"By any accepted standards, Lie and Swell slips through the cracks of free jazz, punk, and avant-garde music, plucking bits and pieces from all three but never showing allegiance to one over the other.

Made up of baritone saxophone player Bill Nittler, bass clarinet player Jeff Smith and drummer Alex Lambert (Blame Game/LebLaze), the trio has an approach that falls well within the boundaries of jazz. Unleashing a sonic maelstrom of jittery honks, skronks and drum blasts driven by punk antagonism and solid song structures, Lie and Swell's sound takes shape without the chaos of free and improvised music, but with all the cerebral tension. What's more, the lack of a coherent rhythm section keeps the group well outside the means of traditional songwriting.

There are a few live recordings from shows at Eyedrum floating around, but the group's dynamic is best illustrated when playing live and lost in the moment. Lie and Swell plows through a set of its own numbers, interspersed with covers like Ornette Coleman's 'Bourgoise Boogie' and the Butthole Surfers' 'Cherub'; all three members twitching and lurching with frantic, convulsive energy. 'A lot of what we do is part of the musical communities which we come from,' reveals Smith.

Nittler chimes in, explaining, 'We thought we were playing free jazz at first, but we've come to realize that we're just playing what we know. Playing with structure gives direction and we're all old punk rockers in some capacity, so that all comes across in how we fit together.'"

-- Chad Radford, Creative Loafing

Best Local Jazz Band, Creative Loafing's Best of Atlanta 2004:

"With Bill Nitler's baritone sax and Jeff Smith's bass clarinet blazing over Alex Lambert's convulsive percussions, LIE AND SWELL out-heaves and skronks any other jazz bands on the block. Like witnessing the stage energy of Black Flag filtered through three unassuming and unpretentious players who really know how to play, Lie and Swell's shows bring the noise, but never forget the melodies. Offering up the occasional cover of the Butthole Surfers' 'Cherub' in front of a mixed crowd of Atlanta's sauciest and most irreverent show-goers, the group balances frantic sophistication against unrivaled tension and release."