Big Satan is a musical side project headed by saxophonist

Saxophone

The saxophone is a conical-bore transposing musical instrument that is a member of the woodwind family. Saxophones are usually made of brass and played with a single-reed mouthpiece similar to that of the clarinet. The saxophone was invented by the Belgian instrument maker Adolphe Sax in 1846...

 Tim Berne

Tim Berne

Tim Berne is an American jazz saxophone player and composer.Described by critic Thom Jurek as commanding "considerable power as a composer and ... frighteningly deft ability as a soloist," Berne has composed and performed prolifically since the 1980s...

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Tom Rainey (drummer) and Marc Ducret (guitarist), both regular collaborators with Berne, comprise the remainder of the band's line up.

History

The group released its first album, I Think They Liked It, Honey, in 1997, described by Allmusic as "a truly mesmerizing set that rings with ominous overtones and intricately constructed fabrics of sound".

It would be 2004 before the group's second album, Souls Saved Hear, described as "dazzling" by Allmusic, and was also praised by the BBC

BBC

The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...

. PopMatters

PopMatters

PopMatters is an international webzine of cultural criticism that covers many aspects of popular culture. PopMatters publishes reviews, interviews, and detailed essays on most cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, films, books, video games, comics, sports, theater,...

described it as "an adventurous listen for the most discriminating, open-minded listener".

An interview with Berne and a live set from The Vortex Jazz Club in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 was broadcast by BBC Radio 3

BBC Radio 3

BBC Radio 3 is a national radio station operated by the BBC within the United Kingdom. Its output centres on classical music and opera, but jazz, world music, drama, culture and the arts also feature. The station is the world’s most significant commissioner of new music, and its New Generation...

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Their style of music is out-jazz or avant garde. Adopting many of previous out-jazz originators (like Ornette Coleman

Ornette Coleman

Ornette Coleman is an American saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter and composer. He was one of the major innovators of the free jazz movement of the 1960s....

, John Coltrane

John Coltrane

John William Coltrane was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. Working in the bebop and hard bop idioms early in his career, Coltrane helped pioneer the use of modes in jazz and later was at the forefront of free jazz...

, etc.), Big Satan's sound is aggressive but with a sense of humor.

Discography

• I Think They Liked It, Honey (1997) Winter & Winter
• Souls Saved. Hear (2003) Thirsty Ear Recordings