just because he punishes every surface of his kit with more than just a pair of sticks. This is disarmingly futuristic stuff in which all three players share the control room.

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The Bad Plus - Suspicious Activity?