Kneebody

In the opening years of the 2000s, experimental ensemble Kneebody surfaced with a forward-looking jazz-rooted style that incorporated rock, funk, and electronic textures. Although every member excels as a jazz improviser, the group favors a compositional method that emphasizes collective input across their recordings. Albums such as 2008's Low Electrical Worker, 2013's The Line, and 2017's Anti-Hero reflect influences from '70s fusion artists, Krautrock pioneers, and later post-rock acts.

Kneebody formed in 2001 with keyboardist Adam Benjamin, trumpeter Shane Endsley, bassist/guitarist Kaveh Rastegar, saxophonist Ben Wendel, and drummer/bassist Nate Wood. Benjamin, Endsley, Rastegar, and Wendel first connected as students at the Eastman School of Music during the '90s. Benjamin later moved to CalArts, where he met Wood, and after their studies the musicians converged in Los Angeles to launch the band. Their self-titled debut appeared in 2005 on trumpeter Dave Douglas' Greenleaf label and earned acclaim for its inventive instrumental approach. That direction expanded on 2008's Low Electrical Worker and on 2009's Twelve Songs by Charles Ives, a project with vocalist Theo Bleckmann that received a Grammy nomination for Best Classical Crossover Album.

You Can Have Your Moment surfaced on the Winter & Winter label in 2010, with The Line following on Concord in 2013. Two years afterward the ensemble joined left-field hip-hop and electronica producer Daedelus for the joint release Kneedelus on Brainfeeder. Their ninth studio album, Anti-Hero, came out on Motema in 2017. In 2019 they delivered Chapters, which included appearances by Gretchen Parlato, Michael Mayo, Gerald Clayton, and additional guests.