Ultra Zook - EPUZZ (Gnougn - Human Feather, 2013)

It's the second EP of this French group. Their first EP named EPUZ (only one Z) was already excellent. However this new EP is more immediately catchy, partially because it shows a lot of enthusiasm which is very contagious. Moreover the first EP uses several times Electro tones a little cheap, which may deter the first listening before fully appreciate their use in the context. This second EP also has a more Rock color and less Electro due to the sound pallete used.

It is not obvious to classify their music, however I would say that this last EP has several links with the recent evolutions of Math Rock. Rather than to explain these evolutions of the genre I am rather going to quote some albums, Battles - Gloss Drop, Hair - 1000 Thousand, Pneu - Highway To Health but also Zach Hill - Face Tat. This EPUZZ EP has some kinships with both first ones. They share an enthusiastic approach, an effort to also be catchy and not only ambitious, and they don't hesitate to use influences from various genres and even to use some vocal. They even have all  a distant influence from West Indian musics, but it's not Zouk.

This last EP of Ultra Zook also has one or two tracks with aspects a little Jazz, or more exactly links with Free Rock with links with Jazz and influenced by Free Jazz, as for example, Zu vs. Mats Gustafsson - how To Raise An Ox, Zu - Igneo, or even in other styles Zu - The Way of The Animal Powers, Blurt - The Kenny Rogers Greatest hit, Mombu - Mombu, or very appart but a reference for the games between (true) Jazz and various genres of Rock, the album Naked City - Naked City … I think I have fulfilled the goal of the number of reference citations per month, but if there is a real link with one or two tracks of this Ultra Zook EP, it would be especially with the first two quoted, and rather distant links. : -) Furthermore all those albums are sometimes a little bit experimental, a pitfall which avoids carefully Ultra Zook with a constant effort to catch the listening even in the more adventurous parts, it's a point shared with the Naked City album quoted above.

But this is only some aspects of this EP, there are maybe some other influences or significant kinships which I forgot or don't know, the point is this EP is very free and creative. It's little Math Rock not sounding like Math Rock, inventive and deliberately enthusiastic and catchy. In brief, it is an excellent EP with its own style and knowing how to merge ambition and seduction. It's even two excellent EP but the second is more immediately catchy.

To listen : Band's  bandcamp page. Or 135k vbr preview.
To support the artists: Buy the 12" vinyl or digital.

Where all of this is going if nobody buy the music? Be fair, buy the music you like dig.