Remember Earthworks? Bill Bruford is at it again – keeping stellar younger jazz company – even post so-called retiring from the fray – playing with guitarist Pete Roth and bassist Mike Pratt. Bruford needs no introduction given his status as one of the great prog and jazz rock drummers to emerge on the English scene. But is this prog or this jazz?*
I wouldn’t worry about whatever you want to call it. They are like brothers from other mothers as it’s so instinctive and tightly knit. Full of thundering grooves, meaty riffs and a ferocious energy Group Chat makes you glad to be alive. Fellow miserabilist… is that so wrong?
The album serves as a definitive showcase for the group’s core founders, as the project relies heavily on the distinct musical backgrounds of its rhythm and harmonic leaders. Pete Roth began his professional journey as a classical guitar student before fully immersing himself in modern jazz and his early career included working directly as a personal assistant and drum technician for Bill Bruford. The German born, UK based bandleader has established a reputation for pristine tone and advanced harmonic concepts, nor does his intricate playing style rely on conventional blues or rock clichés. He currently divides his time between international touring and academic roles apparently but this collaborative trio remains his primary vehicle for pure improvisational expression.
Mike Pratt on bass trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, yet his career spans diverse genres ranging from contemporary classical to high-energy funk and West End theatre productions. He has performed alongside notable jazz artists like John Dankworth and Cleo Laine so his exceptional versatility makes him the perfect rhythmic bridge between Roth’s fluid guitar lines and Bruford’s complex polyrhythms.
It’s the trio’s first album – they have been massively in demand on tour in the last year or two. This is also issued as a DVD
Bruford brings a long background in jazz, progressive rock and improvisation. A founding member of Yes and a long-term member of King Crimson, he stepped away from headline performance for 13 years before returning with the trio. Group Chat is his first new material in 19 years.
They don’t a give a fig for manicured niceties. But the safety elf advises: you may have to nail the syrup down when wigging out. Watch you don’t put your back out when you crank up the Dansette
The album includes Roth compositions alongside collaborative material and an improvisation on the Largo from Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9. Other tracks – mostly band member written include ‘Full Circle’, ‘Part Of The Charm’, ‘Group Chat’, ‘Dancing With Grace’, ‘Original Sin’, ‘Hard Case, Soft Centre’ and George Gershwin’s ‘Summertime.’
The accompanying DVD was filmed live at Cranleigh Arts Centre, Surrey, on 4 December 2025 – check the YouTube clip above. The CD also draws on the trio’s live performances, although the available information does not establish that all nine tracks were recorded at Cranleigh.
The trio’s live schedule extends through the UK and Europe, with upcoming dates including 25 September at Riverhouse Barn, Walton-on-Thames; 8 October at BIX Jazzclub & Lounge, Stuttgart; 9 October at Das Rind, Rüsselsheim; 10 October at Nörgelbuff, Göttingen; 11 October at NICA JAZZ CLUB, Hamburg; 12 October at Zig Zag Jazz Club, Berlin; 23 October at The Capstone Theatre, Liverpool; 24 October at the Sir Thomas Allen Assembly Rooms Theatre, Durham; and 8 November at Band on the Wall, Manchester. Further dates are scheduled in the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark and Italy into February 2027 including Magy’s Farm in Northern Ireland in January. *It’s jazz.
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