"This is the exquisite new solo work by virtuosic bassist/composer Brandon Lopez. vilevilevilevilevilevilevilevile is about perceptions. More pointedly: it is 'less about -a thing- than it is about perceptions of things, questioning those perceptions, and possibly altering perceptions.'

On moving to NYC, Lopez immediately began making himself indispensable in many creative music scenes. From New York Philharmonic's David Geffen Hall to the DIY basements of Brooklyn, Lopez has worked extensively beside many luminaries of jazz, classical, poetry, and experimental music. As with all bass players of great skill and commitment through the ages, Lopez has been prolifically active in collaborations because he has been in duly high demand.

The Cleveland Review of Books noted: 'This is virtuosity as vocabulary, a total command of texture, subtlety, and a depth that can be reached into.' Lopez is also an improvising composer of estimable gifts. One recent example is his expansive work in duo with equally astonishing drummer Gerald Cleaver; recently incorporated into a trio with Fred Moten, the inimitable poet, theorist, critic, and 2020 MacArthur Fellow. Among the attention paid to their 2022 debut was an '8.0' review in Pitchfork and a 'Best Jazz Albums of 2022' notice by the New York Times.

The brawn which Brandon brings to his playing is abundantly clear on stage, and can be viscerally felt as a force coming out of his recordings. The strings and wood frame are wholly resonant when called forth, by muscles well-developed for the purpose by a longtime gravedigger. Yes, Lopez dug many for a strong spell as a young man. It is also abundantly clear that 'brains over brawn' are a key differential. A Puerto Rican kid growing up working class in North Jersey doesn't perform with the New York Philharmonic (as a soloist, no less) without the brains.

Lopez has kept busy during these pandemic years, releasing solo works (and other collaborative stealth recordings) via his Bandcamp page and creating live streams on Instagram. vilevilevilevilevilevilevilevile is, however; by his own telling, only his second 'real one' for solo bass -- an album created with forethought towards wider release."-Tao Forms