Ben, Harish
and Nate, long-time friends and collaborators, have known each other for quite
some time, and have found themselves side by side in many other groups (most
notably - Kneebody, with trumpeter/composer Shane Endsley). Collectively they
have appeared with Ignacio Berroa, Chaka Khan, Greg Osby, Vijay Iyer, Wayne
Krantz, Daedelus, Billy Childs, Ambrose Akinmusire, Eric Harland, Mark Turner,
and numerous others. Despite this plethora of outside opportunities, Ben,
Harish and Nate feel an enticing lure to perform and record as this compelling
trio. Wendel explains, "we've always had a great time as a trio and this
group has always felt like the no pressure/just-for-the-fun-of-it project.
After we recorded our first album years ago, we always assumed we would
document the group again in the future. For me, it's great to keep coming back
to this group and see how things have changed over the years." With the
release of ACT II, the trio moves to the head of the queue as one of the most
exciting bands on the scene.
ACT II was
recorded at The Pocantico Center/Rockefeller Brothers Fund, in Tarrytown, NY (a
connection made possible by Rio from The Jazz Gallery in NYC). "In the
dead of winter, we stayed in a beautiful home upstate and recorded/composed for
three days to make this album-it was a total blast," said Wendel.
"This record, along with our first, was recorded in one room with no
headphones. It's a very liberating way to record music as it gives the band a
natural blend, and the recording space becomes a phantom band member. It adds
to the familiarity of our musical relationship, and makes it very easy to make
full sounding music with just 3 people and no chordal component", said
Wood. Raghavan added that, "recording this CD was a unique experience;
going to a random house, not knowing what the space would sound like, writing,
and arranging and recording the record in three days. It was crazy, but also
inspiring, and we did every tune in one or two takes. Something about the
atmosphere was comforting, or maybe it was the band. Playing with Ben and Nate
is and has always been very natural. We've played together for almost a decade,
and months, even years, can pass between gigs, but there's always a familiarity
that's inspiring." Highlights on the recording include
"Unforeseeable", originally a duet for saxophone and trumpet that was
to be included in Wendel's acclaimed "Seasons Project". It sounds tailor-made for the trio, and Nate and Harish relish in
the driving, up-tempo groove in five. "Yes You" "is a new tune
that I've been trying a bit in Kneebody and thought would fit well in this
group," explained Wendel. With "Day and Night" we find a loose
adaptation of the standard "Night and Day"; a riveting departure that
has just enough of the original's elements to tease the ear and move the soul.
Grammy
nominated saxophonist Ben Wendel (born in Vancouver, raised in Los Angeles, and
currently living in Brooklyn) has enjoyed a varied career as a performer,
composer, producer and conductor. Highlights include multiple domestic and
international tours with artists such as Ignacio Berroa, Tigran Hamasyan,
Gerald Clayton, Eric Harland, Taylor Eigsti, Snoop Dogg and the artist formerly
known as Prince. Ben is a founding member of the Grammy nominated group
Kneebody, currently signed with Concord Records. As a composer, he has received
an ASCAP Jazz Composer Award, the 2008 and 2011 Chamber Music America "New
Works Grant" and most recently was awarded the Victor Lynch-Staunton award
by the Canada Council For The Arts. He also co-wrote the score for John
Krasinski's 2009 adaptation of David Foster Wallace's "Brief Interviews
With Hideous Men." Ben was honored to work with conductor Kent Nagano in
producing a series of concerts for the Festspiel Plus in Munich, Germany. Since
2008, he has produced a multi-genre performance series at the Broad Stage in
Santa Monica, California. Recently he was appointed the head of their Jazz and
Blues initiative, which will include producing and expanding performance
opportunities for these genres in Los Angeles. As part of this appointment, Ben
helped to create an artistic council with includes such luminaries as Quincy
Jones, Herb Alpert and Luciana Souza. Ben's recent producer work includes the
Grammy nominated album "Life Forum" for pianist Gerald Clayton on
Concord Records. Ben is a recording artist with Sunnyside Records and Concord
Records, with two solo albums under his belt, Simple Song (2009) and Frame
(2012), a duo project with French-American pianist Dan Tepfer entitled Small
Constructions (2013) and multiple Kneebody albums. A third solo album is
planned for release in 2015. Ben is a former Adjunct Professor of Jazz Studies
at USC and a current Adjunct at the New School in NYC. Educational outreach has
been a constant in his career with over 250 masterclasses at various colleges,
universities, high schools and also previous work with the LA Philharmonic
Artist Program. Ben had the honor of conducting a re-creation of "Bird
With Strings" at Jazz At The Lincoln Center with guests Charles McPherson and
Wes "Warm Daddy" Anderson.
Harish
Raghavan grew up in Northbrook, Illinois. At age 8 he began studying Western
and Indian percussion, and switched over to the double bass at 17. He was
accepted to study double bass at the University of Southern California. Since
moving to New York City he has quickly become a rising star on his instrument.
Grammy nominated Nate Wood is a drummer/multi-instrumentalist
and mastering engineer based in New York City. He is a founding member of the
Grammy nominated quintet Kneebody, which released their self-titled debut album
in 2005 on trumpeter Dave Douglas's label, Greenleaf Music. In 2007, Kneebody
released Low Electrical Worker on Colortone Media. They also completed an album
of arrangements of Charles Ives compositions with singer Theo Bleckmann and
released the recording 12 Songs of Charles Ives which was nominated for a
Grammy for "Best Classical Crossover Album". Kneebody's latest record
The Line was released on Concord Records in 2013.
In addition
to Kneebody, Nate has also performed or recorded with many notable artists
including Taylor Hawkins and the Coattail Riders, Dave Grohl, Brian May and
Roger Taylor (Queen), Chris Squire (Yes), Elliot Easton (The Cars), Chaka Khan,
Wayne Krantz, Billy Childs, Tigran Hamasyan, Donny McCaslin, Sting and many
others. Nate was featured in Modern Drummer in March of 2014, and placed in the
2015 Modern Drummer Magazine reader's poll among the top 5 drummers in his
category.
Along with
his work as a sideman, Nate has released 3 albums of his own material, where he
performed, recorded and mixed everything himself. His newest album
"Another Time" was released in July 2014. Nate also masters records
for artists from around the world (for an abbreviated list of credits.Nate is endorsed by
Gretsch Drums, Istanbul Agop Cymbals, Promark Sticks, Remo Drumheads, Gibraltar
Hardware, D'addario Strings, Aguilar Amplification and Moollon instruments.
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