Mandi
People Places, 2024
9/10
The Canadian native and UK resident David Zucchi pens an iconoclastic version of jazz here, where Flavia Silano, Emma Purslow and Paul Zucchi contribute to the 8 unclassifiable tracks.
“Intro/National Anthem” opens, and is a retro recording of fuzz, soft piano and a youngster’s voice, and “Salve Regina” follows with manipulated sax gestures amid a mesmerizing ambience of electronics and Paul’s warm piano.
At the halfway point, “Notte Silenziosa” unfolds via a hazy presence alongside the child’s voice, while “Cemút Staial?” seems like a field recording in French against dreamy background keys.
“Mandi” and “Away” exit the listen. The former recruits a charming beat, soulful sax and a very cozy landscape that is the album’s best, and the latter swirls with a collage of electronics and layered, background talking.
An artistic body of work that seems like a family photo album set to music, Zucchi plays with jazz, ambient, electronic, experimental, and classical ideas that are intriguing in a minimal sort of way.
Travels well with: Kamra- Shift Circuit; Leslie Ting- What Brings You In