Acrpost: A Project of the Pacific Association of Artist Run Centres

Event Description

The Bad Plus
with opening guests Microbongo Sound System
Thursday, March 8, 2012
Upstairs Cabaret, 1127 Wharf St., Victoria BC
Doors 7:30pm - Show 8:30pm - 19+ Only ID Required
Tickets: $29.50 advance / $35 Door
Available at: http://www.hightideconcerts.net/, Lyle's Place 770 Yates St.,
Ditch Records 784 Fort St.. & McPherson Box Office 250-386-6121

+ Vancouver Concert......
Friday, March 9, 2012
with opening guests Zubot and Brooks Duo
Rio Theatre, 1660 E. Broadway St., Vancouver BC
Doors 7:00pm - Show 8:00pm - 19+ Only ID Required (Licensed venue)
Tickets: $35.50 Advance / $40 Door
Available at: http://www.hightideconcerts.net/, Red Cat Records 4332 Main St. (604) 708-9422, Zulu Records 1972 W. 4th Ave. (604) 738-3232 & Highlife World Music 1317 Commercial Dr. (604) 251-6964

The Bad Plus website: http://www.thebadplus.com/
Microbongo Sound System website: http://www.microbongo.com/

For the past ten years The Bad Plus—- Reid Anderson, Ethan Iverson and David King —-have broken down the walls of jazz convention and created an uncompromising body of work. Few jazz groups in recent memory have amassed such acclaim, and few have inspired such controversy. Their belief in the band ethos and their personal brand of avant-garde populism have put them at the forefront of a new instrumental music movement, drawing audiences both traditional and mainstream. While the bulk of their output has been original music, they have deconstructed songs in the pop, rock as well as the country and classical music idioms.

The upcoming release NEVER STOP is the first album by The Bad Plus to consist entirely of originals. Recorded in Minnesota with a live, stripped-down sound, NEVER STOP showcases the band’s range as well as its three distinct personalities. From gentle and melodic to fierce and abstract, from swing to 80’s techno, NEVER STOP is tied together by a group sound that embraces diversity as strength. Ten years in, The Bad Plus is here to stay.

E1 Music is excited to announce the release of The Bad Plus‘s new album, NEVER STOP, on September 14, 2010. It is the band’s first album of all originals, and it’s eighth release overall. Recorded in Minnesota, NEVER STOP does just what the title says. It’s a rapid-fire succession of engaging performances by three musical explorers operating as highly skilled individuals — bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson and drummer
David King — and as a seamless unit at the same time. NEVER STOP is a strictly instrumental affair and, as a result, is a 180º departure from the group’s previous release, For All I Care, which featured alt-rock vocalist Wendy Lewis on covers of rock classics, along with re-imaginings of 20th Century classical compositions by Stravinsky, Ligeti and Babbitt.

“We approached the recording of this album more like a jazz record from the ’50s or ’60s,” says King. “To eliminate studio separation as much as possible, I set up in the same room as Ethan, with Reid in plain sight. It created a really free atmosphere, as if we were playing a show.”

The Bad Plus are renowned for shattering musical convention. Rolling Stone called their amalgam of jazz, pop, rock and avant garde “about as badass as highbrow gets,” while The New York Times said the band is “better than anyone at mixing the sensibilities of post-‘60s jazz and indie rock.”

While the bulk of their output has been originals, they have famously deconstructed covers in the pop, rock, electronic and classical idioms. Their belief in a band ethos and “avant-garde populism” has placed them at the forefront of a new instrumental music movement, resulting in ever-larger audiences.

The threesome has been exchanging musical ideas since their teenage years. In the late ’80s, Anderson and King were two Minnesota high schoolers playing in fledgling rock bands and digging records by Coltrane and The Police. Anderson met Iverson in 1989. All three played together on one occasion a year later before going their separate ways for ten years.

They reconvened for a gig in Minneapolis in 2000. Sparks flew, studio sessions for an indie release ensued, and suddenly The New York Times called their maiden voyage one of the best releases of 2001. The band signed with Columbia, where they released These Are the Vistas in 2003, followed quickly by Give and then Suspicious Activity? In 2007 they released Prog, an album which balanced originals with spellbinding covers of Bowie, Bacharach, Tears for Fears and Rush. For All I Care, with its intriguing juxtaposition of rock and classical sensibilities, followed in 2009.

Ten years ago, not one of these musicians could have predicted where The Bad Plus was going, how long it would last, or what it might become along the way. What they were sure of, though, was a fierce sense of commitment that has blossomed into artistic success.

“We’ve always believed in our ideas,” says Anderson. “ We’ve always believed in making music that sounds like us, and we always thought there would be an audience for it.”

NEVER STOP showcases the band’s range as well as its three distinct personalities. From gentle and melodic to fierce and abstract, from swing to ’80s techno, NEVER STOP is the result of a group sound that embraces diversity as strength.

MICROBONGO SOUND SYSTEM
From Victoria BC, Canada Microbongo Sound System is a fresh new live 3 piece, combining relentless driving brazilian rhythm with deep pulsating electronic sounds, catering specifically to making people groove.

Some have described the sound as live Brazilian Tech House combined with Dancehall, Afrobeat and Dubstep. Others have no idea what to call it. However you try to label them, MicroBongo is hitting the scene hard with a brand new totally live sound, carefully moving the audience through a story inspired by modern technology and ancient jungle wisdom.

Collectively the trio have over 65 years of experience performing music live with various influences including: Jazz, Classical Indian, Flamenco, Heavy Metal/Rock, and Electronic

The instrumentation:

Andreas Kreischer::
Micro drumset, bongos, cowbells

Dan Beer::
Brazilian Surdu drum/snare, Conga, Bells,
Electronic Sub Kick Drum, Roland SPDS Sample Pad,
Electrix MO-Fx

Manjinder Benning::
M-Audio trigger finger, Novation midi controller, Vocal mic.
NI Massive, Ableton Live
(Vocoders/Pitch Trackers/Fx/Samples/Synths).