"Lewis, a player grounded in gospel and post-bop, grew increasingly adventurous in the years after delivering Divine Travels to Sony's revived OKeh imprint in 2014. He became a crucial part of New York's jazz and new-music community, where he met Anthony Pirog, an improvising guitarist who had teamed up with drummer Brendan Canty and bassist Joe Lally in their post- Fugazi project, the Messthetics."
"The deal with Impulse! Records placed the quartet in an avant-jazz lineage stretching back to John Coltrane and Archie Shepp. It brought Lewis back to the majors and conferred jazz bona fides upon Canty and Lewis, who had spent most of their musical lives at Dischord. The association with Impulse! also drew in listeners who might not have otherwise paid attention to an act on a rock-oriented indie, propelling the band on a tour through jazz festivals and clubs in America and Europe."
"Adhering to the time-honored credo \"cut it while it's hot,\" the Messthetics and Lewis rushed into the studio with engineer Don Godwin upon finishing their European tour. Those concerts transformed the group dynamic, thoroughly integrating Lewis into the Messthetics and distilling a chemistry that feels natural and unforced. Everything that's on the debut is here, only intensified: The funk is deeper, the noise harsher, the beauty richer."
The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis combined their distinct musical backgrounds—post-punk, gospel, and post-bop—into a cohesive quartet. Lewis's adventurous trajectory and role in New York's jazz and new-music scene intersected with Anthony Pirog's Messthetics, a project with Brendan Canty and Joe Lally. Signing to Impulse! Records linked the group to an avant-jazz lineage and expanded their audience, leading to jazz festival and club tours. Live performances solidified Lewis's integration into the band, prompting a quick studio session with engineer Don Godwin after their European run. The resulting album intensifies the group's sound: deeper funk, harsher noise, and richer beauty.
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