ARTIST: The Bad Plus
TITLE: Prog
LABEL: Do the Math Records/Heads Up International
GENRE: Jazz
BITRATE: 193kbps avg
PLAYTIME: 1h 04m total
RELEASE DATE: 2007-05-08
RIP DATE: 2007-04-24
Track List
----------
1. Everybody Wants To Rule The 5:37
World
2. Physical Cities 9:12
3. Life On Mars 6:05
4. Mint 5:20
5. Giant 8:45
6. Thriftstore Jewwlry 5:39
7. Tom Sawyer 5:10
8. This Guy's In Love With You 4:46
9. The World Is The Same 9:12
10. 1980 World Champion 5:00
Release Notes:
The Bad Plus hovers in a singular and fascinating space between indie rock,
postmodern jazz and intelligent pop. The trioÆs four highly acclaimed albums and
accompanying reputation for adventurous live performances serve as a testament
to their progressive, highly intuitive sensibilities. In less than a decade,
bassist Reid Anderson, keyboardist Ethan Iverson and drummer David King have
forced critics, fans and everyone in between to re-think their perceptions of
jazz, rock and music in general. The Los Angeles Times ranks the Plus ôamong the
potential leaders of what might be called the Nu Jazz movement û an eclectically
blended, acoustically framed, dynamically powerful variation on mainstream
jazz.ö Rolling Stone, meanwhile, heralded them in more simple terms: ôàbad to
the bone, hot players with hard-rock heartsàö
The Bad Plus makes its debut on Heads Up International through their own Do the
Math Records imprint with the May 8, 2007, release of Prog û an album that
continues on the iconoclastic trajectory of stealing from the most diverse and
unlikely sources and forging a sound that defies any easy definitions or
categories.
ôLike everything we do, this record brings together a lot of different
influences, without drawing any lines around one style or another,ö says
Anderson. ôWe donÆt create barriers. ItÆs all brought together with a very open
mind. WeÆll try anything, as long as it makes good music.ö
Prog opens with a melodic yet churning rendition of the Tears for Fears 1985
synth-pop classic, ôEverybody Wants To Rule the World,ö a track whose
arrangement juxtaposes lush piano lines with throbbing bass and drum
undercurrents.
ôWorldö is the first of four covers included in the ten-song set. The trioÆs
take on David BowieÆs classic ôLife on Marsö is part atonal rock, part symphony,
part cabaret jazz û a track thatÆs melodic one minute and bombastic the next.
Further into the set, their reading of RushÆs art-rock anthem ôTom Sawyerö opens
with the well-known riffs and melody line originally crafted by Geddy Lee and
Alex Lifeson, but interjects some frenetic piano and drum combinations along the
way that take the song to an even more heady place than the original. As with
the Tears for Fears cover, Burt BacharchÆs ôThis GuyÆs in Love with Youö gets
under way in melodic fashion, but Anderson, Iverson and King û individually and
as a unit û experiment with tempo and dynamics to stretch the songÆs
sensibilities to a point that redefines the essence of the song.
ôWe believe in taking a song and looking at it from as many angles as possible,"
says Anderson. ôWe try to make the covers our own. It isn't a matter of playing
the song; its a matter of reinventing the song."
Along with the intriguing covers are some edgy, as well as gorgeous, original
compositions contributed by all three band members. Early in the sequence, the
energy level spikes dramatically in ôPhysical Cities,ö a driving and percussive
track penned by Anderson. ôCitiesö features a serpentine interplay among all
three players and closes with a hammering, machine-gun riff that devolves into a
thundering atonal crescendo.
IversonÆs ôMintö follows a tempo that is churning and elastic, yet never
sacrifices its melodic element. AndersonÆs ôGiantö is a smoky track with a
haunting bass riff that permeates û but always allows room for piano lines that
are at times minimal, and at times ornate. The result is simultaneously
classical, jazzy pop-shaded and lush.
ô1980 World Champions,ö penned by King, is an upbeat closer that rides atop a
consistently driving backbeat û until the final seconds û with sufficient room
for Anderson and Iverson to explore all kinds of melodic and harmonic nuances.
In the final analysis, the work of The Bad Plus is anything but background
music, says Anderson. ôWeÆre making music to engage the audience,ö he says, ôand
to challenge the audience and ourselves with an energy aimed at everyone
involved having a mutual experience through the music.ö