“Joined by an all-star roster of accomplices, Lundbom and Murray blend hip-hop-style beat construction with avant-jazz and much more in a collage of sounds from various corners of the musical universe. …A funky, wild, and adventurous collection of music with virtuosic improvisation and revelous glee, ‘Beats by Balto! Vol. 2’ is sure to please adventurous music lovers throughout Planet Earth and beyond.”
Tim Niland, ‘Music and More’ 10/07/21
“Beats by Balto! represents the fun side of experimental jazz with hip-hop quality beats and grooves… The beats give what is already excellent music a new dimension, the ability to slip linearity, loop back, repeat and allow for techniques that are unavailable when playing with regular time. …The sound of Lundbom and Millevoi is strong but accessible, performing guitar solos that are powerful but not overly flamboyant, building a crunchy and searing sounds that lend much of the texture and melody to these performances. …This group creates an unusual amalgam of experiential jazz, with beats and rhythms that was very successful. Each of the musicians has a relentlessly inquisitive nature, and by combining their efforts with inquisitive compositions and techniques they create riveting and very successful results.”
Tom Hull, ‘On the Web’ 10/04/21
“Saxophonist Murray (aka Balto Exclamationpoint) provides the beats. Lundbom plays guitar…and claims all of the compositions here. …A little more erratic than their previous effort, but the concept of free jazz over fractured beats is sound. B+(***)”
Chris Spector, ‘Midwest Record’ 09/03/21
“In which the Hot Cup gang recombine to take free jazz into the 21st century with wild improv. For kids that like it out there.”
Jon Davis, ‘Expose’ 05/06/20
“A wide-ranging funky sound that may or may not qualify as jazz. The five tracks feature grooves of various speeds and energy levels…sometimes venturing into more experimental territory. …Its music that satisfies on multiple levels, being fun and catchy on the surface, but with details and subtleties exposed upon closer examination. Beats by Balto! is a successful experiment, and I for one am in for a Volume 2.”
Michael Toland, ‘The Austin Chronicle’ 12/20/19
Top 10 Local Albums 2019
1) Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord, “Harder on the Outside” (Hot Cup)
Jan Granlie, ‘Salt Peanuts’ 12/05/19
Årets 65 beste jazzinnspillinger
Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord “Harder Than [sic] The Outside”
Tom Hull, ‘On the Web’ 11/11/19
The Best Jazz Albums of 2019
Honorable Mention #59: Jon Lundbom & Big Five Chord “Harder on the Outside”
Tom Hull, ‘On the Web’ 11/11/19
The Best Jazz Albums of 2019
#58: Jon Lundbom/Bryan Murray “Beats by Balto! Vol. 1”
Tom Hull, ‘On the Web’ 08/12/19
“They come out loud, making up in attitude what they sacrifice in coherence. B”