For those not in the know, Maxximus, out November 14th, 2025 via TryTone Records, finds the core Spinifex band - saxophonist/artistic director Tobias Klein, trumpeter Bart Maris, saxophonist John Dikeman, guitarist Jasper Stadhouders, bassist Gonçalo Almeida and drummer Philipp Moser – joined by vibraphonist Evi Filippou, cellist Elisabeth Coudoux and Jessica Pavone (viola).

With such a volatile concoction of propulsive energy, full-throttle dynamics and ferocious abandon as the default setting, how does a band like Spinifex ramp things up to a level fit for such a landmark anniversary?

Expanding the ensemble is one option, as implied by the title of the group’s celebratory new release, Maxximus, which bolsters the line-up with three deftly chosen special guests. But Spinifex– in characteristically unpredictable fashion – has also opted to subvert expectations by… taking a quieter approach?

Well, relatively speaking. For Maxximus the six members of Spinifex maintain their trademark vigor but supplement their regular arsenal of instruments with an array of acoustic and less-amplified alternatives.

1. Smitten
2. Sack & Ash
3. Phoenix
4. Springend
5. Annie Golden
6. The Privilege of Playing the Wrong Notes

This masterful blend of free jazz and veritable punk rock opens on an earnestly leaning yearn, latterly a frenetically spirited affair that threads throughout Smitten (which for a quick second I thought was going to be the theme to the UK’s Coronation Street), and then we are gifted the rambunctious Sack & Ash, the industrially robust Phoenix, some tunefully intricate, delicately honed and organically ambient combinations that come together for Springend, the set rounding out on the stirringly impassioned Annie Golden, coming to a close on the emphatically sculpted, growing brilliance of the cultured The Privilege of Playing the Wrong Notes.

Musicians:
Jessica Pavone - viola
Elisabeth Coudoux - cello
Evi Filippou, vibraphone/percussion
Tobias Klein - bass clarinet/alto sax
Bart Maris - trumpet
John Dikeman - tenor sax
Jasper Stadhouders - guitar
Gonçalo Almeida - double bass
Philipp Moser - drums

Official Purchase Link

Official Website