Inzinzac
Inzinzac

Release Date: 2011 | Tracklist

In describing obscure Philadelphia underground outfit Inzincac’s homonymous debut release, a reviewer typified their sound as “Rough-edged, cerebral music that shares common elements with Balkan, jazz, free improvisation, and rock ... [with] traces of Ivo Papasov, Soft Machine, and perhaps 70s Miles Davis.”. A fascinating set of influences indeed, from infamous Cantebury scene legends Soft Machine to a Bulgarian clarinettist apparently responsible for pioneering the genre of ‘wedding-band music’. Granted, this individual wasn’t necessarily far off, considering the description accorded to Inzinzac debut record by one of the group’s three members: virtuoso drummer Eli Litwin. He characterised the band’s sound as follows: “Rock, New Music, Free Jazz and the rhythms and tonalities of Eastern European music.”. Nevertheless, purely based on these short characterisations it remains difficult to fully comprehend exactly what sort of sonic concoction Inzinzac is brewing on their eponymous debut. If I had to personally typify their sound, I would describe it as an expert fusion of math-rock and free jazz mixed with hints of brutal prog and avant-prog sprinkled in for good measure. Or to put it simply: it’s extraordinarily peculiar.

To elucidate on the “rock side” of the band’s sound, it is fundamentally related to the type of experimental math-rock found within the oeuvres other outfits such as Yowie, Grand Ulena, Ahleuchatistas and Hyrrokkin: an idiosyncratic and highly dynamic form of rock music with an emphasis on oddly-timed rhythms, polymetricity, frequent use of syncopation and break-neck staccato passages. Exemplary of this would be the thrusting, Easter European infused opening rhythms of ‘Chapi Chapo’ or the climatic ending of sequences of ‘Dobro’. The drum and bass barrages Inzinzac provides on this record are nothing short of invigorating, especially given the band’s compositional two sidedness: as the complex interplay of math-rock drum and bass alongside avant-garde jazz saxophone move across the musical stages of each composition, one is continuously thrusted into a state of anxiety, not knowing which musical avenue the band will enter next and whether that avenue is a product of meticulous arrangement or brought about entirely extemporaneously. Drummer Eli Letwin’s eccentric, highly sophisticated syncopated percussion is simultaneously overwrought with furore: his drumming is sensationally vociferous and frenetic, overwhelming and full of attitude. The same can be said of Alban Bailly whose mellifluous yet hard-hitting atonal guitar work blends perfectly with Letwin’s percussive fusillades and Scofield’s chaotic dextrous playing. Indeed, Inzinzac is a well-oiled musical machine.

Speaking of Scofield’s saxophone playing, his performance on both alto and soprano is nothing short of fantastic: those familiar with Coltrane’s free jazz days or more esoteric players like Albert Ayler will surely love his style. His range is mesmerizing and his performances steal the show on multiple occasions, especially on tracks such as ‘Otis’ and ‘Lemurien’. Scofield perfectly interweaves gorgeous extended solo passages, furious staccato squawks and intense copper scorchers into the aural tapestry laid out by Letwin and Bailly’s scintillating guitar and drum interplay. Whenever these three definitively come together in a moment of glorious brutal-progesque cacophony, it’s truly a sight to behold. Couple the players' fantastic chemistry with an absolutely massive production job, which especially gives the drums and saxophone a wonderfully brisk and intense sound and what you end up with is indubitably an experimental math-rock tour-de-force. Really, the only thing actually holding back this record, is Inzinzac’s regrettable tendency to offer the listeners a few moments of ultimately unnecessary reprieve. The band has a propensity for suddenly slipping into an interlude completely killing the momentum of any given track, and what doesn’t help is the outfit’s tendency to overstay their welcome within that musical limbo as they keep inexplicably lingering there: a silence so deafening it softens the impact of the eventual storm. What is more, the band’s soud, although highly intense at times, is nowhere near as sonically excessive as some of their even more atonal and dissonant peers. However, this criticism is but minor and there are truly moments on this album glowing with musical brilliance.

This makes it even more unfortunate that such a musical collaboration as Inzinzac came to a premature end almost seven years ago, leaving us with a mere 48 minutes of their idiosyncratic musical musings. All of this notwithstanding, this record remains an indisputably unique, excellently cohesive and tightly performed slab of experimental music, that is sure to appeal to anyone even remotely interested in the stranger side of the musical underground, whether it’s exotic the sounds of the Balkan, fierce avant-garde jazz, intense math-rock, impromptu sonic exploration or just plain unshackled and uncompromising musical expression you are looking for, this record will surely be capable of pressing all the right buttons in all the right ways.

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3.8 excellent

Rank: #0 for 2011