The Bad Plus, photo by Cameron Wittig.

The concept of a “band” is very different in jazz than it is in rock, in that rock bands are seen as a cohesive unit, while jazz groups are seen as a bandleader with associated musicians. Although by its very nature improvisational music brings the personality and abilities of each performer into the mix, even groups that stay together and develop a group sound are often driven by one personality. Classic examples of this include include John Coltrane’s quartet of the ’60s or Miles Davis’s great bands.

The Bad Plus, a trio comprised of pianist Ethan Iverson, drummer Dave King and bassist Reid Anderson, is a refreshing departure from this aesthetic, and its members know it.

“These days there aren’t enough bands, but maybe we are being a good influence?,” said Iverson in a recent interview with DCist. “At any rate, the music is stronger when everyone is equally committed.”

The three musicians met as teens in the suburbs of Minneapolis, but they came together as a group in 2000. Their early exposure was largely due to the punk rock aesthetic that they brought to acoustic jazz. Their early albums featured everything from straight-ahead swing, to free jazz, to covers of songs by the likes of Rush, Ozzy Osbourne and Tears for Fears. Nowadays, the band retains the same breadth of influences, but focuses almost entirely on original compositions. The latest batch can be heard on their latest recording, Made Possible. The recording comes out next Tuesday, but the band will be supporting it on Sunday evening at The Hamilton.

“We record pretty easily, in solid takes with very little editing,” said Iverson about making Made Possible.

However, the new album marks one major departure from previous ones, in that The Bad Plus incorporated electronic elements into the new songs. In addition, previous albums were recorded only after the songs were extensively road-tested and allowed to fully develop. On Made Possible, tunes were recorded with limited rehearsal in order to capture an element of spontaneity.

Sunday’s performance will rely heavily on material from Made Possible, but Iverson also noted that with a catalog stretching back ten years, some older songs will be featured as well. He also expects some happy surprises that the recording tried to capture will reveal themselves while the band is on stage.

Fans comment that we are tighter than ever, but we don’t want to be too tight, either,” he said. “A certain amount of looseness is important in jazz.”

The Bad Plus will perform at The Hamilton on Sunday, September 23, 2012. 7:30 p.m. $30.50 + fees.