Bellbird is the Montreal-based quartet of tenor saxophonist Claire Devlin, alto saxophonist and bass clarinetist Allison Burik, bassist Eli Davidovici, and drummer Mili Hong. While firmly rooted in modern jazz, Bellbird’s music incorporates stylistic influences including atonal counterpoint, rock grooves, folk melodies, Minimalism, and a reigning (post)punk spirit. Growing up in disparate situations spanning three countries and emerging from different musical scenes, the quartet met and coalesced in Montréal’s fertile genre-bending underground. Bellbird’s 2023 debut Root In Tandem was praised as a “remarkable” album “with chip-on-the-shoulder confidence” (All About Jazz) and “a solid debut statement featuring thoughtfully structured compositions and empathetic group interplay” (Textura). Following an acclaimed run across Canada’s Jazz festival circuit in 2024, the band began writing its follow-up album The Call during a residency at Orford Musique later that year, and signed to Montréal label Constellation in 2025.
With The Call now being released, we asked the band about their main musical influences.
Ben LaMar Gay – Open Arms to Open Us
Allison Burik:
I love the way Gay places melody and groove at the front of his music while using an extremely diverse range of instruments and sounds. In ‘Oh Great Be the Lake’, I hear Gay’s connection to the land, an urgency, a grief, and a reverence for life in this vast universe. There is a deep and wondrous sense of connection to all beings felt through the song’s mantra, “learn how to swim”. In the music I bring to Bellbird, I try to live in that space of timelessness, honoring the musicians that came before while exploring the possibilities of what could come after.
Endangered Blood – Endangered Blood
Eli Davidovici & Mili Hong:
This album had a big impact on each of us, both for its explosive rock/jazz energy and its close resemblance to our own instrumentation. It showed us that a mix of rock grooves with delicate acoustic instruments like the double bass and bass clarinet can create a wide range of dynamics, without compromising its edginess and intensity! The songs are catchy and the improvising captures the spirit of jazz that we all identify with so strongly. A killer band!
Koma Saxo – Post Koma
Claire Devlin:
Koma Saxo is a brilliant project led by Berlin bassist Petter Eldh. This album melds the jazz tradition with electronics and free improv. It’s a saxophone-heavy album, which obviously appeals to me, but it’s done tastefully and the songs are incredible. It starts off with a simple piece that’s basically just drums and bass grooving, but the sound of the upright bass is huge and you don’t even notice the sparse instrumentation.
I’m also drawn to the track ‘Eka Amok’. It’s patient and beautiful, but what really intrigues me is the small sounds from the percussion, which create a whole sonic landscape that you can easily get lost in as the listener. I also like how this album blends acoustic playing with synths, samples, and some unexpected post-production effects.
