Friday, July 22nd 7:40pm at Crashbox (2022)
The Lombo Combo is a percussion ensemble under the direction of Nick Lombard. Using pre-recorded loops controlled by a percussion sample pad, the project features 5 additional percussionists including Danny Mee, Adam Sharp, Cassie Baker, and Alan Lauer.
Taking heavy influence from exotica music, static and repetitive melodies drive the pieces in sharp contrast to a freewheeling array of auxiliary percussion that can transform the context of the tunes measure to measure. Bells! Whistles! Pops! Sizzles! A single note can be chopped to bits with a well-placed tom pattern.
A cowbell is just a cowbell until it is fed through a synthesizer. The most syncopated arpeggio can melt into a droney sheet under the malleted wash of a deep dark ride cymbal. Natural reverb is the wind at our backs. Maple, mahogany, brass, bronze and steel are the sails dragging us ever forward to the dusky echoey horizon.
Cassie Baker is a composer, performer, and private teacher of music in Austin. Her primary instrument is percussion and she is naturally drawn to found sounds and unusual timbres, implementing them into her compositions and performances.
Daniel Mee (drumset) has performed in a variety of styles, ranging from indie rock to experimental music to African marimba. He is currently a member of the Houston sludge metal band Omotai, and leads his own experimental project, Mister Smile. Daniel is a native of Atlanta and has lived in Austin since 2008.
Austin-based drummer and bassist Alan Lauer doesn’t come from a tradition of experimental music. A member of Austin’s Big Bill for over 10 years, the inspiration for his punk-tinted genre-bending comes from transitional albums produced by bands passing through the mainstream. He’s influenced by Refused, The Dismemberment Plan, Lagwagon — and more locally by The Paper Chase, Those Peabodys, and White Denim. He’s played bass in ska bands and drummed in Neal Young, Built to Spill, Ramones, and Wipers cover bands.
Alan’s participation in The Lombo Combo is an opportunity to push into the electronic music realm. Ableton and a trigger pad make up most of his stripped-down live production set up. The experiment comes in the form of building the rig that elegantly enables the performance, removing the barriers around creative flow. His role is one of electronic auxiliary percussionist and simplified keyboardist.
Adam Sharp was born and raised in Chicago Illinois and moved to Austin in 2010. Shortly after arriving he joined the punk band Those Howlings. A few albums and tours later he and Those Howlings bassist Jolie Cota Flink started Mean Jolene. Since then they’ve shared the stage with bands such as Shonen Knife, Harlem, and Peach Kelli Pop. Adam has also enjoyed stints with local Austin band Basketball Shorts and Sour Notes.