Description
The Bad Plus’ eleventh studio recording IT’S HARD sees the leaderless trio – bassist Reid Anderson, pianist Ethan Iverson, and drummer David King – returning to the distinctive deconstruction of pop forms that drew their first international attention almost two decades ago. Recorded this past April at NYC’s Brooklyn Recording with longtime engineer Pete Rende (Joshua Redman, Bill McHenry), the album spans both era and inspiration as The Bad Plus offer new perspectives on classic songs from the 1970s to the 2010s. While the four most recent Bad Plus albums have focused on predominantly original material, IT’S HARD showcases the leaderless trio’s inimitable gift for intrepid and audacious interpretation. A lyrical take on Crowded House’s “Don’t Dream It’s Over” stands alongside the motorik futurism of Kraftwerk’s “The Robots” and the post-millennial indie creativity of the Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ “Maps” and TV On The Radio’s “Staring At The Sun,” altering pop, prog rock, country, psychedelia, and more via an unmatched gift for wit, harmonic innovation and rhythmic brilliance.
