The Bad Plus December 4, 2010

Described as "a jazz piano trio with the heart and gall of a stadium rock band" by The New York Times, The Bad Plus returns to San Francisco Performances with the rave-reviewed program from their latest CD release, "Never Stop," Saturday, Dec. 4 at the Herbst Theatre.

Bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson and drummer David King celebrate ten years of heady, powerful music-making-from ballads to abstract riffs. The Bad Plus has dazzled crowds at SF Performances, Yoshi's and SF Jazz, and returns to the city riding the momentum of this season's concert tour.

The Bad Plus started making waves in the jazz world when it first came together: The group's covers of classics by the Police, Rush, Black Sabbath, Neil Young, Radiohead, Bobbie Vinton and Nirvana are distinct, riotous and astounding.
This time, the songs are all their own, and they tell stories smartly and powerfully in works including "Bill Hickman at Home" and "My Friend Metatron." The SF Performances concert at the Herbst will give an intimate look into the many layers of their intrepid musical imagination.
"We don't approach it like, 'What does jazz have to offer 'Iron Man,'" Anderson said in an interview with Downbeat magazine, "It's just, how do we pass this music through the lens that is The Bad Plus and have it come out as something that we feel is a statement of beauty, a statement of art? We're not trying to have an ironic approach to the music. It's more like, how can we put ourselves into this music and give it a new perspective?"

The new perspective probes audiences' own artistic instincts and keep The Bad Plus on their widely-traveled course. This Dec. 4 appearance is the only Bay Area stop on the tour for "Never Stop." Tickets start at $30. Visit sfperformances.org or call 415.392.2545 for more information.

Official Website: http://www.sfperformances.org