Event Details
21+. 9pm.
Twin Talk:
Dustin Laurenzi - Reeds
Katie Ernst - Bass, vocals
Andrew Green - Drums
For over a decade, Chicago’s Twin Talk has steadily drifted from the conventions of the saxophone trio. While reedist Dustin Laurenzi, bassist-singer Katie Ernst, and drummer Andrew Green are deeply rooted in jazz tradition, they’ve spent their time on the band stage together making their music more elastic, spontaneous, and open, embracing new inspirations without stifling the improvisational heart of their work. All three musicians are active members in the city’s bustling jazz community, each playing in numerous working bands, but they’ve found a true collective voice as Twin Talk. They’ve used live performances as opportunities to stretch—expanding on composed material and ditching set lists in favor of calling tunes on the fly—but on their latest album Weaver they’ve pushed themselves further than ever, using the recording studio as a place for experimentation, letting a new batch of compositions develop and take new shapes. As critic Howard Reich wrote recently in the Chicago Tribune, “These musicians listen keenly to one another, and with a sensitivity that only comes from familiarity and trust.”
Steven Lugerner’s SLUGish:
Steven Lugerner - Bass Clarinet & Baritone Saxophone
Jim Tashijian - Guitar
Steve Blum - Synthesizer
TBA - Piano
Giulio Xavier Cetto - Bass
Michael Mitchell - Drums
Saxophonist and composer Steven Lugerner performs inventive music with his SLUGish Ensemble that blurs the lines between pop, indie rock, jazz improvisation & minimalism. An expert on a daunting menagerie of wind instruments including various clarinets and saxophones, the SF-raised multi-instrumentalist's compositions have been described as “a textured, nearly seamless blend of composition and improvisation” by The Village Voice - while the New York Times calls him “an impeccably trained multi-reedist," and the San Francisco Examiner as praised “Lugerner’s approach to making music is very much his own; and he seems to be pursuing it to impressive advantage.”