Progger

Progger are playing Monks Jazz Club on Friday, August 28, with two shows on the same night. The band is led by Brian Donohoe, who plays saxophone and keyboards, and the lineup for the evening is Matt Muehling and Chris McQueen on guitar, Matt Weatherly on bass, and Daniel Watson on drums. The night is billed as a live-taping and listening-room concert, so it's a bit more than a standard set.

Progger started as a jam session in south Austin and has since grown into a trans-continental group of musicians and composers. They describe their instrumental music as written and performed by humans, with nothing outsourced to generative software. The members are touring and session musicians who have worked with major names like Jon Batiste and Bruno Mars, as well as Austin regulars like the Black Pumas, Jackie Venson, and Gary Clark Jr.

They've released four studio albums through Ropeadope Records: Scattering and Dystopia followed their first two independently released records, Beatmaker and Populace. Their fifth album, Chronology, was recorded at Church House Studio in east Austin during October 2025, with members of the extended Progger family flying in from New York, Los Angeles, and Japan to track it. This show is one of the first times you'll hear that material live.

There are two sets to choose from: the first has doors at 7 PM and the show at 7:30 PM, and the second has doors at 9 PM and the show at 9:30 PM. Tickets are available at tickets.monksjazz.com.