(originally published at Avant Music News)
Three-Layer Cake is the trio of Brandon Seabrook, Mike Watt, and Mike Pride. In other words, if you haven’t already heard this album, I don’t understand why you’re still reading this. You could be listening already.
Sounds The Color Of Grounds is the trio’s second release. Stove Top, from 2021, was their Covid-induced debut. The bass-and-drums duo of Watt and Pride suggests the possibility of a blistering punk-jazz explosion. While there are hints of that, this record is closer the mood-spanning reaches of Seabrook’s 2024 solo album, Object of Unknown Function.
A balance between playful and ominous comes through in the title of the first track, “Deliverdance.” Take away the middle “d” and you have the nightmarish cinema classic. Seabrook’s banjo calls back to that--a rare opportunity to put the words “punk” and “banjo” in the same sentence. But the middle “d” is there: This is an improvising trio enjoying themselves, not an attempt at atmospheric horror.
The entire project seems to be an effort not to rock out. Watt’s bass, often dub-inflected, sounds ready to anchor something loud. Pride stays busy on the low toms--you can almost picture him on the drum pedestal at the back of an arena-rock stage. Yet they circle, they tease, they don’t quite sync up. It’s enormously satisfying when they settle into a groove about halfway through the final track, but even that doesn’t last.
Seabrook’s range, combined with growly spoken word from Watt, gives each of the nine tracks a different flavor. Seabrook spends most of the session on guitar, despite that memorable welcome on the banjo. “The Hasta Cloth” is noisy, with the guitarist showing off both chops and effects. “Occluded, Ostracized, and Onanistic” flirts with straight-ahead jazz. “Tchotchkes” has a pop flair. The group is happy to get in and get out: No track strays more than a few seconds past the five-minute mark.
Wherever the improv takes them, the trio’s three voices make it a coherent whole. Nobody else sounds like any of these guys. We know before pressing play that it’s going to sound good; they keep us interested by wandering down a host of new paths.