The Necks bleed in a new improv masterpiece

WITH a new album and seemingly endless creativity, celebrated improvisational trio The Necks are returning to Australia. The home soil tour notably includes Byron Bay in its 28-date international schedule.

Pianist Chris Abrahams, bassist Lloyd Swanton and drummer Tony Buck are notoriously unpredictable. From a simple idea, their live performances evolve into elongated journeys, as does the best of the jazz tradition. No two concerts are ever the same.

From humble beginnings in Sydney over 30 years ago, The Necks’ demand remains high worldwide for their unmatched improvisational voyages.

Bassist Lloyd Swanton told this masthead he had never thought the group would last for over three decades.

We never expected it,” Swanton said.

“We weren’t giving any consideration to longevity. In hindsight, maybe that’s why we’ve lasted so long.

The Guardian said in 2024, ‘No listener experiences the band in the same way. There are no set lists. No expectations. And no requests. There is only trust’.

It is an ephemeral experience, held in a musical suspension of disbelief, and requires that trust.

The latest album, Bleed, explores a sublime language of stillness. With a single 42-minute composition, The Necks masterfully express the unspeakable beauty of decay and space.

And yet, live in concert, you never know what you’ll get. The group’s recordings and live performances are intrinsic to the band’s allure.

Keeping the art form of jazz fresh, as improvisers on the edge of the medium, Swanton said their performance is an investment in a concert experience.

“We stay excited by the music without ever abandoning our fundamental principles,” he said.

“If you have the right mindset, it can be never-ending. Some solos sound like they will never end, but that’s a different thing.

“The difference between recordings and live performances is in the time frames.

“In live shows, it’s about the decisions we make in the moment. In the studio, it’s about the decisions we make in the moment over weeks and months.

The band’s return is highly anticipated by audiences and musicians alike.

“We love performing here in the astonishing natural beauty and to the loveliness of the region’s residents,” Swanton said.

As one of the ‘most arresting and sophisticated bands on the planet’ and ‘one of the most entrancing live acts in the world’, the accolades run to encyclopaedic lengths.

The final word might be left to The New York Times, which said ‘The Necks are the greatest trio on earth’.

That one is hard to beat.

For information and tickets to The Necks at Byron Theatre on January 24, visit byroncentre.com.au/theatre-events/the-necks-2025