Return to Forever, Led Zeppelin, James Brown, Jaco Pastorius, Al Di Meola, Billy Cobham, Rush, Yes, The New Deal, Umphrees McGee, Bootyjuice, Parliament, Steely Dan, Schleigho, Chick Corea, Herbie Hancock and many more
On their debut recording, Vermont’s Badsuit accomplish the most difficult tasks facing improvisational musicians: bringing a genuine sense of spontaneity, comparable to their live performances into the often not-so friendly confines of the recording studio.
That the Burlington fusion trio surmount that challenge with such flair is all the more laudable since they leave themselves room to grow with tracks like the opener “The Gooseneck Appendage.” A couple resounding bass bombs or outright violent guitar shredding would extend the dynamic range of the recording (not to mention its playing time), but Kevin Stephens’ refusal to overplay can’t be applauded enough; the facile means by which he shifts from rhythmic to solo guitar parts seems less an example of overdubbing---though if it is, more kudos to producer Rob O’Dea—than a deft hand at his instrument.
Likewise bassist Alex Budney who, on the tranquil likes of “Wrong Way Gone,” displays his debt to Jaco Pastorius without patent imitation of the late bassist’s sound. Budney concentrates on playing within the ensemble, offering straight lines or quick turns as the interaction and/or the composition demands. Likewise drummer Tim Sharbaugh, whose understated but intricate intro to “Levanter” is the one instance where he proffers some obvious panache, still without calling attention to himself.
To be sure, it’s left-handed compliment to praise Badsuit for not falling prey to the egoistic pretensions of fusion pioneers like Return to Forever or the Mahavishnu Orchestra, but it’s nonetheless appropriate. The brevity of the album, containing five cuts clocking in at a little over a half-hour, may beg the question of how prolific the threesome are as composers. But the fact of the matter is neither Stevens, Budney or Sharbaugh play or write with an iota of selfish flash. On the contrary they display maturity beyond their years in terms of both their musicianship and their arranging skills.
Bad Suit, Bad Suit
Album Review
By Dan Bolles [04.16.08]
(Self-released, CD)
When is a jam band not a jam band? When it’s a progressive-funk band, of course! Or a jazz-funk band. Or a reggae-rock-hip-hop-jazz-fusion- klezmer-polka-swing-flamenco-funk band. Or a . . . well, you get the idea. As the term “jam” has become something of a four-letter word, more and more bands attempt to mask their noodly inclinations with hyphenated genre descriptors. But in the case of Burlington’s Bad Suit, “prog-funk” is anything but subterfuge. Rather, it’s a fitting description of the inventive blend of instrumental rock found on the trio’s self-titled studio debut. When is a jam band not a jam band? When it’s Bad Suit.
The disc gets underway with “Gooseneck Appendage,” fueled by a swirling opening guitar riff courtesy of Kevin Stevens and doubled by bassist Alex Budney. The tune sets a laid-back but driving groove, ultimately giving way to a nifty double-time bridge. Under the precise polyrhythmic command of drummer Tim Sharbaugh, the band alternates between the two feels several times before bringing it all back around to close on the opening riff.
“Wrong Way Gone” begins as a meandering, low-key, guitar-driven affair, with Budney quite literally chiming in with tasteful bass harmonics. But as quickly as the listener settles into the tune’s playfully ethereal textures, the band unceremoniously switches gears, math-rock style. I spent a good 20 minutes trying to figure out the time signatures here and I’m still stumped. It’s deceptively intricate. Thankfully, for meter-challenged folks like myself, the band closes out the tune with a good old-fashioned 4/4 romp.
As previously noted, Bad Suit labels itself as “progressive-funk” and, more than any number on the disc, “Inside Out” bears out this designation. Generally, the band falls on the proggier end of the spectrum. But here Budney becomes unleashed, laying down some seriously funkified bass lines. True to form, the players once again mix it up structurally. This time it turns into my favorite moment on the disc, as Stevens delivers a series of lines recalling the psychedelic surf ramblings of The Mermen.
“Levanter” is the jammiest cut on the record and my least favorite. Where the previous tunes — and album closer “Sometime” — find the band exhibiting tactful taste and restraint, here we get an earful of wah-pedal wankery. Call it a personal bias, but the song does a disservice to an otherwise fine recording.
BIOGRAPHY:
The firestorm of invention that was jazz-rock fusion music of the Seventies resonates today in the music of Burlington Vermont’s innovative trio Badsuit. This trio sounds a resounding charge for the genre in an already vibrant music scene, slowly but surely making a place for themselves and promising to widen their prominence—not to mention their audience-- the longer they play.
Badsuit are not novices by any means though. The group, consisting of Tim Sharbaugh on drums and percussion, Kevin Stevens on guitars and Alex Budney on basses, coalesced from the remains of fusion forebears The Perfect Sandwich. That band itself the descendant of the Queen City fusion music legend Chakrabarty Overdrive, invited the chemistry now in play between Sharbaugh, Stevens and Budney whose range of roots are broad enough to include the logical influences (Return to Forever, Jeff Beck and Billy Cobham) as well as those that lend a genuinely earthy element (Parliament and James Brown) to a style of music all too intellectual at times in its history.
Within this eclectic mix, Badsuit manage to avoid the pitfalls of pretension and self-indulgence in pure technique that plagued fusion at its pinnacle. We can only hope more recordings, in more configurations, are disseminated soon, but in the meantime,
Samples of their closely-bonded musicianship available on the web (http://www.myspace.com/badsuit display the virtues intrinsic to the aforementioned chemistry of the threesome.
Sharbaugh, Stevens and Budney move through the airy melody “Sometime” by a rhythm that alternates in time out of time and from instrument to instrument. Each of these men is of a single mind as well as his own.
Similarly, the deliberate pace of “Wrong Way Gone” allows Badsuit to interact instrumentally as if in a ballet. This track in and of itself confirms the distinct impression that, as schooled as these three are in the art of fusion past, they no long owe a debt to the likes of Herbie Hancock or Chick Corea.
“Inside Out” find Badsuit collectively fleet afoot, the arrangement further showcasing a band of consummate professionals. Stevens, Budney and Sharbaugh respect each other and the music, displaying both empathy and authority in equal measure.
Badsuit’s ambition is as resolute as their musicianship is vibrant. Accordingly, they have the courage to cover “Achilles Last Stand.” one of the most distinct entries in the Led Zeppelin discography; Budney, Sharbaugh and Stevens have clearly mastered the quick changes in the composition and navigate them so adeptly they create a challenge for themselves as well as their listeners.
The experience is an altogether joyous one, not the academic likes of fusion era in its prime where lessons in complexity robbed the music and its musicians—and by extension their listeners-- of all heart. On the contrary, Badsuit reach for those musical heights that illustrate, in no uncertain term, how great is the art of music and how inclusive that experience can be.
- By Doug Collette.
Doug Collette has written about rock and roll, jazz and the blues for over twenty five years. He is a regular columnist and contributor to State of Mind Music in print and on-line (www.stateofmindmusic.com) and is also a senior reviewer and columnist for the internet resource All About Jazz (www.allaboutjazz.com). You can visit DC's own site on the web at www.myspace.com/backitupontheweb
kick ass, your music makes me want to eat the skin off of someone's face, and then puke it up and wear it as my own face, so keep rocking;] Hope to roll with you on some concerts!
so happy to see that write up in seven days and hear you guys got an album together. i havent been in the area for a while, but you are all in my heart! i am going to send the clipping down to josh in arizona. lots of love... stay gold!
Never thought I could miss a sound so much- reaffirms my love of pure music. Austin is waiting... absolutely nothing like you here and I think were ready...
is the new album going to be available outside of the show at nectar's on the 18th? im under 21 so i can't get in, but i want to buy a copy very badly :(.
Can not wait for the 1st.. The Silver Grift Suit will fit so snug in the pants that it causes anyone who looks at it to go into sexual convulsions.. much like the one presented here by tom jones..
Hey What up fellas!! The tunes are KILLIN! so freaking smooth. Alex is a beast on that bass. Things are going awesome with The Breakfast too, cant wait to check you guys out again
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