Zach Holman

I recently got to see The Bad Plus in concert here in Pittsburgh. If you're looking for some fresh new music, they're it. They're a traditional jazz trio (piano + drums + bass), but their music is anything but traditional (and I just used up my clich?ɬØ?Ǭø?Ǭ? allotment for the day). They do covers of bands ranging from Nirvana, Radiohead, Ornette Coleman, Black Sabbath, the theme from Chariots of Fire, and so on.

Seeing them live was another thing all together. David King on drums is absolutely amazing. He's the most active, creative drummer I've ever seen before. Here's a snippet on YouTube from Physical Cities, a song on their upcoming album in May. It's pretty amazing- for the musical among you, pay attention to the rhythm and just wonder how the hell they stick together. And then King solos on top of that (lack of) rhythm. It's really absurd.

If you're looking for other songs to listen to, to check out and see if you want to pick up a CD or something, definitely take a listen to "And Here We Test Our Powers of Observation", "Velouria", "Dirty Blonde", "Flim", or "Silence is the Question". Music is fun.