Ballister

ABOUT

This free-wheeling trio first came together at a closed session in 2009, and as any fan of improvised music can imagine, the band hit hard from the first note and hasn’t looked back since. The unabashed energy of Rempis and Nilssen-Love, coupled with the electrified cello antics of Lonberg-Holm, make for a powerful listening experience that combines driving grooves with noisy textures and occasional melodic interjections. These sliding and overlapping rhythms often give the music a feeling as if a rug is slowly being pulled out from underneath the listener while the music still maintains a strong forward momentum. Reference points include the Julius Hemphill groups of the 70's and 80's featuring Abdul Wadud, Ornette Coleman's Prime Time, and the early-70's explorations of Miles Davis' electric bands.

The band currently has eleven releases under its belt, including Bastard String (self-released, 2010) Mechanisms (Clean Feed Records, 2012) Mi Casa es en Fuego (self-released, 2013),  Both Ends (Bocian Records, 2014, LP only), Worse For The Wear (Aerophonic Records, 2015) and The Ballister Monologues (Astral Spirits, 2015, cassette only/limited edition). Slag (2017), Low Level Stink (Dropa Disc, 2017), Znachki Stilyag (Aerophonic Records, 2020) and Chrysopoiea (Not Two, 2022), and Smash and Grab (Aerophonic Records, 2024, limited edition vinyl / cd). They’ve also toured both North America and Europe extensively in that time.

LISTEN

PHOTOS

RECORDINGS

VIDEOS

PRESS

Ballister is named after a crossbow, and they put a premium on aggression. There’s a freshness and sense of discovery in their wide-ranging music.  But there’s also a deep and hard-earned understanding between these players which enables them to build tension to the point of shattering, and then surf gracefully upon the shards.    -Bill Meyer DOWNBEAT MAGAZINE

Let’s hope that those who were at the Hideout in Chicago on June 16th of last year have sufficiently recovered in the meantime, because based on this live recording, they must at least have had their eyebrows scorched off.  -Guy Peters FREEJAZZ.ORG

As with all excellent improvisation, the process is seamless, whether the trio is intertwining the cellist’s electronics with the drummer’s ride cymbal or whether they are burning up the stage to some old school energy jazz. The illusion created here is of controlled chaos where themes emerge from the wall of energy and the band directs the current.  -Mark Corrotto ALLABOUTJAZZ

Ballister might start with the question,” what do we do with all this energy?” Rage, yes; but there is more…. The trio burns, but not for the sake of combustion. In between the uproar is the meat, the viscera, and the heart of sound. This trio finds beauty in the maelstrom.   -The New York City Jazz Record