Never Stop II The Bad Plus

• 1 Hurricane Birds 05:29
• 2 Trace 05:00
• 3 Boffadem 05:16
• 4 Safe Passage 03:22
• 5 1983 Regional All-Star 06:43
• 6 Salvages 05:34
• 7 Commitment 04:06
• 8 Lean in the Archway 04:41
• 9 Kerosene II 04:44
• 10 Seams 07:14
• Total Runtime 52:09

Info for Never Stop II

Upon the departure of original pianist Ethan Iverson, Anderson and King asked longtime friend Orrin Evans to join the band. Evans has been a vital contributor to the modern jazz landscape for more than 20 years with his solo projects and other groups.

Says Evans, "This band feels like family to me. The music has a lived-in quality because of the deep relationships between the band members, and I feel really comfortable within this democratic construct."

Never Stop II features four original compositions by Anderson, two by Evans, and two by King. Two additional bonus tracks written by Anderson are included on the digital download and CD editions of the album.

The album was tracked live in the studio with no overdubs, guided by longtime engineer Pete Rende in September 2017 in New York City. The new lineup rehearsed over several months to prepare the new material and get a feel for improvising together. The resulting record confirms the original band members' idea that The Bad Plus could have a new life while retaining its democratic, leaderless group aesthetic - three composers, three identities, coming together under the umbrella of a band to create one unified sound.

"That, in essence, is the nature of The Bad Plus," says King. "When there is no leader and everyone has a personal responsibility to bring their full selves to the table, no matter what the material, the resulting sound of commitment and open-hearted connection is realized. We have the chance now with Orrin to restate our message: there is no leader, there is only the music."

"1983 Regional All-Star" is a stand-out track, the fourth installment in a series of King compositions. Evans' left hand joins with Anderson's casually thumping quarter notes as the idiosyncratic yet singable melody parades gloriously over the top. Another memorable track is "Seams," Anderson's sentimental free ballad. It opens with piano, gaining in energy over its 7 minutes. These songs exemplify what many listeners have grown to love about the band over the past 17 years. The tunes on Never Stop II are well-written and earnest, showcasing a band listening and improvising with one another, affirming that the group has not yet run out of meaningful music to make." (AllAboutJazz)

Reid Anderson, bass
Orrin Evans, piano
Dave King, drums

The Bad Plus
Few jazz groups in recent memory have amassed such acclaim, and inspired such controversy, as The Bad Plus. For almost fifteen years, they have thrived at the intersection of jazz, indie rock and contemporary classical music, inspiring Rolling Stone to call them “about as badass as highbrow gets.” The Bad Plus’ 10th studio recording, Inevitable Western, sees bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King further honing the same conceptual base that fired their inception. Yet again they continue to explore myriad musical forms born of jazz along with any sonic source that forwards music that is uniquely The Bad Plus. Inevitable Western is an album where pop, blues, and folk meld with classic melodies and rhythmic innovation into that rarest of hybrids: intelligent music for the masses.

This album contains no booklet.