The longstanding international powerhouse Ballister returns for its first US tour since 2022, and first concert in New York since 2015. They’ll be celebrating the release of their most recent album Smash and Grab on Aerophonic Records. The band features Chicago saxophonist and organizer Dave Rempis, nomad anti-cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and Norwegian drummer Paal Nilssen-Love.
The evening will begin with a trio performance by Ballister, followed by a second set with bassist Luke Stewart.
Ballister Dave Rempis saxophones Fred Lonberg-Holm cello Paal Nilssen-Love drums/percussion
+ Luke Stewart bass
A livestream will be available free of charge at 8pm on the day of the performance and archived for future viewing. Watch below or on YouTube.
This free-wheeling trio Ballister 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 Paal 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), The Ballister Monologues (Astral Spirits, 2015, cassette only/limited edition), Slag (2017), Low Level Stink (Dropa Disc, 2017), Znachki Stilyag (Aerophonic Records, 2020), 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.
Luke Stewart is a musician, performer, improviser-composer, organizer, and writer-researcher whose work represents a deep reverence for the history and tradition of Creative Music: a tradition which encomes the diverse styles of expression within the body of Black Music in the United States, Africa, and throughout the world. Stewart’s regular ensembles include Irreversible Entanglements, SILT Trio, Exposure Quintet, and the experimental rock duo Blacks’ Myths; he also performs regularly in numerous collaborations.
The longstanding international powerhouse Ballister returns for its first US tour since 2022, and first concert in New York since 2015. They’ll be celebrating the release of their most recent album Smash and Grab on Aerophonic Records. The band features Chicago saxophonist and organizer Dave Rempis, nomad anti-cellist Fred Lonberg-Holm, and Norwegian drummer Paal Nilssen-Love.
The evening will begin with a trio performance by Ballister, followed by a second set with bassist Luke Stewart.
Ballister Dave Rempis saxophones Fred Lonberg-Holm cello Paal Nilssen-Love drums/percussion
+ Luke Stewart bass
A livestream will be available free of charge at 8pm on the day of the performance and archived for future viewing. Watch below or on YouTube.
This free-wheeling trio Ballister 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 Paal 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), The Ballister Monologues (Astral Spirits, 2015, cassette only/limited edition), Slag (2017), Low Level Stink (Dropa Disc, 2017), Znachki Stilyag (Aerophonic Records, 2020), 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.
Luke Stewart is a musician, performer, improviser-composer, organizer, and writer-researcher whose work represents a deep reverence for the history and tradition of Creative Music: a tradition which encomes the diverse styles of expression within the body of Black Music in the United States, Africa, and throughout the world. Stewart’s regular ensembles include Irreversible Entanglements, SILT Trio, Exposure Quintet, and the experimental rock duo Blacks’ Myths; he also performs regularly in numerous collaborations.
