Boykin, seigfried & Reed

This is the trio that started it all. Chicago South Side legend David Boykin plays tenor and soprano saxophone, bass innovator Karl E. H. Seigfried plays bass, and the inimitable Mike Reed plays drums. For several years, the trio hosted the Avant-Garde Jazz Jam Session, the first and only ongoing session in Chicago to feature completely improvised music. Their 2004 US Tour generated rave reviews, and the notoriety of the trio helped to jumpstart the individual careers of the three performers.

Discography

Boykin, seigfried & ReedICR001
sold out!

This album was recorded in one continuous take, with no overdubs or edits. David insisted that the tracks be presented in the order recorded, with no titles other than the lengths of the individual performances. The result is a true and honest representation of improvised music from Chicago in the 21st century.

NOTE: Due to the popularity of and demand for this release, we are currently out of stock.

Praise for Boykin, Seigfried & Reed:

Cadence
What makes their music so strong – aside from their obvious gifts as individual players – is a tight trio empathy that exults in the sounds of their respective instruments. Seigfried's dry, woody tone, combined with his vast harmonic reach, reminds me of Sirone. There's a group mind focus at work here that's not unlike that found on the first couple of Revolutionary Ensemble records. This one's well worth seeking out.

Signal to Noise
Music that is communally, racially, and cosmically conscious. Self-released by Boykin, propulsive bassist Karl Seigfried, and swinging, coloristic drummer Mike Reed, it charts a course from abstraction to purposeful flight.

All About Jazz
Even in a city known for its vibrant free jazz scene, Chicago's Boykin, Seigfried & Reed have established a strong presence. Individually, their resumes boast tenures with a who's who of AACM all-stars. Their well-oiled empathy takes them through unexpected changes on seven improvised performances. Chewy multiphonics and buzzy highs flit around Seigfried's muscular bass to open "7:40." He then takes an extended bass meditation, thoughtfully generating variations.

After Hours (Japan)
This sound is the true definition of the Chicago avant-garde. Their music sometimes floats calmly like a river and sometimes swings with great violence.

Cosmik Debris
The group's sound resembles nothing so much as the terrific trios that Sam Rivers led in the 60s and 70s. They can blow free with the best groups, explore sound and texture in a manner inspired by Roscoe Mitchell, and can move into a hard swing that is unrivaled. Karl Seigfried (pronounced sEYEg-frEEd) is a rock solid bassist with a big tone and lovely melodic ideas.

Though there is danger in a sax trio of the horn player dominating the proceedings with bass and drum accompaniment, this does not happen with BSR. They are a true collective. Each member moves to the foreground and recedes with ease. The sum makes up more than the considerable talents of each of its parts.

Boykin, Seigfried & Reed are worth catching live if you can. They are a very exciting group, one of the best Chicago has to offer.

Demon (England)
There's no question that this is a group rather than horn with accompaniment. Seigfried's worth hearing more of; he uses a similar vocabulary to Grimes/Sirone.