Sara Schwabe: The Bad Plus
You gotta admit...there's something in the water in Minneapolis.
There's always some great sound coming out of the Midwestern Musical Mecca (how's that for alliteration?):
Prince
Bob Dylan
The Replacements
The Jayhawks
Husker Du
Soul Asylum
The Suburbs
Morris Day
Happy Apple
Tapes 'n Tapes
Mason Jennings
The lady who sang "Funkytown"
The latest group from the Land of 10,000 Lakes to make waves across the country is experimental jazz trio, The Bad Plus, appearing September 7th at the Bijou.
Dossier photo of The Bad Plus
The Bad Plus have joined forces with Grammy award-winning producer, Tchad Blake, who has worked with such mega-stars as Peter Gabriel, Pearl Jam, Tom Waits, Suzanne Vega, Tom Waits and Elvis Costello. Even though they are classified as "jazz", the group hasn't made many friends with jazz purists. They use the mixing board like an instrument, itself. The result is a sound that is fresh, risky and vibrant.
One of the most talked about performances at Bonnaroo, kicks off their fall tour with their debut in Knoxville this weekend. The Bad Plus is currently promoting their latest album, Suspicious Activity. The title is taken from a sign outside the Minneapolis airport encouraging travelers to report "suspicious activity". The bassist, Reid Anderson, describes the phrase as typifying the "paranoid security-conscious society in which we're now living". Drummer David King and keyboardist Ethan Iverson agreed that it would make a perfect album title, since their "high-impact" music often raises suspicion among typical jazz listeners.
Album cover for Suspicious Activity
Tickets for The Bad Plus are still available at the Bijou Theatre website.