Jazz Articles about The Bad Plus

Give The Bad Plus A Break

by Joshua Weiner
April 30, 2004

A pretty little girl, maybe 4 years old or so, dances and twirls to the music, long blond hair flying. Her mother sits nearby, watchful that she doesn't bump into any of the audience members enjoying the show. A dreadlocked man at the adjacent table leans over to the little dancer, points to the hyperkinetic drummer up on the stand, and asks a question that, though inaudible due to the volume of the band, is clear enough: “Is that your ...

The Bad Plus: Give

by Simon Calle
April 4, 2004

After a year the Bad Plus is back with a second major label release. Give can be seen as a continuation of the group's previous record, These are the Vistas. On the new album the trio continues working with an eclectic mixture of various influences that range from 19th century impressionist and romantic Europeans composers to alternative rock of the '90s passing through various styles of jazz. The first can be heard specially in the playing of pianist Ethan Iverson ...

The Bad Plus: These Are The Vistas

by Joshua Weiner
August 25, 2003

There's an old saying about a dog walking upright on his hind legs: it's not that he does it well, but rather that he does it at all that's interesting. Listening to the arrangement of Nirvana's “Smells Like Teen Spirit" by the Bad Plus brought this to mind. While 7 of 10 tracks on their major-label debut, These Are The Vistas, are originals, it's the three pop cover tunes (which also include Blondie's “Heart Of Glass" and the Aphex Twin's ...

The Bad Plus: These are the Vistas

by C. Michael Bailey
March 1, 2003

Blasting out of the heartland, the Bad Plus spills onto the jazz landscape like strong waters, cleansing the palette of the recent barrage of jazz jam bands. Billed as the “loudest Jazz Piano Trio," the Bad Plus consists of bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King.

Their music is compelling for two reasons. One, the covers (or standards, if you will) are contemporary pop. The band gives an acid postmodern treatment to Nirvana's “Smells like Teen Spirit," ...

The Bad Plus: These Are the Vistas

by Paul Abella
February 14, 2003

At first glance, this doesn't look like a jazz record, with that big picture of what might be a robot on the front--and three thugs on the back looking like they just stepped out of the garage. But look closer.

The Bad Plus is one of the most unique piano trios you are ever likely to hear. Ethan Iverson uses some very interesting chordal voices on These Are the Vistas. Reid Anderson rarely walks anywhere on the album, ...

The Bad Plus: These are the Vistas

by Jeff Stockton
February 4, 2003

Sure, the Bad Plus is a piano trio. Just a modern take on one. On These Are The Vistas, the group's major label debut, these three players present a decidedly more contemporary vision of the concept. “Big Eater" begins ominously, before its disjointed beat turns martial. Drummer Dave King's attack is alternately aggressive, delicate, and swinging. Contrast this with Ethan Iverson, whose piano most often shimmers, but rumbles when called for. Join the two with Reid Anderson's steady bass that ...