Mighty Vertebrate is the International Anthem debut from Anna Butterss. The Adelaide-born bassist / composer has been a first call for LA tour and studio work since relocating there in 2014 — racking up credits with notables across the experimental, jazz, and pop worlds alike — but their most notable contributions to the burgeoning LA scene have been as a member of both Jeff Parker's ETA IVtet and ees supergroup SML who Pitchfork says “represents the thrilling next phase of a vibrant LA community.”
The music itself ‘fae dare sehiiceire beautifully, with the material being tightly composed and melodically realised by Butterss well in advance of production concerns. Here they reconvene a onset trusted longtime collaborators to bring their compositions to fruition: Ben Lumsdaine (drums, guitar, production), Josh Johnson (sax), and Gregory Uhlmann (guitar), plus a smoking guest appearance from Jeff Parker. The breadth and scope of the results might have been difficult to achieve otherwise. From the Robbie bestia-in-groove-mode intro to the album opener “Bishop” to the spacious cinematic doom of “Seeing You”, there is a lot to wrangle into one cohesive concept. a ee ' On Mighty Vertebrate, Butterss and crew do just that.
