Italian mutant jazz-metal no-wavers Zu have been plying their bludgeoning trade in the underground for a decade, but it seems that they are finally receiving some widespread attention now that they are signed to Mike Patton's Ipecac label. In the past, they have collaborated with a staggering and varied array of folks, ranging from free jazz icons to members of Can, The Stooges, the Ex, Sonic Youth, and Dälek. On Carboniferous, they largely opt to go it alone, although Mike Patton and King Buzzo make somewhat dubious contributions.
Zu inhabit the eclectic and adventurous, yet not easily definable, niche made up of artists like Last Exit, Naked City, Massacre, and Ruins. Naturally, they are undeniably proficient instrumentalists (like all of their kindred spirits). However, they work with a fairly limited palette (sax, drums, and bass), so whom they choose to collaborate with has a significant effect on the quality and direction of their albums. In the past, Zu have made some impressive albums with folks like Ken Vandermark and Mats Gustafsson. However, their collaborations here with Mike Patton don't work quite so well (listen to "Soulympics" for rather damning evidence of this). Lamentably, Carboniferous takes something of an unwelcome stylistic detour from their past successes and largely jettisons their previous chaotic free-jazz influence in favor of a highly structured, Helmet-like metallic crunch.
The album starts off impressively enough, as "Ostia" features a heavy fuzzed-out bass line, propulsive and inspired drumming, and some squealing free jazz saxophone pyrotechnics. Unfortunately, however, it quickly falls prey to all of the things that annoy me about this genre: abrupt song shifts, zero subtlety, and no focus on melody or songcraft. Everything is virtuosically tight, of course, but that really cannot carry an album. Also, it is striking that there are not any amazingly intricate (or even just "cool") riffs or solos on this album (although the drum fills on "Erinys" and a few other tracks are intermittently brilliant). If what replaced them was really great, I would probably commend Zu on their restraint and lack of self-indulgence. Instead, the album is loaded with mid-nineties metalcore grooves (sans guitars and an angry shouting person).
Additionally, Luca Mai's saxophone playing is a bit frustrating throughout Carboniferous, as he seems to limit himself to either chromatic squealing and squonking or simple repeating lines that syncopate with the rhythm section. This syncopation would be great if there were some other instrument taking over melodic duties, but there usually isn't. Consequently, many songs feel like really heavy and dexterous unfinished song sketches. Also, instances of melody are few and far between here ("Beata Viscera" is a charitable representation of this predicament), which has the unfortunate effect of making all the songs blur together into one endless mosh part that could pass for a lost recording of a jam between Prong and Morphine.
That said, Zu are an generally an excellent and incendiary band. I'm sure that they would tear my damn head off if I saw them live, but Carboniferous does not document them at their best. I would recommend How To Raise An Ox or Radiale over this or just wait for them to play in your town. I'm sure Zu will get past their current single-minded fixation on being as tight and bludgeoning as possible and return with an amazing follow-up soon. They have few peers in terms of intuitive improvisory cohesion, so this questionable stylistic experiment has probably already been abandoned or evolved upon.
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