In the 90s fans of adventurous jazz and improvised music could hardly avoid bassist Michael Formanek even if they wanted to—he was a robust, driving, and empathetic presence on many records, especially those made by Bloodcount, Tim Berne‘s powerful quartet with fellow reedist Chris Speed and drummer Jim Black. The bassist was a crucial anchor in that band’s complex, interlocking music, whose sound has been carried on by a new generation in New York and London—in the latter city, Bloodcount sometimes seems like the Velvet Underground of the current avant-garde jazz scene.