Four renowned composer-improvisers tangle with Ches Smith’s newest compositions. Two highly individualistic guitarists swirl, echo and double-take, squaring off with  bass and drums team that anchors and unhinges through doubling sounds—drum machines and acoustic drums, low-end analog synth and acoustic bass, digital samples and repeated fragments performed in real time. In a dance of coherence and chaos, the four musicians plunge headlong into the feedback loop of composition and improvisation armed with chemistry created by their mutual appreciation and enduring friendships.

Improv music afficionados will know these top players, who have appeared in countless formations in recent years. All four have earned their credits as composers and band leaders. Ches Smith has performed sold-out shows on our stage with Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog. Mary Halvorson regularly plays here with her own groups. Liberty Ellman could be seen here in the bands of Henry Threadgill and Myra Melford. And Nick Dunston has appeared here with the likes of Dave Douglas and Vijay Iyer. Together they can be heard on Ches Smith’s recent album Clone Row.

‘This recording is, most of all, about Ches as composer. He’s picked up a lot on his long, strange trip of the last few decades. His long-running side musician collaborations with John Zorn and Tim Berne are also evident but sublimated here into something new. Ches Smith builds here on his reputation as a gifted new voice with an important vision, while showcasing some of the most creative musicians of our time’ (Marc Ribot in the liner notes of the album Clone Row).

Mary Halvorson guitar, Liberty Ellman guitar, Nick Dunston bass/electronics, Ches Smith drums/vibraphone/electronics