Two and a half years ago, Zolder Ellipsis released their debut album Entropy Override, a reimagination of a Frank Zappa album. It was heady and also heavy stuff, not always accessible but definitely with its moments of reward. Now they are back with Il Libro Dei Tropi, with the leitmotif being “troping” this time. This means taking something which exists and adding your own voice. In the context of this album, different subgenres of jazz are reevaluated with the band’s singular ideas.

The album opens with Sketch A, a six-minute improvisational track where the musicians can give free reign to their inspiration. This is the Zolder Ellipsis that I know from their debut: complex music that doesn’t even try to be catchy. All of this changes with the second track Night Crossing, a thoroughly composed piece of music that merges funky jazz rock with the offbeat humour of certain Rock in Opposition bands. Passed The Storm is channelling the spirit of later Canterbury bands such as National Health and Gilgamesh, conjuring the whimsical melancholy of that era. Feel Like A Man is full on funk assault. Another highlight is the seven-minute-long Brunette which could also have come from Mr. Bungle in the second half of the 1990s. Lydian Riff is a first vocal song, with lyrics written by poetess Eunsong Kim and spoken/sung by Esther Mugambi. This is a somewhat dark yet also enchanting sounding track that reminds me of Art Bears’ political material. There is also a surreal AI generated video clip for that track that can be watched on the band’s Bandcamp page. Esther Mugambi can also be heard on the second vocal song The Purge which has more of a soul flair. Undertow is a wonderful piece of progressive jazz rock that reminds me of some Brad Mehldau stuff I have come across. The album ends with Sketch C (Quell), another improvisational piece, this time nearly a quarter hour long.

I really love the nine middle songs, which make for two thirds of the album. The improvisations are also nice but can’t quite keep up with the ultra-varied yet also surprisingly catchy shorter tracks. Zolder Ellipsis may be the brainchild of keyboarder/composer Tom Aldrich, but he’s giving equal if not even more space for his guitarist Sean Moran. It’s this balance between keyboards and guitar that make sure that Il Libro Dei Tropi never has a boring moment. It is obvious that a lot of thought has gone into this album, which was recorded over the space of only three days, and it translates into a wonderful jazz rock album brimming with avantgarde spirit.

11 tracks

59:38 minutes

***** ****

Genre: avant progressive jazz rock

Label: Lizard

Artist pages:
Bandcamp