ALEX'S HAND ALEX'S HAND is polystylistic avant-prog-fusion rock group centered around the compositions of bassist Kellen Mills and drummer Nic Barnes. It was founded in Seattle, WA in 2011, initially as a duo. Nic came from a jazz background, playing with various jazz and philharmonic ensembles. While Kellen came from the opposite side of the spectrum: punk rock, and a self-taught approach to composition. This combination of styles has informed their approach to music and created a punk ethos of "anti" mixed with complex orchestral arrangement and jazz construction. Dabbling in everything from rock, metal, jazz, avant-grade, classical, progressive and experimental music, ALEX'S HAND are extremely sensitive to improvisation and have a vast ability to learn and develop. Each performance is different and is based entirely on the musicians chosen to interpret the material written for them. In 2014, ALEX'S HAND left the United States and are currently based out of Berlin, Germany. Over the course of their career, the band shared stages with many known groups like Thinking Plague, miRthkon, Panzerballett, and Upsilon Acrux. Now in 2018, ALEX'S HAND are hard at work on their next album, planning another European tour, and set to play several iconic festivals including "Zappanale", "Burg Herzberg", and "Freakshow Artrock". The band's current live line-up features: Kellen Mills (bass), Nic Barnes (drums), Ruben Bergnes (guitar), Matt Kennon (tenor-saxophone, synth), and Jacopo Bazzarri (vibes). Follow ALEX'S HAND on Facebook.

Alex's Hand / KaTaTaK (2017) The Kat has Kome. "KaTaTaK" is the fourth proper studio album by ALEX'S HAND. All music contained within was primarily written by Nic Barnes, Kellen Mills, and Ben Reece; recorded in 2014-2015 in Berlin within a generally live context with a very small amount of overdubs. Grab yourself a daiquiri or some cocktail. Chill out. And let a little evil cat into your lives. Recommended for the real connoisseurs of Avant-Prog, RIO, Jazz-Fusion, and Post-Modern Experimental musical art. (5 tracks – 46 min.). Free streaming or immediate digital download of the album is available through Official R.A.I.G. Bandcamp.

CD: $13.00 / Digital Download: $8.00

Review clips:

"This band has listened widely in rock, jazz, and classical music and assimilated the sounds without regard to typical boundaries... I just get caught up in enjoying the audacious craziness of KaTaTaK. One thing that strikes me is that as complex as the music is structurally, it's played with a casual looseness that I associate with musicians playing by feel rather than reading charts - this is rock played with a kind of jazz attitude. Another thing is the very live feeling of the recording. While the tracks are over ten minutes in length, I could describe them as epics for people who are easily bored - the mood changes often enough to keep you on your toes as if it were numerous short tracks, though the overall span is probably longer than you normally listen to. Throughout the album there's a balance between serious artistic intent and exuberant fun that makes KaTaTaK a blast to listen to, and well worth the time it takes to listen to the whole thing." – by Jon Davis at Expose (USA) (August 2017).

"Alex's Hand play RIO music with a stronger emphasis on texture and tone, in contrast to the virtuoso workouts cranked out by their peers. Their fourth album KaTaTaK finds the duo using this emphasis to construct pieces that accumulate their power and emotional weight slowly and methodically." – by Simon Chandler at Bandcamp Daily (USA) (September 2018).

More reviews: Babyblaue-Seiten (Germany), Can This Even Be Called Music? (USA), New Underground Music (The Netherlands).

Alex's Hand / Roaches (2014/2017) Originally published by the band in 2014 in digital format only, "Roaches" is the second studio recording by ALEX'S HAND. It is a conceptual piece of work telling about how hard it is to go against the musical grain. It is the story of a fictional band called The Roaches whose situation closely parallels that of the Alex's Hand itself: in the end, The Roaches, just like Alex's Hand, decide to pack up and get out of town, seeking their musical destiny outside the US... Considered by many a masterpiece of modern Avant-Prog/RIO, "Roaches" is available now for the first time in physical format!

The ensemble of 13 musicians were involved in making this album: Kellen Mills (bass, vocals, synth, acoustic guitar, lyrics and dialogues), Nic Barnes (drums, percussion, vocals), Gabe Tachell (of RHINE; guitar, vocals), Max Steiner (of AUTUMN ELECTRIC; guitar), Richard Williams (keyboards), Jason Shao (melodica, synth), Dennis Rea (of LAND, MORAINE, IRON KIM STYLE, TEMPERED STEEL, ZHONGYU, FLAME TREE and more; guitar), Stephen Barnes (keyboards, organ, synth), Jim DeJoie (of MORAINE, ZUBATTO SYNDICATE, FUNDAMENTAL FORCES, ZHONGYU, THE OCULAR PROOF and more; horns), Kit Vander Jagt (of BENS JAZZ KIT, STEP DADDY; guitar, voice), Ben Reece (of BENS JAZZ KIT, STEP DADDY; guitar), Alicia Dejoie (of MORAINE, ZHONGYU; violin), and Krista Sa (voice). Recorded and mixed by Alex's Hand. Mastered by Chris Hanszek. Original poster-artwork by Kelly Sorbel. Additional drawings and artwork design by ZonderZond. (12 tracks – 78 min.). Free streaming or immediate digital download of the album (MP3, FLAC or other formats) is available through Official R.A.I.G. Bandcamp.

CD: $13.00 / Digital Download: $8.00

Review clips:

"Musically, they walk their talk, with six tracks in the 9 to 18 minute range scattered among numerous short sketches of dialog, sound effects, and miscellaneous strangeness. The style jumps around wildly, maybe something like Mr Bungle doing a Zappa homage. Music this creative deserves an audience, and the minds that conceived it deserve to be encouraged." – by Jon Davis at Expose (USA) (April 2014).

More reviews: Clair & Obscur (France), Scott's Music Reviews (Denmark), Musikreviews.de (Germany), New Underground Music (The Netherlands), Babyblaue-Seiten (Germany).

Alex's Hand / Kunstler Scheisse (2016) "Kunstler Scheisse", the third studio album by ALEX'S HAND differs from its predecessors in many ways. First off, it was recorded live and much of it came from chaotic free-noise-jazz jamming, whereas the previous albums were all recorded in a specific instrumental order. Also, when the band overdubbed in Berlin, Kellen and Nic wrote out horn arrangements and really sat with the overdubs. The invited musicians were playing prewritten materials, whereas in the past they were let to play what they felt. Finally, guitarist Ben Reece provided the band with a different perspective than they had in the past in regards to composing more complex melodies on top of what had already been written. So, "Kunstler Scheisse" is far more orchestrated than other albums, a bit more refined and more complicated.

ALEX'S HAND happens to be humorous and funny on the surface, yet incredibly intricate in terms of their compositional and arrangement ideas. Their "Kunstler Scheisse" doesn't really fit here or there, its subgenre classifications fall short. And why does it matter anyway? Just listen to the music...

The ensemble of 12 musicians were involved in making this album: Nic Barnes (drums, percussion, vox), Kellen Mills (bass, vox, synth, electronics), Ben Reece (guitar, vox), Max Steiner (guitar) and Rieko Okuda (keyboards, synth) – as ALEX'S HAND... and Carl Andrew O'Sullivan (vox), Johannes Schleiermacher (flute, baritone and tenor saxophones), Charlotte BirkenHauer (vibraphone), Peter Kuhnsch (percussion, whistles, bells), Rob Mattessi (trumpet), Otto Horvath (trombone) and Stephen Barnes (piano) – as guests. Recorded by: Mike Sopko, Kellen Mills and Nic Barnes. Mixed by Alex's Hand. Mastered by: Allan Shotter. Original cover artwork by Helen Lord. (8 tracks – 62 min.). Free streaming or immediate digital download of the album (MP3, FLAC or other formats) is available through Official R.A.I.G. Bandcamp.

CD: $13.00 / Digital Download: $8.00

Review clips:

"The band write their own rules and seem willing to break their own rules if they feel like it. You really never quite know what is coming and that is a lot of fun. 'Kunstler Scheisse' is an album of quirks, experiments and technique. If Mike Patton got together with Frank Zappa and wrote whatever the fuck they felt like, you'd have an idea of what Alex's Hand are about. It's talent that never takes itself too seriously... For those curious how to be experimental and avant garde without sounding like complete shit, 'Kunstler Scheisse' is the blueprint for doing it correctly. It's clear that this comes natural to them and that's exactly why it works. They aren't trying to be different, they just are." – by ProgManRob at Progressive Music Planet (USA) (June 2016).

"Kunstler Scheisse is a Major Work with a capital M and W. Comparisons with Frank Zappa, Mr Bungle, and The Mars Volta are valid but don't really tell you much. Sections of willful and difficult complexity are offset by chaotic improvisation, non-sequitur stylistic shifts, and goofy humorous touches that continually defy expectations. This is epic prog for the attention deficit crowd, building numerous seemingly unrelated sections into lengthy suites and not coming off like some kind of digital collage... This is a seemingly endless fountain of ideas, and from what I've heard, they've got more in the works already. Every hill they climb is a little higher than the one before, and the territory ahead is covered by fog until you get closer, revealing a still-higher summit. Don't miss out on this, and if the first listen leaves you baffled, give it another." – by Jon Davis at Expose (USA) (July 2016).

More reviews: Progressivelyso (USA), Music From The Other Side of the Room (USA), The Big Takeover's interview with Alex's Hand (USA), Recyclable Sounds (Russia), Babyblaue-Seiten (Germany), Musikreviews.de (Germany).