Artist: Zao
Label: Musea
Released: 1973
Rating: 4.3/5
Zao was born when Yochk’o Seffer and Faton Cahen decided to leave Magma. Both had worked on the album 1001° Centigrades, each adding their share to the finished piece. But then producer Giorgio Gomelsky decided that Magma should become the property of Christian Vander, who had already been the driving creative force before, though he’d still left room for the other members. Seffer and Cahen wanted to write their own music too, so they chose to walk away from Magma. Still, there was no bad blood between Vander and the freshly minted Zao-men, since the guys are still good friends who breathe for similar music.
The same year Magma put out their first real zeuhl release, Mekanik Destruktiw Komandoh, Seffer and Cahen, together with a crew of new jazz musicians, released their own take on zeuhl, which differed quite a bit from Magma’s, though it still kept a few elements of that better-known band. While Christian Vander took a big step forward in terms of bombast and innovation, the two main players of this new group decided to carry on with the style of Magma’s first two albums. So, Z=7L is jazzier, mellower, more accessible, or at least it would be if it weren’t for the atonal vocalizations of Mauricia Platon, which you’ll definitely need to get used to. At first I couldn’t listen to her at all, I was downright embarrassed for her. How dare she make such a racket? But as tends to happen with good things, persistence paid off. Now her vocal is my favorite part, giving this album a uniqueness that would otherwise be harder to uncover.
Zao don’t actually play zeuhl, really. What they play is jazz-rock with heavy avant-garde influences. Even the operatic vocals are sung more in a “scat” style than a classical one. You can also spot the influence of Eastern European folk music. Much like with Magma, Seffer brought in a few scraps from his old homeland here too, Hungary. You can hear it in the bouncier parts, where the melodic dance music of the eastern neighbors crosses paths with jazz and avant-garde, and the neurotic operatic vocal throws in even more chaos. A crazy mess that, amazingly, works great, and works even better as something original.
Z=7L will probably appeal most to those who dig Magma’s early period. It’s basically a kind of missing link between 1001° Centigrades and Mekanik Destruktiw Komandoh. The music leans heavily toward jazz (like Magma’s first two albums), while the vocals, much like on MDK, are operatic and avant-garde. Zao leave more room for improvisation. The compositions are pretty loose, so there’s nothing stopping everyone from soloing on every instrument imaginable. Seffer especially shines here, switching between various woodwinds without breaking a sweat, playing them like they’re extensions of his mouth. Cahen’s style is looser and less noticeable, but no less important for it. His refined piano passages are a feast for the ears. Every now and then the violinist steps into the spotlight too, proving that Ponty isn’t the only Frenchman who can play fusion on the violin. Truong is a beast on drums, a true jazzer who always makes sure the energy never fades. The vocal parts may be sung in an operatic style, but they’re so odd and dissonant that Magma can hide in shame. Magma’s vocals are pure balm for the ears by comparison. Maurica Platon sings melodies with such sharp jumps from one note to the next that on first listen it all sounds like total chaos. But the more often you hear her lines, the clearer it becomes that they make sense and that they’re seriously original.
Zao may not be as refined on this album as Magma on MDK (except for Cahen), but they make up for it with originality and a good dose of imagination. The tracks are mostly good, but I think that without the off-the-wall vocals this wouldn’t be nearly as high-quality a release. Mauricia Platon is the tipping point that sets Zao apart from average jazz-rock bands and lifts them on this album into an appealing zeuhl act. Her value is especially obvious on later Zao releases, where her absence is glaring and left a big hole in the lineup.
Lineup
François Cahen: electric piano, piano
Yochk’o Seffer: saxophone, clarinet;
Joël Dugreno: bass
Jean-Yves Rigaud: electric violin
Jean-My Truong: drums
Mauricia Platon: vocals
Production
Zao
Track List
1. Marochsek — 7:13
2. Ataturc — 5:49
3. Ronach — 4:39
4. Atart — 3:31
5. La Soupe — 7:20
6. Satanyia — 6:46
Album Length: 35:56
