ZEPTO

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Abrasive energy, aggressive darkness and challenging inventiveness - name these three items and you will be summarizing what NeBeLNeST's recent release "ZePTO" is all about. This has to be one of the Top 5 prog albums of the year, and it's really stunning how energetic and cohesive this avant-rock album is, considering that it was conceived and recorded during a long period of crisis, during which an old guitarist stayed for a little more time and then left, another one came in to replace him, and ultimately, the band's nucleus was reduced to Tejedor brothers and drummer Anselmi. Anyway, NeBeLNeST's sound is more focused on Olivier's multiple keyboards than ever before, but it hasn't stopped the band from creating their most ballsy recording so far. Yes, the nuclear trio have managed to concentrate mainly on their most chaotic side of their music and explore it further in order to instill a renewed electrifying energy into the realms of RIO. But that doesn't come out that clear until the second track. The catchy opening track 'Pillars of Birth', built on a robust 5/4 tempo, pretty much follows the path of the previous offering "Nova Express". 'Manjuns' is definitely oriented toward radical disturbance, stating an ambience of semi-controlled anarchy that the musicians deliver with solid efficiency, while challenging each other mercilessly. 'The Old Ones' kind of recycles the spirits of the previous two numbers; it recaptures the swing of track 1, but with a more sinister vibe, which results in a tension similar to that exposed in track 2. A special mention has to go to the keyboard input, essential for the mood of 'The Old Ones'. There is also a noticeable presence of jazz-rock nuances in places, which allows the generation of contrast against the harder-edged sections: Gregory's wickedly distorted bass lines serve as main solidifiers of those aforesaid harder sections. Does the listener want some more anarchy? There is the short 'The Thing in the Walls', that appears to our ears as an endless masochistic nightmare with its random paths that concretize a massive sonic deconstruction. Free-jazz, thrash-metal, radical psychedelia and HC's "In Praise of Learning" RIO: all this and more in less than 2 minutes. Its abrupt end is segued into the more ethnic 'Fabric of Reality': percussive drifts and exotic clarinet flourishes emerge over a krautrock-inspired minimalist series of keyboard layers, until the last minute brings a defying musique concrete display. 'De Triumpho Naturae' and 'Do What Thou Wilt' are the longest tracks in the album. The former is linked to the aleatory coda of 'Fabric', and actually gets started in a similar mood, until a well-ordained crescendo appears, seasoned with a cosmic interlude. The latter has a weird, eerie 4-minute intro, like a subtle hint of scary things to come. Then. they come. The main motif shows a ballsy mixture of classic Present and "Starless and Bible Black"-era KC. The spacey synthesizer ornaments are featured in order to enhance the track's overall surreal essence. The epilogue 'Station 9' portrays the machine-driven world that we live in. The cybernetic aura created by the free flowing of mechanic- sounding keyboards and percussions is full of abstract mystery and creepy intensity. Many of NeBeLNeST connoisseurs were afraid that the band had left the scene for good: we were so wrong. the band was only recreating itself in the dark, waiting to reappear with a vengeance. And so they did: "ZePTO" is a hell of a masterpiece in the current world of RIO.

It is really something when a modern progressive rock band succeeds in charting new territory, retaining what they are without staying tied to what they were. Frenchmen NeBeLNeST have been raising eyebrows and ruffling feathers since their debut in 1999, and shook the prog rock tree again in 2002 with the the raw and rude follow-up 'NoVa eXPReSS', a rumbling wave of heavy post-punk symphonism done with a French sense of panache that made their music refreshing but not at all pompous.

In this third release, a group is heard that has matured, wanting to stretch out and make a music that surprises with every new turn, spewing frantic changes in a stew that toils in trouble and jazzy escapades without losing itself. The compositions are exacting but don't sacrifice immediacy and the result is something startling in its newness, rolling around in the organic side of prog, the entrails of a living thing and the pain of being born.

The record has more keyboard sounds on it than 'NoVa eXPReSS' and at times evokes jazz fusion, though no fusion ever sounded quite this way. Drummer Michael Anselmi, bassist Gregory Tejedor, keyboardist Oliver Tejedor, two guitar players and a clarinet have created something less abrasive and more interesting than NeBeLNeST's previous efforts, layered and smooth, like a good aged brandy. Rock n' roll libertines of the finest kind, this band just can't seem to hit a bad chord and embrace a free spirit of madness, new excitement and the joy of music. Recommended with vigor.

Third album from this French unit that lost their guitarist in the process of recording it. Indeed Cyril Maldarez was replaced by Sebastien Carmona on some tracks, but the latter didn't stay long either, and since he has been replaced with Mathieu Sassier for touring of the album. In either case, one must be quite persistent to hear differences between the first two guitarists. Graphically (the artwork is even using the same rubbles/meteorites) and musically Zepto is a return towards the debut album and I can only applaud for Nova express was a miss for me

Gone is the extremely nihilistic and brutal sound of Nova Express: we return on better-known galaxies where the mythology themes are caught up by the Ozric space themes. The opening Pillars is probably the album's more intriguing track, somehow managing to be accessible and complex, sombre, yet involved. Majnuns continue in the vein, with the bass taking the front role, trapping most other instruments within a spiral of improvisation, which will include the fairly puzzling Boukefa's clarinet parts which induces a Moroccan ambiances that seem to be mostly disruptive for the continuity of the track. Those oriental clarinet parts come back throughout the album, but certainly at the start Old Ones, but they are quickly overrun by a metallic guitar and mellotrons accompanied by a cool jazz-rock guitar. The same oriental clarinet opens the highly ambient Fabric Of Reality and brings a foretaste of Station 9.

Among the more surprising tracks is Do What Thou Will where the groups enters free-jazz improvs under a huge Zeuhlian bass and it will drive your brains on the brink of a meltdown, before returning to a more conventional Nebelnest style. The closing Station 9 is a weird electronic rock piece that seems to hesitate between early Tangerine Dream, Kraftwerk or Kluster

This third album clearly is a step forward on the debut album and will not give itself easily to the proghead, but ultimately with repeated listening it might end up as Nebelnest's defining and definitive statement. A fine return to affair after a weaker album.

More room to breathe on this album when compared to their last one,and more experimental and avant- garde too.Less mellotron as well.So yeah i much prefer the previous record "Nova Express" but having said all that, this is an excellent album and a solid 4 stars.Some of these songs blend together as well.The darkness is still very prominant on this one.The band thanks Bob Drake,Dave Kerman and Roger Trigaux among others. "Pillars Of Birth" opens with lots of atmosphere and mellotron.Drums come pounding in before a minute and with them a full sound.I like the guitar that follows but it's brief.It settles before 2 minutes as the contrasts continue.Love the guitar before 3 minutes and the mellotron before 6 minutes. "Majnuns" is pastoral to open but it starts to get heavier with piano.Check out the filthy bass lines! Dissonant guitar before 2 minutes.It settles then kicks back in before ending with more dissonance. "The Old Ones" opens with percussion and ethnic sounds before it kicks into gear.Some nice mellotron waves before a minute, and a beautiful soundscape after 1 1/2 minutes as it comes back.Some good intricate guitar.Growly bass and piano 3 1/2 minutes in.It settles with drums and mellotron to end it. "The Thing In The Walls" has a fairly dissonant soundscape with chunky bass and pounding drums.Some raw guitar too. "Fabric Of Reality" opens with percussion and other sounds.It becomes rather haunting before 2 minutes,very eerie.This song blends into "De Thriumpho Naturae" which kicks into gear unexpectantly before a minute.It settles again with bass,drums and mellotron standing out.Back to a fuller sound as the contrasts continue.Organ after 4 minutes with mellotron floods to follow.The guitar comes in loudly around 6 minutes. "Do What Thou Wilt" features some experimental noodling with some bottom end as well.Nice.Clarinet 2 minutes in and a dissonant section.We start to get a melody after 4 1/2 minutes but it's still pretty chaotic.This is really avant- garde man! This song blends into "Station 9" which is kind of spacey to start then the relentless drums take over with percussion too.This is another "far out" track if you know what i mean. This is a challenging and adventerous release that will please those who like thier music to be as far from the mainstream as possible.