PLAISTOW - POST JAZZ TRIO It is difficult to imagine how Plaistow are able to play together. The classic Trio format stands in harsh contrast with the diametrically opposed interests of the three musicians: the drummer's jazz feeling, the metal energy of the bassist and the electro attitude of the piano player. Cyril Bondi (dr) and Raphaël Ortis (b) are both Geneva born and have explored the local scene with different bands playing various styles. Johann Bourquenez (p) acquired his own experiences in different regions of France before moving to Geneva early in 2007. Their working method sprang to life spontaneously and reflects the diverse composition of the trio. The energies of each band member advance organically to their natural points of intersection. Rather than rigid compositions their music consists of revolving motifs and the tracks are subject to constant evolution. Their name - borrowed from the Squarepusher track Plaistow Flex Out - and eclectic influences like Steve Reich or Full CSS show the band's willingness to feed on various styles rather than opposing them. Not an easy task to achieve without losing yourself, but somehow they managed - by taking their time and having a great amount of talent. Since their first album in 2007 Los Criminales Reciclados En Conductores De Autobuses, Plaistow overthrows conventions with energising music and high ambitions. From the start their music has been distributed free on the Internet as well as being sold in carefully crafted and produced CDs. The booklets, designed by Thomas Perrodin reflect inspirations of their music, one of them illustrating a comic book hero sprung from their own imagination. In 2008 Plaistow brought out their 2nd EP Do You Feel Lucky and collaborated with the Moroccan rapper Mobydick during a residency in Fès. The result was released on the EP Mobystow in spring 2009. The original sound of the trio was rewarded with the ZKB-Jazzprice at the Moods in Zurich in June 2009, and a 3rd EP Jack Bambi came out that same year. Unreleased material, recorded at Studio 2 at the Swiss Radio DRS, the complete EP archives and a live performance filmed at the Zoo (Usine/Geneva) make up this double album (CD/DVD). And there's more: a tour in the Middle-East, several weeks of residency in Vevey, concerts in Germany and Russia and studio sessions in Moscow, Paris and Zurich left Plaistow ready to release their first long play album The Crow. Recorded before Christmas, the album will be released in April 2010 by Unit Records and the netlabel Insubordinations. A series of concerts supporting the album will take Plaistow to Cully Jazz Festival and the main Swiss Jazz Clubs. 2010 begins on a promising note for this young band with great potential. THE CROW It's taken almost three years from the formation of the band to the release of their first long play album. Three years and a great many concerts, rehearsals - experiments really - and always with the axiomatic will to listen, give, share and receive attention. On this basis, themes were formed through melodies and returning motifs, written six-handed. Pieces that ended up forming solid compositions, and that's what The Crow is really all about. From the introspective "Boomerang" right through to the explosive "Full CSS", all the tracks undulate between free jazz, sturdy groove and lyrical minimalism but never at the cost of coherence. The eclectic influences won't allow you to point to one major influence. One is reminded of the prepared piano by John Cage, but also of Lowell Davidson Trio or the pop influences of The Bad Plus. In a slightly paradoxical way, it's certainly through this radical open mindedness of the band that Plaistow's style takes shape. Adepts of categorisation and labelling beware, because Plaistow will only fugitively correspond to preconceived categories. This is certainly part of the game plan and of the fun that the musicians have playing their music. Hide their tracks in order to surprise and ambush, comfort reflexes only to betray them right away, incorporate famous phrasings in order to play them out of context. Plaistow's post-jazz as it can be heard on The Crow is a polymorphous and untameable beast.