b r a n d o n

Shouldn't that be ZePTo? Capitalization nitpicks aside, NeBeLNeST's long-awaited third album doesn't take too many missteps, which is impressive for several reasons. ZePTO was recorded over a rather tumultuous period in the band's history — since their second album, they have gone through three guitarists; it faces the difficult task of living up to said second album's rather impressive reputation; and, most importantly, it moves forward and breaks new ground for the band. Far from a rehash of Nova Express' powerful but relatively linear brand of zeuhl-inflected instrumental space-prog, ZePTO is much less consonant and a fair bit more challenging. On the surface, the punishing, zeuhlish rhythm section still pounds away, but with so much turnover at the guitar spot, much of this album focuses on the magnificently skewed keyboard work of Olivier Tejedor. At a more profound level, the compositions here are far more likely to spin off in unexpected directions, and reveal a certain affinity for free improv that hearkens back to the looser debut album. Opener "Pillars of Birth" functions as a kind of bridge from Nova Express to ZePTO, sounding like it could have been an outtake from the former; but it quickly segues into the quite different "Majnuns." This, my favorite track on the record, opens with hauntingly processed keyboards and percussion before delving headlong into a subterranean adventure effectively punctuated by ominous piano tinklings. Several unpredictable twists and turns later, the song bursts into a crushing denouement, driven by bass and wheezing synths, that would do Yeti proud. And from there, the album only moves further from the band's previously occupied territory — indeed, the latter half of the album is still more unconventional and dissonant, but never at the expense of power and musicality. While ZePTO conjures mental images of the usual suspects like Magma, King Crimson and so on, there is also a hint of psychedelia a la Älgarnas Trädgård, something that was present on the debut album but faded into the background on Nova Express; and also at least a passing resemblance to Happy Family on a couple of the later, more obtuse tracks (namely, the loping, irregular bass and whiny synths of "Do What Thou Wilt"). In the end, though, ZePTO sees NeBeLNeST coming into a style of their own, one that resists obvious comparison to what came before. If it's rougher around the edges than the spectacular Nova Express, it offers up more surprises and unexpected pleasures, which bodes well for its place in the band's eventual legacy. review by Brandon Wu — 11-20-06 —