November AOTM #1: III by BADBADNOTGOOD

Album of the Month: III - BADBADNOTGOOD

BADBADNOTGOOD made their name in the early 2010's with their brand of dark, murky jazz-fusion-meets-instrumental-hip-hop. Their first two records lean heavily on this instrumental hip hop influence, almost to the degree where it edges out their jazz fusion basis. BBNG and BBNG2 are dark in a way not dissimilar to many darker electronic records, with a strongly urban, mechanical, almost disturbed atmosphere. III broke from that trend, with what was their most solidly jazz based record at the time, steeped in a softer, nocturnal darkness.

On the whole, jazz records can sometimes struggle with atmosphere and ambiance-- either being too hectic, intense, or frankly interesting to fully settle, or being far too mellow and complacent to engage the listener. III doesn't necessarily boast anything too special in chops or production, it's a competently arranged and performed jazz record which inexplicably hits all the right notes to create balanced listening experience. This is a record which can be enjoyed from your peripheral, but which gently requests the listeners attention through stylistic variation and strong melodic hooks.

The Canadian fusion group was at the time formed of Matthew Tavares on keys, Alexander Sowinski on drums, and Chester Hansen on bass, guitar, and sampler; all three were composers and arrangers on III. In this way BBNG really do feel like a jazz band, and this feeling plays excellently with their electronic and hip hop influences. All across III you can find song structures which don't conform to the traditional AABA, or similar forms familiar in jazz, where the instrumentalist trade off duties soloing and bridging to the repeated melodic sections. Take "Can't Leave the Night" as an example: the track plays out with melodic trip hop grooves over a trap beat only accentuated by the band's syncopated, technical playing.

Another track which bucks expectation is "Kaleidoscope", which gradually shifts its attention from smooth key melodies to distorted, fat bass solos into a vigorous instrumental interchange between bass, keys, and drums churning with a seismic feel which seems to tire itself out to a stuttering collapse, then it all falls back into place as the main melody returns in a triumphant finish. The emphatically weird and intimidating "Eyes Closed" follows and builds to another massive climax through ghostly post-rock guitar and a tense organ backdrop, allowing the soft-yet-clattering bass and intricate drums to work their magic in racketing up the rhythm over a constant harmonic foreground.

III also features the saxophone of frequent collaborator and later band member Leland Whitty, most prominent on "Confessions": an extended, soothing post-bop solo playing over the soft, head-nodding rhythm section. I also love the keys on this track, a dense cascade of piano which fills in the cracks of Whitty's horn and the descending bass line. The closer "CS60" opens with a similarly soothing sound, incorporating a delicate atmosphere and a tense string section before building out into another fusion of intricate drums and trap beats.

On the whole I find this album most impressive for how digestible each track is while maintaining an individual identity through hooks and melody. Structurally many of the tracks are constructed around gradually building climaxes and an ebb-and-flow of tension from intense rhythms and taut synth, string, and guitar parts. All the while the core drums, bass, and keys do an excellent job at working alongside one another to form a lush soundscape, but are also each distinct with some standout moments from each.

-Paul Taylor

(Assistant News Director at WXOU)