(Peace Is Not) An Awful Lot To Ask
Signbearer, 2026
9/10
Listen to (Peace Is Not) An Awful Lot To Ask
Chicago’s Randy Trubitt and his band bring their inimitable jazz ways to 7 songs that are sparked by the authoritarianism and rhetoric plaguing us today.
“What Are Their Names/Living The Dream” opens with a chilling atmosphere before Mike McCarthy’s dense guitar enters alongside Matt Riggen’s furious drumming for the animated 7+ minutes, and “PTW” follows with an initially softer climate that blends the playful bass from Jack Sundstrom amid the lively jazz bouts via Trubitt.
In the middle, “Held Down And Shot On The Surface Of The Moon” presents ambience and warmth in under 2 minutes of soulfulness, while “Machine Machine Gun Gun” mixes scrappy drums with rhythmic guitar, rich sax and strategic bass for the album’s best.
“All You Fascists Bound To Lose” exits with harmonic group vocals alongside the punchy jazz mood that pulls no punches lyrically and isn’t short on grooves.
A protest record of a different kind, Trubitt and company bring their jazz-rock and avant-garde spirit to songs of all substance, where they fight the good fight with their artistic medium.
Travels well with: Living With Tollways- Eponymously Titled; Amelia Ya’el’- Voices I