Zack Oakley to Release Kommune I LP March 2
Man, this shit smokes. Did you hear Zack Oakley‘s Fall 2021 solo debut, Badlands (review here)? If not, I’ll kindly, in a spirit of friendship, recommend you do so ahead of the arrival of Kommune I, Oakley‘s somewhat counterintuitively titled (at first) second full-length. Set to release March 2 through Oakley’s own Kommune Records, with “Look Where We Are Now” and closer “Demon Run” featuring that were each previously released as singles — the latter accompanied by a Nina Simone cover — Kommune I brings five tracks loaded with reminders that the reason you can’t find all the nerdiest and thus best prog, heavy rock, funk, psych, jazz and/or Afrobeat — yes, so Demon Fuzz — records used out there in stores is because Oakley has so obviously bought them all and absorbed their contents through some kind of magical osmosis that uses technology I don’t understand and so I’ll just have to call either “magic” or “talent.” Whichever you choose, Kommune I is loaded with both.
Oakley (ex-Joy, Pharlee, Volcano; he sat in with Earthless last month for a set; that feels like it should be a line on the CV) also has a band together, and his own studio/rehearsal space — Kommune Studios — where the live-sounding album was captured. This seems to me like he’s setting himself up for a longer-term dig-in here as regards solo fare rather than passing the time between other ‘band’ outings, and in fact, I wouldn’t be surprised if live shows from the Zack Oakley Band became more of a thing over time, as the energy in Kommune I from “We Want You to Dance” (a direct address to an audience at the start) feels entirely geared for the stage even as the songs themselves take on different facets of Oakley‘s songwriting.
The PR wire brought info, but what you really want is the songs. Those are at the bottom. Release show is March 2 at Casbah in San Diego. Behold:
“Kommune 1” is the 2nd full length album from San Diego multi-instrumentalist, engineer and producer Zack Oakley.
The record explores gang vocal harmonization, bass and drum polyrhythms found in afro-beat and latin jazz, walls of sound produced by dueling twin guitar lines harmonizing against Fender Rhoades and B3 counterpoint, earth tones of harmonica and a wide range of world-music hand percussion set to a backdrop of kinetic psychedelic energies supplied by droning, echoing and modulating theremin and synthesizers. This record showcases a live band versed in improvisation while making playful use of stressed harmony and the ability to execute tight arrangements with razor sharp clarity. Lyrically, Kommune 1 modulates between the political (We Want You To Dance), existential (Hypnagogic Shift, Demon Run), science fiction (Further) and the dance party relief of the mid-album lysergic funk of “Look Where We Are Now.”
Kommune 1 finds its glue in the recording workflow; all five tracks being recorded in DIY fashion in the band’s rehearsal room in San Diego. The room, dubbed “Kommune Studios,” is a cozy, windowless affair stacked with vintage drum sets, amplifiers and synthesizers at the heart of which lies a late 70’s 24-track Trident recording console. The room itself represents creative freedom, as well as freedom from any outsider expectation and the insular comfort to follow any creative impulse to its fruition or naught. The tunes were recorded and mixed in the last few months of 2023 and are indicative of a band humming with inspiration and captured on specifically curated analog gear in the comfortable surroundings of their rehearsal headquarters.
The album is aptly named Kommune 1 as the first album recorded in the band’s homegrown studio.
Track List:
1.) We Want You To Dance
2.) Further
3.) Look Where We Are Now
4.) Hypnagogic Shift
5.) Demon Run
Personnel:
Zack Oakley – vocals, guitar, percussion, tracking engineer, mix engineer, producer
Cory Martinez – vocals, guitar, synth, tracking engineer
Peter Cai – vocals, bass
Travis Baucum – vocals, harmonica, theremin
Garret Lekas – vocals, keys, synth
Justin De La Vega – vocals, drums
Jody Bagly – B3, rhoades
Tim Lowman – flute
Release show for Kommune 1 is at @casbahsandiego on Saturday March 2nd. Excited to play the new record start to finish for the first time. Got an insane crew together for this one! @wildwildwets @freshveggiesmicrobrass and @operation_mindblow meet us there!
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https://www.instagram.com/zack.oakley/
https://zackoakley.bandcamp.com/
https://zackoakley.com/
https://kommunerecords.bandcamp.com/
http://www.kommunerecords.com
