MARS WILLIAMS/KENT KESSLER/PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE TRIO – January 7, 7:30 p.m.

Mars Willams/Kent Kessler/Paal Nilssen-Love Trio (Set 2)

and BOBBY AVEY/SAMUEL BLASER DUO (set 1)

January 7, 2011
The Project Lodge (817 E. Johnson St. Madison)
7:30 p.m.

$10 at door

MARS WILLIAMS/KENT KESSLER/PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE TRIO

MARS WILLIAMS

Mars plays with Kent Kessler and Paal Nilssen-Love at The Project Lodge on January 7, 2011

Mars Williams is an open-minded musician, composer and educator who commutes easily between free jazz, funk, hip-hop and rock, Mars has played and recorded with The Psychedelic Furs, Billy Idol, Massacre (the Fred Frith/Bill Laswell group), Ministry, Power Station, Die Warzau, The Waitresses, Pete Cosey, Billy Squier, DJ Logic, John Scoffield, Charlie Hunter, Kurt Elling, Mike Clark, Gerry Garcia, Friendly Fires and virtually every leading figure of New York City’s “downtown” scene.

John Zorn credits Mars as “one of the true saxophone players–someone who takes pleasure in the sheer act of blowing the horn. This tremendous enthusiasm is an essential part of his sound, and it comes through each note every time he plays. Whatever the situation, Mars plays exciting music. In many ways he has succeeded in redefining what versatility means to the modern saxophone player.”

In 2001 Mars received a Grammy Nomination for Best Contemporary Jazz Record with his group Liquid Soul.

Despite his busy touring schedule with Liquid Soul and The Psychedelic Furs, Mars manages to stay active on the Chicago underground improvising scene. In recent years he has toured and recorded with the Peter Brötzmann Tentet, Full Blast Trio, the Vandermark 5, and Cinghiale, teaming him with such musicians as Ken Vandermark, Hamid Drake, Michael Zerang, William Parker, Kent Kessler, Fredric Lonberg Holm, Peter Brotzmann, Joe McFee, and Matts Gustafson. He performs weekly in Chicago along with Jim Baker, Steve Hunt, and Brian Sandstrom in the improvising quartet “Extraordinary Popular Delusions”.  As a bandleader, he continues to perform and record CDs with his own free-jazz groups, the NRG Ensemble, Witches & Devils, Slam, XmarsX, Mars Trio and The Soul Sonic Circus which features improvising musicians and aerial circus performers.

KENT KESSLER

Kent Kessler plays with Mars Williams and Paal Nilssen-Love at the Project Lodge on January 7, 2011

Kent Kessler, born in Crawfordsville, Indiana, grew up mostly in Chicago. After seeing the Montreaux Festival on television in 1970 he became interested in jazz. Kent studied musique concrete at Chicago Musical College in the period from 1977-1983, playing in various punk rock and free-improv groups in Chicago and taking time off to wander in Brazil. Kessler started concentrating on the double bass, after having played trombone, guitar, electric bass, short-wave radio and various other instruments and non-instruments. He joined the Hal Russell NRG Ensemble in 1985. Kent gained his first international experience when the group went on to record for ECM and tour in Europe. In the 1990′s Kessler became better known as a frequent bandmate of Ken Vandermark. He has kept the trans-Atlantic connection by playing in groups led by Georg Graewe, Peter Brötzmann and Daniele D’Agaro, and performing with many other European improvisors. Kent has a solo CD on Okkadisk, “Bull Fiddle,” and appears on dozens of other recordings.

PAAL NILSSEN-LOVE

Paal plays with Mars Williams and Kent Kessler at the Project Lodge on January 7, 2011

Norwegian phenom Paal Nilssen-Love has established himself over the last decade as one of the most important voices in improvised music from his generation.  A powerful drummer of unbounded energy, he shows an ongoing ability to break physical and musical boundaries on his continual hunt for new collaborations and experiences.  Currently, Nilssen-Love is active with musicians such as Mats Gustafsson, Peter Brotzmann, Ken Vandermark, Evan Parker, Sten Sandell, Otomo Yoshihide and Frode Gjerstad. Some of the world-renowned groups he performs with include The Thing, Atomic, Brotzmann/Kondo/Pupillo/Nilssen-Love, and TheVandermark/Nilssen-Love Duo

BOBBY AVEY/SAMUEL BLASER DUO

Trombonist Samuel Blaser and pianist Bobby Avey perform original compositions bathed in the 20th century milieu of Bartok and Messiaen, with improvisation playing a heavy role in the fabric of the music.

~ by Surrounded by Reality Jazz on January 6, 2011.