Album Review: Brennan Connors, Seth Andrew Davis, Jakob Heinemann and Evan Verploegh- Alchemy of Stone and Star

February 23, 2025 William Brownlee

“That’s Not Art, That’s Not Music”, the title of Lonnie Holley’s rancorous new single, is a phrase I’ve encountered while sharing my enthusiasm for sounds made by members of Kansas City’s The Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society.

Alchemy of Stone and Star, a live 2023 recording released four months ago, won’t win over listeners for whom free jazz is anathema. Yet the freewheeling collaboration of guitarist Seth Andrew Davis and drummer Evan Verploegh of Kansas City with the northern Midwest saxophonist Brennan Connors and bassist Jakob Heinemann is riveting.

Inventive interactions between Davis and Verploegh in the 19-minute “Decoding the Maps” achieve transcendence. Connors’ maturity is a revelation while Heinemann brings cohesiveness to the exceptionally artful music.

The Top Performances of 2024

December 8, 2024 William Brownlee

Original image of Seth Davis, Kwan Leung Ling, Aaron Osborne and Evan Verploegh at 7th Heaven by Plastic Sax.

The Top Jazz Performances of 2024 by Kansas City Musicians
1. Peter Schlamb at the Ship
Plastic Sax review.

2. Rev. Dwight Frizzell’s Bridge at Charlotte Street Foundation
Instagram clip.

3. Rev. Dwight Frizzell’s Heliophonie at Charlotte Street Foundation
Plastic Sax review.

4. Steve Cardenas, Forest Stewart and Brian Steever at Westport Coffee House
Plastic Sax review.

5. WireTown at Green Lady Lounge
Instagram clip.

6. Seth Davis, Kwan Leung Ling, Aaron Osborne and Evan Verploegh at 7th Heaven
Instagram clip.

7. Jackie Myers, Matt Otto and Bob Bowman at the Market at Meadowbrook
Instagram snapshot.

8. Alber at Charlotte Street Foundation
Instagram snapshot.

9. Ernest Melton, Parker Woolworth, Jordan Faught and Jalen Ward at In the Lowest Ferns
Plastic Sax review.

10. Rod Fleeman Trio at Green Lady Lounge
Instagram clip.

The Top Performances of 2024 by Touring Musicians
1. Makaya McCraven at Liberty Hall
Plastic Sax review.

2. Trond Kallevåg at the Folk Alliance International Conference
Instagram clip.

3. David Lord at Farewell
Plastic Sax review.

4. Willow at the T-Mobile Center
There Stands the Glass review.

5. Trap Jazz at Concourse Park
Instagram clip.

6. Mike Baggetta and Peter DiStefano at the Ship
There Stands the Glass review.

7. Damon Smith at Westport Coffee House
Instagram clip.

8. Phill Smith and Kyle Jessen at Charlotte Street Foundation
Instagram clip.

9. Síomha at the Kansas City Irish Festival
Instagram clip.

10. David Menestres at the Bunker Center for the Arts
Instagram snapshot.

Last year’s survey is here.

Album Review: Zachary Barthelman and Evan Verploegh- Sound/Color

September 29, 2024 William Brownlee

The back of my head is pictured in a photograph documenting Sonic Youth’s appearance at the Outhouse in Lawrence, Kansas, on November 5, 1986. The seminal band’s performance in the dank space altered my understanding of music. I’ve been chasing that high ever since.

The impactful evening confirmed my suspicion that the standard distinctions used to divide genres are unnatural. I’ve since embraced a multitude of sounds without reservation. Zachary Barthelman and Evan Verploegh have similarly expansive perspectives. The locally based duo disregard stylistic boundaries on Sound/Color.

Although he’s an indie-rock enthusiast, guitarist Barthelman channels the aggressiveness of the early recordings by the jazz fusion master John McLaughlin on Sound/Color’s two 26-minute tracks. Verploegh, arguably Kansas City’s most exciting drummer, echoes the sensitivity and power of Billy Cobham.

Alternately noisy and tranquil, Sound/Color erases the tenuous lines between post-rock and free jazz. The liberation I experienced 38 years ago at the Outhouse is revived every time I queue up Sound/Color.

Concert Review: David Lord at Farewell

March 17, 2024 William Brownlee

Getting a handle on the music of David Lord isn’t easy. The Wichita based guitarist showcases a unique conception on his 2023 album Forest Standards, Vol. 3. Is Lord filtering John Fahey through Ornette Coleman’s harmolodics? Elsewhere, he sounds like James “Blood” Ulmer interpreting Claude Debussy.

Lord echoed Thelonious Monk in a solo outing at Farewell on Saturday, March 9. Thorny and agitated, Lord’s hermetic approach resists categorization. Reverent members of an audience of 25 who paid a $10 admission charge seemed certain that Lord is among today’s most important artists.

Wearing a Depeche Mode shirt, V.Vecker preceded Lord with a mesmerizing set in which he looped riffs from his saxophone to construct swirling sonic monoliths. The evening began with the jagged power trio of Seth Andrew Davis, Aaron Osborne and Evan Verploegh.

Album Review: Brandon Cooper, Seth Andrew Davis, Krista Kopper, Evan Verploegh and Drew Williams- Compressed Space

October 29, 2023 William Brownlee

An adventurous outing in the courtyard of Charlotte Street Foundation on May 18, 2022, was one of the most memorable performances presented by the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society. Ten days later, many of the same Kansas City musicians recorded Compressed Space. The document is even better than the concert. The improvisations of Drew Williams (woodwinds), Seth Andrew Davis (guitar and electronics), Krista Kopper (double bass), Brandon Cooper (drums and percussion) and Evan Verploegh (drums and percussion) range from pristine quietude to atomizing skronk.

Concert Review: Alan Voss Quartet at Swope Park Pavilion

September 24, 2023 William Brownlee

Original image of Alan Voss’ quartet at Swope Park Pavillion by Plastic Sax.

A tricked out red sedan blaring Public Enemy’s “Don’t Believe the Hype” cruised past Swope Park Pavilion during a performance by a quartet led by Alan Voss on Sunday, September 18.

Chuck D’s reference to John Coltrane in the rap anthem caused the sonic intrusion to intensify my blissful state. Few things could be better than hearing vital improvisations on an idyllic day at a spectacular venue.

The faithful rendering of Voss’ Baobab affirmed the reference to Steve Cardenas in my review of the album. Furthermore, I realized that Voss shares Pat Metheny’s melodic sensibility.

As on the 2023 recording, Voss’ vision was expertly facilitated by the multi-generational lineup of saxophonist Benjamin Baker, bassist Forest Stewart and drummer Evan Verploegh.

Sadly, there wasn’t much hype to disbelieve. A stray hound, a few fans, several musicians who had performed earlier and a drug dealer and his clientele heard what Chuck D and I might characterize as def jams.

Concert Review: Dan Clucas at World Culture KC

September 10, 2023 William Brownlee

Original image of Dan Clucas, Seth Davis and Shante Clair at World Culture KC by Plastic Sax.

Established jazz clubs occupy hallowed grounds for devotees of improvised music. The venues are more essential than ever. Due to ongoing attrition, however, many of the most rewarding performances are increasingly transpiring in unconventional settings.

A sextet played compelling new music on the porch of a home known as World Culture KC in Kansas City on Monday, September 4. The droning of cicadas, the buzz of aircraft and the lonesome whistles of trains accentuated the outing.

The event was a forum for the Los Angeles based Dan Clucas. The multi-instrumentalist has recording credits on albums by artists ranging from guitar hero Nels Cline to the rock band the BellRays. His most recent release is a harsh “hypothetical meeting between trumpeter Fats Navarro and drummer Peeter Uuskyla.”

Representatives of the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society (EMAS)- guitarists Shanté Clair and Seth Davis, harpist Brooke Knoll, bassist and electronics manipulator Aaron Osborne and drummer Evan Verploegh- deferred to their guest. Poor sightlines for the handful of attendees made it unclear which of the musicians adeptly echoed Clucas’ trumpet and violin riffs.

Ideally suited to the informal setting, the gently anarchic and carefully considered chaos might not have fared as well in a conventional jazz club. Thanks in large part to the scrappy persistence of EMAS, Kansas City’s position on the cutting edge of the international jazz map is being reasserted.

Concert Review: Eli Wallace at Stray Cat Film Center

July 30, 2023 William Brownlee

Pity the piano that was delivered to Stray Cat Film Center for a performance by Eli Wallace on Monday, July 24. After enduring a move in extreme heat, the instrument was mercilessly poked and prodded by the Brooklyn based pianist.

Wallace’s 20-minute solo improvisation was as vehemently athletic. The prepared piano attack sounded as if ragtime piano rolls had grown sentient roots and branches after being stored in a dark, wet basement for more than a century. Several people paid $10 to experience the uncommon sounds.

The extraordinary exhibition illuminated only by an exit sign and a red light bulb on the floor was preceded by a brisk improvisation by saxophonist Benjamin Baker, guitarist Seth Davis, multi-instrumentalist Aaron Osborne and drummers Kevin Cheli and Evan Verploegh.

The most transfixing moments transpired when Davis and Cheli joined Wallace. The spell cast by the trio’s considered investigations was broken as the remainder of the ensemble gradually joined the improvisation. The beleaguered piano was buried under a dense heap of noise.

Concert Review: Rob Magill and Marshall Trammell at Farewell

July 16, 2023 William Brownlee

Farewell, a scrappy rock club near the Truman Sports Complex, hosted three differing sets of improvised music on Tuesday, July 11. More than fifty people passed in and out of the venue, but it’s unclear how many of them paid the $10 cover charge to hear the varied sounds.

The touring duo of saxophonist Rob Magill and drummer Marshall Trammell were the featured attraction. While the comparison is unfair to the tandem, I experienced their ferocious thirty minute set as an elegy to Peter Brötzmann. The German saxophonist who died last month specialized in the bracing form of free jazz rendered by the duo.

Joined by Alex Mallett on bass, keyboard and electronics, the trumpeter and electronic artist Alber opened the evening with a groovy update on acid jazz. The best moments evoked the ambience of a trendy cafe in Alber’s native Italy.

Three representatives of the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society performed last. Flanked by bassist Krista Kopper and multi-instrumentalist Aaron Osborne, drummer Evan Verploegh annihilated eardrums one moment and whispered through his fingertips the next.

Concert Review: Devin Gray, Maria Elena Silva and EMAS at Firehouse Gallery #8

June 25, 2023 William Brownlee

A downtown art gallery was transformed into an emporium for vital new music on Wednesday, June 21. Nine musicians represented compelling slices of the vanguard of sound in 2023.

The peripatetic drummer Devin Gray’s new release Most Definitely includes a 20-minute homage to free jazz legend Milford Graves. In keeping with that pursuit, his solo outing demonstrated even further possibilities in percussion.

Segments of his often unhuman attack seemed as if a Jolly Chimp had been infected by an evil strain of artificial intelligence. At other moments his electronically-enhanced performance sounded like an Antifa rally outside the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

The noirish music of vocalist and electric guitarist Maria Elena Silva and drummer Scott Dean Taylor evoked the disquieting moments preceding and following bouts of bloodcurdling violence. The unresolved tension was exquisitely excruciating.

Six affiliates of the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society- Drew Williams (saxophone), Seth Davis (guitar), Brook Knoll (harp), Aaron Osborne (electronics and percussion), Krista Kopper (bass) and Evan Verploegh (drums)- built imposing walls of noise.

Davis summoned the pinging of sonar, an effect that prompted thoughts of the ill-fated submarine in the Atlantic Ocean currently dominating the news cycle. The size of the audience may have been negligible, but the import of the music was monumental.

Album Review: Alan Voss Quartet- Baobab

March 12, 2023 William Brownlee

Alan Voss recognizes that louder isn’t better. The Kansas City guitarist plays with subtle restraint on Baobab. Opting for contemplative elegance on a debut album is a bold artistic choice during an era dominated by brash volume. His affinity for quietude makes Voss an artistic descendent of the one-time Kansas City guitarist Steve Cardenas. The impression is enhanced by the contributions of bassist Forest Stewart, a frequent Cardenas collaborator. Baobab also features saxophonist Benjamin Baker and drummer Evan Verploegh. Hearing the two fiery musicians in a subdued context is intriguing. The quartet’s circumspect interaction is the most rewarding element of the serene Baobab.

Albums Review: Torches Mauve- Volume One and Volume Two

March 5, 2023 William Brownlee

The recording quality of Volume One and its slightly superior companion Volume Two, albums released by Torches Mauve on February 17, is astounding. Listeners with good equipment will have the uncanny sensation that they can reach out and touch guitarist Seth Davis and drummer Evan Verploegh. Whether or not that sonic immediacy is desirable is another matter. Anyone with an appreciation of noisy jazz-rock guitar innovators like Vernon Reid and Andy Summers will appreciate Davis’ virulent shredding. Free jazz enthusiasts will find Verploegh’s evocation of drummers such as Ronald Shannon Jackson and Tony Williams similarly invigorating. Everyone else is likely to be horrified by the sonic proximity to the Kansas City duo’s wild-eyed outbursts.

Faux Fest

January 8, 2023 William Brownlee

Original image of Brian Haas and Mike Dillon at the Brick by Plastic Sax.

I attended a cutting-edge jazz festival in Kansas City on Wednesday, January 4. What’s that? You didn’t know about the event? Well, since Kansas City hasn’t hosted a proper jazz festival in five years, I’ve taken to curating one-night festivals for myself.

On Wednesday I spent five hours at three venues taking in an immensely rewarding blend of touring and locally based artists. The faux festival got off to a rough start at Westport Coffee House ($10 cover). When guitarist Seth Andrew Davis thanked members of the audience for attending, the Bay Area keyboardist Scott R. Looney sneered “three people!”

The other musicians seemed to brush off Looney’s disappointment in the turnout. Looney, Davis and the New York based percussionist Kevin Cheli began by playing what sounded like devilish variations on the cartoon music of Raymond Scott.

Looney, bassist Krista Kopper and drummer Evan Verploegh toyed with extreme dynamics in the second set. In staving off mere anarchy by holding the center, Kopper was the most valuable contributor to a third set featuring all five musicians. The first stage of the festival concluded with an improvisation on what may have been an inverse version of Miles Davis’ “All Blues.”

The second phase of the bespoke festival transpired at Green Lady Lounge ($5 cover). I joined about 75 revelers for a set by OJT, the popular venue’s de facto house band. Seated directly behind drummer Sam Platt, my appreciation of the ways in which guitarist Brian Baggett and organist Ken Lovern apply their roots in rock to update the organ jazz trio tradition was strengthened.

Funkadelick headlined the fake fest at the Brick ($10 cover). Drummer Nikki Glaspie had the night off, so the peripatetic Mike Dillon and Brian Haas, the keyboardist best known for his groundbreaking work with Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey, operated as a duo for most of their nearly two-hour set.

Dillon manned his expansive rig like punk-jazz’s answer to Carl Palmer as he and Haas interpreted the entirety of the forthcoming album Inflorescence. The tandem was later joined in musical roughhousing by guest drummer Arnold Young. A violent interpolation of the Stooges’ proto-punk classic “I Wanna Be Your Dog” typified the raucous attack.

Drawn to the pocket-size stage like a moth to a flame, I posted up front and center for most of the riveting performance. The approximately 50 people seated behind me couldn’t have been pleased that I obstructed their sightlines. I didn’t care. After all, it was my festival.

The Plastic Sax People of the Year: Seth Davis and Evan Verploegh

December 25, 2022 William Brownlee

Original image of Evan Verploegh and Seth Davis by Plastic Sax.

A Kansas City jazz musician complained about what he perceived as a lack of performance opportunities during an otherwise satisfactory set in a prominent club earlier this year. In creating an entirely new scene for clangorous improvised music, Seth Andrew Davis and Evan Verploegh have proven that there’s no excuse for such woebegone resignation.

While their sound isn’t yet welcome at most conventional Kansas City venues, Davis, Verploegh and their colleagues in the Extemporaneous Music and Arts Society (EMAS) possess an admirable enthusiasm for playing in punk clubs, record stores, coffee shops, arts centers and private residences in North America and Europe.

The do-it-yourself attitude may be born out of necessity, but it’s precisely the sort of nonpartisan engagement that’s more conducive to a flourishing future for improvised music than institutional hermeticism. Many of the collective’s performances- Live in London and Badger State Games among them- are promptly made available at Bandcamp.

The albums are among the more than two dozen live and studio recordings released by members of EMAS in 2022. With an impressive list of gigs already on next year’s calendar, the collective’s catalog should continue to rapidly expand.

A few of the recordings feature the notable touring artists they bring to Kansas City. Visiting collaborators in 2022 included Phillip Greenlief and Josh Sinton. These events vastly improved the lives of Kansas City’s free jazz enthusiasts. Davis and Verploegh, consequently, are Plastic Sax’s People of the Year.

The previous recipients of the designation are Rod Fleeman (2021), Charlie Parker (2020), Logan Richardson (2019), Peter Schlamb (2018), John Scott (2017), Eddie Moore (2016), Larry Kopitnik (2015), Deborah Brown (2014), Stan Kessler (2013), Doug and Lori Chandler (2012), Jeff Harshbarger (2011), Mark Lowrey (2010) and Hermon Mehari (2009). Bobby Watson was named the Plastic Sax Person of the Decade in 2009 and again in 2019.