Artist: Blonde Zeros
Label: El Gallo Rojo
Release: 2010
Runtime: 58:09
Rating: 4.1/5
How do you make music today? With all the music that already exists, with every sound that’s been coaxed out of instruments in countless combinations, how do you come up with something fresh and new? And, even harder, how do you make that fresh, new music harmonious and listenable? That was the central question for Italian psychedelic jazz-core outfit Blonde Zeros. Their debut “God Fried Finger” has been a long time coming, since the band has been terrorizing stages of all kinds with their avant-garde noise for a while now, some of them in Slovenia too. The album features a whole crowd of guest musicians, including Slovenian Blaž Celarec, who not only lends the band his percussion skills but also recorded the entire record at his Attic Studio.
“Gid Fried Finger” is definitely an album that’s hard to get into. The avant-garde side is woven together with a minimalist “less is more” streak, while at the same time we hear jazz standards that the musicians take the scenic route to deliver to our ears. The minimalist parts are full of the sounds of everyday objects, like scissors, a bell, kitchenware and a chain. But most of their music is either soaked in seemingly random cymbal noise, organic keyboard sounds and distorted guitar grips, or else full of the natural sounds of stringed instruments of every kind and pleasant woodwinds; the music comes out either terrifyingly creepy or deeply emotional. By building up the tracks, the musicians give their creations more and more meaning, and what’s more, they always end up with a complete shape. The driving force of the whole album is the bass guitar and drums, which don’t so much serve as a rhythm section as the very essence and soul of the music, steering individual songs in the direction these two instruments set for them. And just a few subtle touches can carry the music from high-energy beats into a sad, melancholic “melody”. There’s hardly any of that to speak of, yet everything sounds connected, full, interesting. Listening isn’t easy, but at the right moment and in the right mood it opens up a world of emotions and, at the same time, incredible imagination and free interpretation.
The journey through “God Fried Finger” is long and at times grueling, but it’s varied and, even if it doesn’t feel that way on first listen, rewarding. It covers every genre imaginable, from stoner prog through avant-garde minimalism to jazz fusion. The wide array of guests contribute a huge amount, giving the tracks their personality and final shape. Sadly, many listeners will be put off by the experimental, avant-garde nature of the “blondes'” music. While listening, you get the feeling the album was deliberately steered that way to steer as clear of commercial waters as possible. Still, credit to the band for managing to create something different, even if that’s often just for the sake of being different. Innovation-wise they’re right up there, plenty of the “anti-melodies” are pulled off successfully and, last but not least, are pleasant to the ear. Unfortunately, at times these fade into a miserable need to be as much of an alternative to today’s music as possible, and I can only thank them that more often than not the soul of the music, the heart and a good ear win out. And that’s what matters most.
Lineup
Massimiliano Sorrentini – drums
Danilo Gallo – bass guitar
feat. Giorgio Pacorig – keyboards
Guest musicians:
Enrico Terragnoli – guitar
Maria Vicentini – various stringed instruments
Piero Bittolo Bon – woodwinds and brass
Blaž Celarec – percussion
Laura Copiello – vocals
Production
Massimiliano Sorrentini
Tracklist
1. Pat Garrett & Billy The End (Sorrentini)
2. Bugs (Sorrentini)
3. Neuenburgerstrasse (Gallo)
4. Elizabeth Dane (Sorrentini)
5. Sarabande (cello suite n. 5 – J.S. Bach)
6. Brighton Hill (Sorrentini)
7. Jena Plissken (Sorrentini, Bittolo Bon)
8. Program Zond (Sorrentini)
9. Goodbye Venezia (Gallo)
10. Electronic Peperoni (Gallo)
