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Post by rfan8312 on May 13, 2018 4:13:44 GMT
I have chosen this album by Italian group Zu, a group I've been listening to for 3 years since discovering them through Spotify.
Incredibly well recorded imo, one of the best albums I know of to show off good gear I think.
I originally thought Carbon is the first track of album, then months later heard the 2 tracks that actually preceed it and found one of them, Cthonian, to be the weakest on the album. Zu are members of Ipecac records owned by Mike Patton of Faith No More. He appears on this album on track Soulympics, and has performed live with group many times.
Certainly not for everyone, in fact I've never got more than a mumble from anyone I've ever showed this album to, but to me, of all the obscure bands I've found, mostly non-vocal, with boat-loads of creativity these guys and this album have stood as the most memorable to me.
There have been times when driving that I really zoned into this, as well as at work while making metal parts on night shift, completely zoned in and so pleased as one song after another, starting at Carbon, really just kicked ass imo and carried on the vibe of the album but in new and interesting ways. The founder of this group is Luca T. Mai and he has started many other side projects including Black Engine and Mombu. Coming from Italy I've heard now nearly ten bands using the baritone saxophone, bass guitar and drums as their core. All putting out some really nice grooves.
This album just pushes all the right buttons for my ears and I did feel it necessary to make this as my album choice.
In my experience this album is virtually unknown, in all circles and forums that I've joined.
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Post by John on May 13, 2018 4:18:37 GMT
Gosh just listened to a clip pretty intense
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Post by rfan8312 on May 13, 2018 15:32:46 GMT
Ye, for me the most intense stuff happens on Erineys, and not in a chaotic fashion to me it sounds like groove and momentum building by extremely capable musicians.
Yet, the finest moments, besides the track Carbon, imo happen near the end within tracks Mimosa Hostilis and Obsidian.
It looks like I messed up and forgot to include a voting table in this thread. Is it possible to still include one?
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Post by John on May 13, 2018 17:44:21 GMT
Good drummer but the rest is a bit too dissonant for me. It certainly shakes the speakers. Definitely getting old I used to listen to a lot of Technical metal, bands like Spastic Ink Behold the Arctopus Spiral Architect and Cynic but this is a lot more industrial but a similar technical ambition
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Post by MartinT on May 15, 2018 5:35:18 GMT
I'm giving this a go now, to accompany my first coffee. Intense, as John says.
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Post by Deleted on May 15, 2018 9:20:16 GMT
Not an album I am at all familiar with, so looking forward to it.
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Post by MartinT on May 15, 2018 9:35:45 GMT
Thanks for introducing me to something new. I'm afraid I can't see myself coming out from behind the sofa to play it again any time soon! It has merit in their musicianship but I find the music itself structurally menacing but without the melodic hooks of, say, Jon Hopkins.
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Post by MartinT on May 15, 2018 9:38:26 GMT
Chthon is an SF novel I read many years ago by Piers Anthony. Is it connected to track 2?
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Post by rfan8312 on May 15, 2018 22:40:51 GMT
Wow very interesting. I did look up that book Cthon by Piers Anthony, and another of his called Pthor. Plot sounds cool, I hope it's written well.
I don't know if Cthonian is a reference to the book Cthon but I think it isn't. Inside the jacket of the CD is a random quote that says "Pan is dead". Not sure if that has anything to do with the book?
Here are a few more tracks from Zu, Mombu, and Mosca Violenta, all Luca Mai projects.
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Post by John on May 16, 2018 4:39:03 GMT
Solar Anus Reminds me a bit of John Zorn Its all a bit too outside for me I need a bit of melody somewhere
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Post by MartinT on May 16, 2018 5:38:14 GMT
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Post by MartinT on May 16, 2018 5:44:20 GMT
I did look up that book Cthon by Piers Anthony, and another of his called Pthor. Plot sounds cool, I hope it's written well. He does write well. I especially liked the Cluster series but they were all good reads. |
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Post by Deleted on May 16, 2018 12:58:28 GMT
2/5 from me too I am afraid, I just can't get on with it. I agree with Martin's assessment around melody, where is it?, it is just noise to me. I have given it a 2 purely for the musicianship, and the feeling that 1 would be a little too harsh.
Sorry Robert, not my thing at all.
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Post by MikeMusic on May 17, 2018 15:30:03 GMT
I thought it would be good from the first few bars then went off it
Reminds me of one of versions of King Crimson which can be difficult listening
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Post by MartinT on May 17, 2018 16:34:41 GMT
By the way, rfan8312 , you should vote for it yourself. |
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Post by rfan8312 on May 18, 2018 4:29:59 GMT
No worries.
Yes Martin, good idea.
When voting on this album I could have gone 4 out 5 or 3 out of 5. I guess when recommending it to anyone it would be silly for me to be blind to, what a few have already pointed out, the lack of melody, something to give meaning to what could be seen as endless meandering of grooves and breakdowns.
I'll give it a 4 because of how well I personally get along with this album, it's right up ONE of my alleys might be a good way to describe it.
If I had to recommend it someone who I am certain doesn't share my musical tastes then a 2 or 3 out of 5 might be more reasonable.
Well, I think I've come to realize that while there is a side of me that is completely in touch with more emotional music experiences, involving melody and lyrics and memories and associations and songs that remind me of humanity and family and good things from the past, there is another side to my musical tastes that is pure thrill seeking in a way.
And I've had that side to my musical tastes for decades now that I think about it that it's really become a true passion hearing non-vocal music that really doesn't leave me with that human emotional experience that I mentioned earlier but instead just triggers my imagination, and tickles my senses in the moment with pleasing or impressive grooves and textures and structures and atmosphere.
Please forgive the endless ramble here but I've finally figured how to put this into words.
To use an analogy of movies, there's movies I like because of how good they make me feel about togetherness with the people in our lives, and those kinds movies I could recommend to anyone knowing they could probably get something from it like a good lesson or good feeling.
Then there's movies like my go-to movie lately called Life starring Ryan Reynolds, Jake Gyllenhaal and Rebecca Ferguson. It's a sci-fi in space small ensemble thriller. I take nearly nothing from the movie other than the thrills but it's just how it was executed that I like so much.
This Zu album has no meaning to me lol in fact I am surprised that I like something like as much as I do. I wonder if I will still like this in 20 or 30 years.
Interestingly enough to me though, the track by Mombu called Niger does not let me go until it has ceased playing. The second and first halves of the song could hardly be more different yet both stun me.
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Post by MartinT on May 18, 2018 7:04:48 GMT
Thanks for describing what it does for you, always fascinating and helps my understanding.
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Post by ChrisB on May 28, 2018 10:48:22 GMT
I'm playing this now.
Interesting, and not entirely impenetrable to me...yet!
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Post by ChrisB on May 28, 2018 12:09:16 GMT
It all became a bit much for me by the time it got around 2/3rd of the way through.
Technically interesting but musically unfulfilling for me.
I gave it a 3.
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