Matterhorn, Matt Blair

press release: Performing at ArtLitLab on Saturday, April 27, 2019 at 8pm in support of their new CD, MATTERHORN is an electrifying confluence of jazz, rock, and the avant-garde led by trumpeter John Blevins (NYC). The group's eponymous debut album was co-produced by Shane Endsley of the acclaimed post-rock/jazz outfit Kneebody and released on pfMENTUM records in 2015. Uzumati marks the band's second full-length release and their debut on Ears & Eyes Records. Pianist and composer Matt Blair (Minneapolis) will open with a solo set performing new work for Fender Rhodes, electronics, and found objects. This new work is an extension of ideas from his 2018 release Shadow Sets.

Tickets are $10 in advance at https://matterhorn.brownpapertickets.com, and $15 at the door. Student tickets $5 off with a valid school ID. Advance ticket sales end 1 hour before the show. Doors open at 7:30pm.

As the band's name tells you, ​MATTERHORN​ has a passion for climbing heights – both musically, with an alternately soaring and stargazing sound, and literally, drawing inspiration from trumpeter-leader John Blevins' backpacking exploits in Yosemite National Park's Matterhorn Canyon.

Matterhorn's new album ​Uzumati​, a follow-up to its acclaimed, Shane Endsley-produced debut, will be released on October 12, 2018, on ​ears&eyes Records​. With their exuberant jazz harmonies, indie rock touches, Balkan feels and reggae grooves, Blevins and company create an intriguing aural landscape to reflect on mighty Yosemite.

"Our lives are so fleeting--there's a timeline in the mountains of which we really have no conception," said Blevins. "On ​Uzumati​ [a Native American term for grizzly bear], we tried to capture some of that feeling."

Matterhorn boasts an imposing lineup of New York-based players including Blevins label mate ​Drew Williams​ on bass clarinet and tenor saxophone; his college pal ​Jeff McLaughlin​ on guitar, ​Jesse Bielenberg​ on bass, ​Nathan Ellman-Bell​ on drums, and ​John Doing​ on percussion.

Most of the members also contribute synthesizer and other electronic effects that give the music a cinematic feel – sometimes suggesting the dramatic soundtracks of the late Icelandic ​composer Johann Johannsson. There's an American heartland sensibility in the songs as well.

Based on the enigmatic history of the Yosemite region and its inhabitants, these compositions question what can be lost in translation over time. ​Uzumati roughly translates to “grizzly bear” in the Miwok language, but it is often mistakenly attributed to the name ​Yosemite​--a​ ​corrupted phrase meaning “they are killers.”

The ALL Jazz Series is sponsored in part by Alchemy, Dobhan, and Tex Tubbs Restaurants, WORT 89.9FM, Heid Music, and HotelRED. Student ticket discount made possible by Grant Samuelsen Real Estate.