Three times five plus

A rock 'n' roll approach to jazz from The Bad Plus at Le Club

New York acoustic trio The Bad Plus belong to a generation of young, ambitious virtuosos, omnivores in terms of genre. Such people rarely come to us, so three concerts of The Bad Plus at Le Club are an event for the cultural life of the capital. Of course, this peculiar mixture of free jazz improvisations and rock 'n' roll melodies is better played in more democratic places ("We don't usually play in places where they eat," admitted pianist Ethan Iverson). But the Leklub audience still appreciated the quality of the Americans’ music-making.

Ethan Iverson, a bespectacled "nerd" in a pinstriped suit, pierced and tattooed drummer David King and unshaven, indifferent double bassist Reid Anderson form a monolithic, perfectly interacting band. "We love the idea of ​​the band," King says. — We stick together, don’t split up on side projects, and especially don’t collaborate with anyone, as is customary in the jazz environment. Many jazzmen of our generation form strong, long-lasting compositions - for example, the same famous Medeski, Martin & Wood. They are not very close to us musically, but from the point of view of the concept of the group, this is exactly what we were striving for."

The trio's program is varied and contrasting, like the image of the participants: from plays by the father of the jazz avant-garde, Ornette Coleman, to the soothing ballad Everybody Wants to Rule the World by the English pop group Tears for Fears, or Björk's hit Human Behavior (in their interpretation, however, it sounds like a play by the father of jazz avant-garde). Not to mention his own compositions with a free form and a kind of drive. “We just pick tunes that we like and can create some fun improvisations around,” says Ethan Iverson. “So everything we’ve ever listened to comes into play, from Coleman to the Pixies.” Naturally, at a concert The Bad Plus, like any acoustic band, sound more lively, bright and direct than on record. But the trick here is that the hard sound of the group is made by producer Chad Blake, who recorded platinum albums by Susan Vega and the Crowded House group. "We love the way Chad Blake records acoustic instruments," says King. - We are the first jazzmen in his practice, and with him we sounded completely unusual for a jazz lineup. Actually, this is exactly what we expected from the producer.”

Alexander BELYAEV