Sound Creation Trio plays at Christo's in Salem

The collective résumés of guitarist Mike Gamble, bassist Andrew Jones, and drummer Matt Mayhall — the three Portland, Oregon artists that make up the new ensemble the Sound Creation Trio — read like an expertly curated playlist of the past six decades of adventurous music: Charlie Haden, Aimee Mann, Shahzad Ismaily, Jeff Parker, Laura Veirs, Earth, Julia Holter. In and around their sideman work, these men have been responsible for some daring original music of their own that stretches from free jazz to post-rock to Americana to art pop and back again. Nothing is off limits to these hyper-talented instrumentalists whether in the studio or on stage. That’s what makes their new collaboration such an exciting prospect. The name is deceptively understated. Don’t all musicians simply create sound? True, but few are willing to combine genres and sonic elements as freely and spiritedly as this trio. Their shared language is exploration and a desire to push their abilities as composers and players to their absolute limits. The members of the Sound Creation Trio may have decades of experience and knowledge at their disposal, but they are still students of their chosen craft. As they continue to expand and create fresh sound, they refuse to be defined by ill-fitting genre tags or easy branding. In an age of social media-driven nonsense and cheap YouTube covers, their combined efforts are increasingly rare and always electrifying.