Ben Monder / Tony Malaby / Tom Rainey: Live In Lisbon

Although we mourn the millions (estimated 6.5 million) of lives lost in the the great pandemic of the 21st century, some good things have survived. For our purposes, great expressions in music making. Live In Lisbon is a perfect example. Guitarist Ben Monder assembled a trio with saxophonist Tony Malaby and drummer Tom Rainey at the cusp of the pandemic in March of 2020 to perform at his Tuesday gig in New York. Eschewing written composition for an all improvised performance, the trio recorded Live At The 55 Bar (Sunnyside, 2021). The music was as dark and foreboding as the COVID lockdowns that were to come.

Jump forward twenty-one months and the trio took their message to Lisbon, Portugal, in November of 2021. The virus continued to be a known unknown, and the music remained within the same foreboding zeitgeist. This almost nameless, uncharted realm is once again explored. "Oort Cloud" opens with cautious notes; breathy tenor exhalations, quiet guitar and cymbal work as the trio wades gently into their performance, like one might step lightly onto a frozen lake. As their footing slowly firms up, the sound elevates, but so does the restless perturbation. Monder's heavy guitar effects coupled with Malaby's daunting tenor saxophone and the whirling drums of Rainey barely take their feet off the accelerators. Elsewhere "Tyche" and "Hyrrokkin" continue the same mode, building upon this dreaded undertow. The music is both harrowing and cathartic.