Billy Martin + Matt Glassmeyer + Jonathan Goldberger: State Fête

Billy Martin, the renowned groove master and founding drummer of Medeski Martin & Wood, has spent decades collaborating with boundary—pushing artists including John Lurie in the Lounge Lizards and John Zorn in his Cobra ensembles, all while exploring instrument design, filmmaking, and visual art. His 2026 project, State Fête, unites him with multi-instrumentalist Matt Glassmeyer and guitarist Jonathan Goldberger in a captivating exploration of live-composed soundscapes—think of it as a sonic state fair where the familiar becomes delightfully warped.

Glassmeyer, recognized for inventive work with Oliver Wood in the group Slow Accordion, the Brooklyn ensemble Hompulon, and a longstanding duo with Jano Rix of the Wood Brothers, contributes an array of self-created instruments, including the reedless saxophone and a modified electric piano. Goldberger, a versatile guitarist with a keen sense for textural depth, completes the trio. Recorded on a steep hill north of New York City, the album emerges from a shared ethos that embraces the lyrical, the textural, the subtly ominous, and the deeply funky. The result evokes the disorienting thrill of a first visit to a bustling state fair.

State Fête spans seven tracks and nearly an hour of instrumental interplay, blending avant-garde jazz with ambient experimentation and rhythmic invention. The opener, "Triangle Upon Triangle," stretches beyond 12 minutes, building a hypnotic foundation where Martin's percussive pulses—drawn from drums, homemade bamboo implements, and assorted recycled objects—interlock with Glassmeyer's ethereal reedless saxophone tones and Goldberger's shimmering guitar lines. The piece layers tension and release, its grooves ebbing like distant carnival echoes before surging into vibrant patterns that underscore Martin's mastery of rhythm as a narrative force.

Later tracks deepen the immersion. "Tal Vez Distante" drifts into introspective territory, with sparse, haunting melodies from Glassmeyer's modified electric piano threading through Goldberger's atmospheric strums and jazz-inflected voicings, all propelled by Martin's understated beats. "Queen Substance" introduces a darker edge, its eight-minute arc pulsing with restrained, sinister intensity—the shadowed corner of the fairground where curiosity competes with caution.

The album reaches its peak in the latter half. "Jan Hooks" offers fluid improvisations that shift from lyrical introspection to sudden bursts of chaotic energy, while "Anemone" conjures oceanic swells of texture through Goldberger's arsenal of vintage guitars, brimming with fuzz-toned leads, harmonic distortion, and flickering bass runs. The concise closer, "Upon Triangle," mirrors the opener's motifs, providing resolution while hovering above us with flights of fancy through the universe—a fitting farewell as the fairground lights begin to dim.

What sets State Fête apart is its organic origin as a fully improvised session—remarkably, the musicians had never played together before—resulting in music that feels alive, unpredictable, and profoundly human. Martin's groove mastery supplies the rhythmic spine, allowing Glassmeyer and Goldberger to venture into uncharted sonic terrain without losing cohesion.

This release rewards repeated listening, revealing fresh details within its richly-layered sound world with each pass. It stands as a testament to collaborative risk-taking instrumental music, offering adventurous jazz listeners a journey driven not by novelty or indulgence, but by curiosity, invention, and a fearless sense of play.