Zu
Ferrum Sidereum
House Of Mythology
It’s going to be hard to describe this incredible album without collapsing under the weight of frantic hyperbole, but we’ll give it a try…no, it’s impossible.
This album is incredible; to just call it heavy and unique seems knuckle-headed because it’s a million other things. This album is a meticulous look at the dynamics of music.
Zu are a legendary Italian three-piece experimental avant-jazz-noise rock (sometimes metal) rhythmic explosion, delivering instrumental assaults on the senses that are equal parts hip-shaking and body-rocking. (I guess the hyperbole took over!)
Every twist and turn of this band brings you a new jaw-dropping moment where you do that involuntary, “Ooof” thing. From the monolithically huge saxophone on opener Charagma to the glitched-out feel of AI Hivemind, this is an album you turn on, strap in, and hold on tight for. Now might be the time to tell you that there are only three members of this band who provide bass, drums, percussion, and baritone saxophone, with synths and flute providing welcome and sparse augmentation. Zu has been a legendary act for those who know for years now, famously collaborating with Mike Patton on the Carboniferous album, and this album comes to you from the Ulcer-curated House Of Mythology label.
We’re not going to compare it; there may be a bass part or a drum fill or a sax flourish that reminds you of other bands fleetingly, but that does Zu’s total innovation a disservice. In the same spirit, we’re not going to spend this review giving you a blow-by-blow account of all of the best bits because there are no parts of this album that aren’t the best bits!
If we get one more album this good in 2026, the year will already have been very notable for music.
https://www.facebook.com/vajrazu
Review By George Miller