The rhythm section of Fugazi and one of the most distinctive saxophonists in contemporary jazz are coming to Barcelona in November. The quartet The Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis will play their only Spanish concert on Friday, November 6, at the club Marula Café; it's a stop on the tour for the album Deface The Currency, released in February on the Impulse! label. Mondo Sonoro ↗
The Messthetics formed around bassist Joe Lally and drummer Brendan Canty — the duo that formed the core of Washington's Fugazi, one of the most influential bands in American post-hardcore and independent music altogether. They were joined by guitarist Anthony Pirog. Their music is entirely instrumental, and critics describe it as "jazz punk jam" — hardcore, rock, and free jazz meet in it without one yielding to the other.
James Brandon Lewis is an American saxophonist and composer who has built a reputation in recent years as one of the most sought-after names in contemporary jazz. He first met The Messthetics back in 2022 on the track Fear Not, released as a single on the Anti- label, and the collaboration continued with their joint album The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis in March 2024. The seven-track Deface The Currency is their second joint recording; it came together after a year during which the quartet played one hundred fifty concerts.
The Spanish magazine notes that this is music that "takes risks, experiments, and moves back and forth through improvisation" — a format where the live version is never a copy of the recording. Tickets are on sale at cap-cap.com. The quartet had previously played a series of four concerts in Spain, so part of the audience there knows what to expect. Mondo Sonoro ↗
On SuperMusic.cz, both names have just been added to the catalog of artists — The Messthetics is so far represented by the track Serpent Tongue, and James Brandon Lewis by the joint track Fear Not. For a band that doesn't sing, it's also a good reminder that an instrumental track can be listened to just as attentively as one with lyrics.
Illustrative photo: The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis at the Newport Jazz Festival. Photo: BanjoZebra / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0
Fugazi's rhythm section and saxophonist James Brandon Lewis are coming to Barcelona in November
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