Ah fuck it, I can't let Blogged Drainpipe die easily, because I'm pretty sure no one will be there for the funeral. Well if anyone's out there I got something for you. This month I have decided to review The Bad Plus' newest album For All I Care. The Bad Plus is a acoustic avant-garde jazz trio from the Midwest. Now that might not sound to exciting, but I assure you they kick ass and rock harder than most bands out there. Yeah that's right, these guys rock. The Bad Plus is a jazz group that is influenced by the likes of Rachmaninov and Nirvana just as much as they are influenced by the work of jazz musicians like Ornette Coleman. Since their debut in 2000, The Bad Plus have perhaps become best known for their pop repertoire, covering such rock songs as "Smells Like Teen Spirit", "Karma Police", "Iron Man", "Immigrant Song", and "Tom Sawyer". While they also compose their own pieces, For All I Care is their first all-covers album. On it they cover pieces by Pink Floyd, Wilco, The Flaming Lips, Milton Babbitt, and others.
The next notable difference between For All I Care is the presence of vocals. This time around The Bad Plus are joined by Minneapolis indie rocker Wendy Lewis, who has performed with several bands and worked with Andrew Bird.
There are several stand-out numbers on this record. The album starts out with a lurching version Nirvana's "Lithium". Lewis' vocals are laid lazily over a stretched-out beat (the band extended the lines of the song by adding half a beat, changing it from 4/4 to 5/8). The drunken feel fits perfectly with the song. "Long Distance Runaround" starts with a bit of a latin feel before progressing into a swing ballad. Next the band moves into a classical number, Milton Babbitt's Semi-Simple Variations, a jittery piece that darts around.
Overall, this is a good album. The band's interpretation of the songs are at most times faithful and interesting. The Bad Plus is a good group for the jazz novice and pop music fan.
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