The Bad Plus - Complex Emotions

Label: Mack Avenue Records, 2024

Personnel - Chris Speed: tenor saxophone; Ben Monder: guitar; Reid Anderson: bass, synth; Dave King: drums, synth.

The Bad Plus, a quartet of first-rate musicians renowned for their genre-blurring compositions, returns with their latest album, Complex Emotions. Saxophonist Chris Speed and guitarist Ben Monder, who joined founding members bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King in 2021, have become integral to the ensemble. Their second album as a quartet features eight original compositions—four by Anderson, two by King, and one each by Speed and Monder. Together, these pieces explore the individual compositional voices of the band members who rove beyond the confines of stereotyped jazz and rock to create something wholly distinctive.

The album opens with two Anderson-penned tracks. “Grid/Ocean” is smoothly laid down with a blend of wet and dry percussion timbres, a soulful melody that puts light in the horizon, and a circular pop/rock harmony. Monder’s guitar work dazzles, glowing with intensity as King’s cymbal flourishes build to an exhilarating climax. The next track, “French Horns”, is marked by an invigorating rhythm, drawing freely from alternative rock and featuring synchronized guitar-sax melodies, anthemic chordal patterns supporting Speed’s nimble improvisation, and a scorching, metal-inspired guitar solo by Monder.

King’s flair for rhythmic complexity and tricky meters shines on “Casa Ben”,  which, delivered with a progressive rock posture, showcases a killer theme centered on a dazzling descendant phrase, and variations of 10 and 12 beat-cycle passages. Speed’s “Cupcakes One” channels a punk rock vibe and a pop melody, elevated by Monder’s inventive solo. The track’s infectious rhythm invites listeners to move, much like Anderson’s expansive “Carrier”, a groove-laden piece driven by an off-kilter beat shuffle. Nonetheless, Monder and Speed provide a contrasting dreamy feel, creating a Mazzy Star-kind of melancholy, while Anderson’s bass shifts seamlessly from understated to commanding. 

The adventurous “Deep Water Sharks”, another Anderson composition, offers a vibrant krautrock-inspired groove filled with rapid ideas, guitar noise and scattered harmonics, as well as melodic fluidity. Speed’s improvisation injects further vitality into the track. The album concludes with Monder’s “Li Po”, an eery, atmospheric number filled with dark suspensions and continuous tension. Previously featured on Monder’s triple album Planetarium, this haunting piece feels tailor-made for a mystery or horror film soundtrack.

Complex Emotions solidifies The Bad Plus as a sensational post-modern jazz act. By forging fresh paths and emphasizing the distinct musical identities of its members, the album offers a compelling and multifaceted listening experience, confirming the quartet’s creative vitality.

Favorite Tracks:
01 - Grid/Ocean ► 02 - French Horns ► 05 - Cupcakes One ► 06 - Carrier

The Bad Plus - The Bad Plus

Label: Edition Records, 2022

Personnel - Chris Speed: tenor saxophone, clarinet; Ben Monder: guitar; Reid Anderson: bass; Dave King: drums.

After 21 years of activity, the sensational contemporary trio The Bad Plus releases its eponymous, 15th studio album with a new lineup that, prescinding from piano, includes the progressive guitarist Ben Monder (David Bowie, Paul Motion Band) and the constructive saxophonist and clarinetist Chris Speed (The Claudia Quintet, Tim Berne’s Bloodcount). This new alliance, forced by the step down of pianist Orrin Evans, is embraced by the co-founders - bassist Reid Anderson and drummer Dave King - with great spirit and excitement, staking out a new musical direction that, besides imperiously modern, is sonically impactful.

Rounding its edges at every 24-beat cycle, “Motivations II” makes for a marvelous starting point. Monder’s phenomenal guitar playing infuses depth and creates ambience; Reid and King demonstrate an excellent rapport through the unwavering cadenced groove; and Speed blows soberly throughout, working for the sake of the song rather than individual ambition. More defiant in the rhythm and melody, King’s “Sun Wall” challenges our ears with a 7/4 meter signature, disclosing affinities for art rock, neo-psychedelia, and hard rock. The clear-toned saxophone works well with the crunchy guitar, and we have a memorable if eccentric improvisation by Monder over the explorative rhythmic investigations of King, who, no matter what, never loses the pulse of things.

Etched by propulsive drum slams, “Not Even Close to Far Off” has its light and dark sides organically melded as the group sonically integrates punk attitude and specks of metal. Speed is the soloist in evidence on this occasion. Another King-penned cut with a jagged edge is “Sick Fire”, where an intricate avant-garde jazz intersects with prog-rock, resulting in plenty of angularity, experimental flair, and risk-taking improv. On the latter, guitar and saxophone overlap with wide tonal range on top of a powerful and uninterrupted bass/drums current.

It’s clear that Anderson’s compositions are less rock-oriented and more atmospherically designed. In addition to the above-mentioned opener, the bassist contributed “You Won’t See Me Before I Come Back”, a luminous ballad with no room for obscurity; “Stygian Pools”, whose supplicatory poignancy turns easily into affection; and “In the Bright Future”, in which a straight eight groove provides expansion to a more intimate and spiritual start. To conclude, King’s “The Dandy” combines the crisp pop/rock art of Fleetwood Mac and The Go-Betweens with bits of Primal Scream’s psychedelia. Balance rules, and it all works.

Not too ‘out’ and not too ‘in’, this work shows the group evolving, advancing their stellar past material. Seldom or even at no time, had the fans an opportunity to hear such a thing. It’s one of the year’s highlights to explore repeatedly and in depth.

Favorite Tracks: 
01 - Motivations II ► 02 - Sun Wall ► 03 - Not Even Close to Far Off

The Bad Plus - It's Hard

Ethan Iverson: piano; Reid Anderson: bass; Dave King: Drums.

The genius of the ingenious New York city-based jazz trio The Bad Plus can be heard again on their twelfth studio album entitled “It’s Hard”, a collection of covers that originally inhabited the pop, rock, country, jazz, and electronic music universes.
Its concept contrasts with the last year’s mandatory album, “The Bad Plus Joshua Redman”, whose tracks were composed by the members of the quartet. 
The album opens with “Maps”, an original song by the American indie rock band Yeah Yeah Yeahs, which is treated with a relentless musical hammering produced by bass-drums movements, getting more chaotic as it moves forward without losing any of its melodic sense.
Peter Gabriel’s “Games Without Frontiers”, a massive hit in the UK in 1971, is rhythmically well crafted and gains a newfound perspective. Yet, its melody remains completely recognizable.
In terms of pop tunes, Prince’s “The Beautiful Ones” is a pure delight, with Anderson’s bass ‘singing’ the falsetto part of the original, complemented with the crescendo of Iverson’s piano, which builds up an arresting polyphony at some point. In turn, Cindy Lauper’s “Time After Time” is given a downtempo accentuation by King’s sparse beats while “Don’t Dream It’s Over”, a hit from the mid 80's by the Australian pop band Crowded House, plunges into real dreamy tones as it flows as a ballad.
The jazz is also well represented by a couple of tunes that carry a graceful musicality. The first one, “Alfombra Magica”, authored by the saxophonist Bill McHenry, evinces classical cadences. The second is Ornette Coleman’s “Broken Shadows”, which proceeds calmly and softly as in a morning sunrise.
Definitely a highlight, “The Robot”, a 1978 song composed by the German electronic music pioneers Kraftwerk, pulses with a forceful energy, inviting us to a robotic dance.
All the ten jazz renditions boast a relevant freshness through the treatments they were subjected to, proving The Bad Plus as one of the most stylish and versatile piano trios of our times.

Favorite Tracks:
01 – Maps ► 06 – The Beautiful Ones ► 10 – The Robots