The musical strength of Zen Land lies in the fascinating and original use of transporting colorful raga-like patterns in a jazzy mood combined to powerful textured electronics and softly driven ambiences.
Zen Land is a high standard musical collective which features a bunch of well known artists from the international independent scene. Michael Zentner is a pioneering artist in the world of avant-garde, electronic and jazz rock music and has notably performed with notorious artists for alternative and mainstream audiences. In this adventurous musical procession, Zentner is accompanied by solid skilled artists such as Tim Young, the talented fretless bass player Doug Lunn, the multifaceted artist Dean de Benedictis and Vonette Yanaginuma.
The musical strength of Zen Land lies in the fascinating and original use of transporting colorful raga-like patterns in a jazzy mood combined to powerful textured electronics and softly driven ambiences. The result slightly resonates as a contemporary version of a few materials coming from ECM, notably the work of Steve Tibbetts. Moodily introspective guitar arpeggios dialogues with enchanting and spring-like wind instruments, foggy keyboards chords like in the shimmering and progressive inflected piece “Vong” and the poetically nostalgic and mysteriously enthralling “Song Long.” Some parts features clear Eastern-sounding like elements with psychedelic minimalist-like tendencies and groovy raga ornaments like in the krauty and Gottsching-esque “Zong.” The slowly moving and deeply emotional guitar motifs are quite addictive, almost bring tears in the epilog track with its timeless dreamy cinematic atmosphere.
To sum up things Zen Land is a gorgeous electronic-world jazz album which possesses wondrous meditative sounds and distant melodies for a large ensemble of instruments and effects. Serene, sonic, warm and multidimensional shoegazing world-ambient jazz. Essential listening.
Zen Land is available on Warped. [iTunes / CD Baby]
