James Wengrow is a Brooklyn-based guitarist from Brisbane/Meanjin, Australia. His work with Dropbear Lodge has been described as “A sprightly collage of experimental jazz, heavy prog, math rock, and neoclassical music...The perfect stop-over for curious rock fans looking to branch to jazz and visa versa.” (Bandcamp Daily). Crypsis Trio’s ’Emissary’ is set for release in 2026 on Endectomorph Music.
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2025 HIGHLIGHTS
LIVE PERFORMANCES
CRYPSIS TRIO
JACKET BARTER
Live At Brooklyn ARTery
James Wengrow - guitar
Mathias Højgaard Jensen - bass
James Paul Nadien - drums
QUARTET
PALO SANTO'S INNER CLUB
&
TALKBACK
Live at Nublu, NYC
Yuma Uesaka - tenor saxophone and clarinet
James Wengrow - guitar
Mathias Højgaard Jensen - bass
Jerad Lippi - drums
STUDIO RECORDINGS
DROPBEAR LODGE - VICIOUS TWEE
4000 Records
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Martin Kay - alto saxophone, clarinet
James Wengrow - electric guitar
Zac Sakrewski - electric and acoustic bass
Benjamin Shannon - drums
Featured in Bandcamp Daily - Essential Releases of the Week
"A sprightly collage of experimental jazz, heavy prog, math rock, and neoclassical music...
Capitalizing on the strong family ties between math rock and jazz while simultaneously exploiting their structural differences in smart, unique ways." (Zoe Camp/Bandcamp Daily)
JONATHON CROMPTON'S
CANTATA PROJECT:
AN ISLAND SEEN & FELT
Amica Records
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Jonathon Crompton - alto saxophone
James Wengrow - electric guitar
Aine Hakamatsuka - soprano
Rachel Mikol - soprano
Kate Goddard - violin
Masha Polishchuk - violin
Kiley Rowe - viola
Maria Jeffers - cello
Featured in WCKR, ABC Radio National, ABC Classic FM, Spotify's Classical Music Playlist, NY Music Daily, All About Jazz, The Saturday Paper, Forte Magazine, Rhythms Magazine.
"Written for alto saxophone, two sopranos and strings, with electric guitar by James Wengrow, the new work is a breathy, tremulous meditation on the shores of his [Crompton] native Victoria – as well as an exploration of the Australian landscape’s capacity to inspire and ethereal...the ponderous flicker of electric guitar. This unfurling of mysterious textures creates an effect of sunlight glimmering across the sea at sunrise, a dawning surge of soft energy that begins to enter its stride with the soulful gusts of Crompton’s alto saxophone." (Liam Heitmann-Ryce-LeMercier./ The Saturday Paper)
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