After releasing their fantastic collaborative album this year, The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis came to Brooklyn's Union Pool for a rousing and relentless show that brilliantly captured their sound.
I never knew when or if I'd ever really get into jazz, but when COVID hit in March of 2020, I knew, like many others that I'd have some time on my hands. It was then that I decided to embark on the journey of getting to know the genre and I've been absolutely locked-in ever since. Punk on the other hand, has been a major part of my musical life since middle school and has always been a constant in my rotation. Earlier this year, I scored tickets to Impulse! at NYC Winter Jazzfest at (le) poisson rouge. My intention for the show was to catch sets Brandee Younger, who was paying tribute to Alice Coltrane, Irreversible Entanglements, and Shabaka Hutchings who was reintroducing himself to the scene as a flute player and composer. I made it to that show just in time to catch the first act of the night, The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis. I was deeply intrigued by what I heard and made sure to give them a listen when I returned home from the show and somehow it was only then that I learned that the rhythm section of the iconic group Fugazi also made up the rhythm section of the trio The Messthetics. Linking up with saxophonist James Brandon Lewis, they collectively released their debut album shortly after that set at LPR and getting to see the quartet in such an intimate space like Union Pool really felt like the cherry on top of this personal journey. From the get go, Brendan Canty on drums and Joe Lally on bass locked-in on their tight-knit grooves, keeping things firmly in place as Anthony Pirog on guitar started to duel with James Brandon Lewis on sax. Converging on the chaos of both jazz and punk, the band were sharp as knives, weaving in and out with epic precision that dazzled with every changing note. It's no wonder that, as far as I am aware, linking up with Lewis has made The Messthetics the only group to put out records on both Discord and Impulse! Like the intricacies of math rock and at times the minimal elements of post-rock, the band's dexterity was remarkable and their ability to riff off each other made it seem as if they'd been doing this for years. The pummeling intensity of hardcore was rampant throughout the set and Lewis' shredding saxophone only added to the band's already eclectic sound. With Lewis standing front and center, his wails often seem to fill in for a vocalist, his lyrical flairs dominating the musical conversation just before Pirog would cut in to add his ripping response. Eccentric finger tapping riled up the crowd and had the tiny room delivering massive cheers and shouts of enthusiasm as the audience rode along with the band's fiery passion. Both jazz and punk have always defied traditions and expectations and the marriage between Fugazi's drum and bass, proggy guitar, and spiraling free-jazz guitar combine for something that sound both completely new and exhilarating with all the nostalgia of music that has shaped life experiences. The intensity never flickered and for just over an hour they set forth on a scorching set, pumping with adrenaline as Lewis blared away on his saxophone like a the engine of a locomotive wailing ahead on its quest for a new frontier. An absolutely electrify evening, the room was brimming with ecstasy after each phenomenal number easily making for one of the more captivating and blistering sets of the year.
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