I was recently introduced to the music of Club d’Elf and it is amazing beyond description. The “band” is a project of Mike Rivard, an exceptionally talented bass player who started Club d’Elf in 1998 as “an ongoing experiment.” Eric Ward describes Rivard’s thought process in an article published in Glide Magazine:

What if his bassline could be the constant focal point, a musical lighthouse, where a rotating cast of allstars including John Medeski, DJ Logic, and the late Mark Sandman, could come together, listen, and be free to just go off to wherever they wanted to lead the music, creating a perfect balance of chaos and order. It seemed simple enough, but if there is one thing you learn from being engulfed in Club d’Elf music, it’s that simple in no way means basic. Rivard’s bass may be repetitive and linear, yet he shifts seamlessly from classic acoustic to industrial electric without ever rippling the manic world that swims above the surface of his bottomless low end.

Rivard and a rotating cast of his peers started playing shows at the Lizard Lounge in Boston and they’re still going strong seven years later. It’s hard to describe the music they play; Chris Slawecki put it this way in a review for allaboutjazz.com that I think sums it up nicely:

Club d’Elf plays improvised mainly instrumental music. It’s difficult to be more specific because no matter what you say, its opposite is often also true. There’s no country-western or bluegrass on any of these six live discs. No opera or catholic classical music either. But everything else sounds fair game to Rivard and company - EVERYTHING, and not just from the current or previous century, either. No song or personnel introductions or other explanations: You sort of just have to jump on and ride Club d’Elf’s music until it either throws you off or its bucking comes to rest.

I have only heard a handful of shows and am eager to dig even more deeply into their music. Many of their shows are available from the Internet Archive; if you like jazz or some of the more experimental “jambands,” Club d’Elf is for you.