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In 2024, the Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis got together on an album called, appropriately enough, The Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis<\/a><\/em>. The Messthetics are a DC jazz-rock trio that features Fugazi’s former rhythm section, bassist Joe Lally and drummer Brendan Canty, together with guitarist Anthony Pirog. Saxophonist James Brandon Lewis is a big deal within the jazz world. Together, those four guys released a skronky, playful, generally alive LP. Now, they’ve made another one.<\/p>\n After The Messthetics & James Brandon Lewis<\/em> album came out, Lewis’ James Brandon Lewis reconvened for the 2025 album Apple Cores<\/a><\/em>, while Brendan Canty made an album called Second<\/a><\/em> with sound artist Stephen Vitiello and violinist Hahn Rowe. The Messthetics and Lewis’ new album is called Deface The Currency<\/em>, and it builds on the energy that this quartet generated when they played a ton of shows behind the last record. In a press release, Lewis says, “The more you know someone, the better the relationship is, the more enriched it becomes. It\u2019s like a cast-iron skillet: The more you keep cooking in it, the better the food gets. So I think that\u2019s what you hear on the record, and you hear an urgency of now.”<\/p>\n Lead single “Gestations” showcases everything that sets this group apart. It’s a jazz instrumental that feels equal parts discordant and traditional. Joe Lally and Brendan Canty come up with a bumpy groove and give James Brandon Lewis and Anthony Pirog plenty of room to solo, and they occasionally build up to heavy riff-rock crescendos. I’m not a jazz guy, but it sounds cool to me. Canty co-directed the song’s video with Robin Bell. Below, check out that video, the Deface The Currency<\/em> tracklist, and the next round of shows that the Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis will play together.<\/p>\n