Pat Metheny: Side-Eye III+
One of jazz’s most influential voices brings his Side-Eye III+ project to Križanke on July 1.
Lineup: Pat Metheny, guitar; Chris Fishman, piano, keyboards; Jermaine Paul, bass; Joe Dyson, drums
His music transcends genres, as evidenced by the Grammy Awards he has won in ten different categories – from new age, pop and country to jazz, naturally, most of them in the last named category, which makes him the only artist ever to have achieved this. He has a total of twenty gold records and three gold albums, as well as an impressive songbook of jazz standards.
It goes without saying that working with a roster of artists as diverse as Ornette Coleman, John Zorn, Joni Mitchell, and David Bowie calls for tremendous musical versatility and the corresponding technical virtuosity. He cites Miles Davis, Wes Montgomery and The Beatles as having the biggest impact on his music.
Metheny has been a key player in fusion jazz for the past four decades, with a broad community of followers, also satisfying their preferences for experimentation. We have consistently followed his artistic development, hosting Metheny with different line-ups at the Jazz Festival Ljubljana three times, most recently nine years ago. The Pat Metheny Group, active since 1978 with various changes in personnel, has decisively shaped the development of the jazz fusion genre and allowed him to evolve his distinctive lyricism under the auspices of ECM Records. He composes contemporary classical and film music, dreamy solo ballads, and virtuoso pieces, creating a canon of new standards, while also keeping an eye out for young new talents with whom to share his vision. Thus, in 2016, which many in the US see as the advent of a new dark age, Metheny started the Side-Eye project. The name is slang for “raising an eyebrow,” being sceptical, distrustful, or disapproving, which is how the world has been looking at the US since 2016. Among the first to be invited to his home studio were two brilliant musicians, pianist James Francis and drummer Marcus Gilmore; their Side-Eye NYC (V1.IV) album instantly earned a Grammy nomination.
The latest core members of the Side-Eye III+ project are Chris Fishman, a pianist and drummer with Louis Cole’s Knower project, as well as the rising-star drummer Joe Dyson, who brings New Orleans vehemence to the trio and inspired Metheny to write several new songs especially for him. For the Ljubljana concert, the unconventional trio (guitar-piano-drums) will be joined by Californian musical prodigy Jermaine Paul on bass. For late February 2026, Pat Metheny has announced the launch of his new record label, Uniquity Music, alongside the release of their first album. The label will serve as home to reissues of Metheny’s entire catalogue since 1984 and all future releases.
Križanke Theatre, 9 PM: Presale (until 30 June): EUR 45 and 36* / Regular prices: EUR 50, 40*
Early Bird Festival Pass, all concerts, all venues, all days: EUR 95