Band : Zu
Album Title : The Way Of The Animal Powers
Label : Public Guilt
Distributor : Mandai
Release Date : 24/05/2010
Review : CD

The Band Zu comes from a deep Italian Prog/ Avant-Garde feel. The Band is from Rome. They started the band in 1997 compiling the the ideas from composing and theatrical play. The trio consists of: Luca Mai - baritone Saxophone, Massimo Pupillo - bass, and Jacapo Battaglia - drums. Zu has 11 CD’s  along with 2 splits. In 2006 the band toured with the Fantômas Melvins Big Band, a superband which is a fusion of Fantomas and the Melvins.

The fine folks at Public Guilt have seen fit to re-release Zu’s  album The Way Of The Animal Powers on 180 gram b/w swirled vinyl including a fresh remastering by J. Plotkin from the out of print oblivion of Xeng’slabel demise; good thing too, as the album deserves perpetuity.

On the free jazz front, the influence of Ornette Coleman and John Zorn is clear and up front, laying harmonies and melodies that are later used as stations for improvising on and across the border of avant-garde, with atonal, sometimes out of proportion, enriching and unpredicted notes.

But despite being labelled as a jazz album, there are certain factors here that transfer this into being math/noise rock. The most obvious of all is probably the punching rhythm section that manages to deliver an intense beat while not compromising on creativity.

90/100

Cosmicmasseur.