At first glance, it may seem surprising that Through the Looking Glass marks the sixth release from Chaos Magick, the quartet featuring Matt Hollenberg on guitar, Brian Marsella on Fender Rhodes, John Medeski on organ, and Kenny Grohowski on drums. This is especially notable given that the project began as an offshoot of the organ-metal trio Simulacrum, which itself has a substantial discography.
On the other hand, Chaos Magick is an outfit put together in 2020 by John Zorn to play his compositions and variations thereof. And given the composer’s long-standing practice of recontextualizing his own material, maybe it should not be surprising that this murderer’s row lineup of musicians can stretch out his tunes and sketches into long jams.
Like its predecessors, Through The Looking Glass blends elements of classical, jazz-funk, metal, and free improvisation. But the output is much jazzier and open than most of Simulacrum’s output. Nonetheless, even these lengthy pieces reflect Zorn’s jump-cuts between tunefulness and blowouts. A typical passage may begin with eerie minimalism, soft organ tones, and brushed drums, and then suddenly erupt into a dense fusion of riffing and electric jazz chaos, before receding back into quieter moments of restraint.
Whether a sixth Chaos Magick album is essential will depend on one’s appetite for Zorn’s iterative aesthetic. We have heard its main themes before. But even with that said, Through The Looking Glass is a very enjoyable listen and I’m glad that it exists. The abrupt shifts in tempo, tonality, and texture, as well as an unusual lyricism, exhibit a strange form of joy – even as the thematic premise of the music is rooted in the occult.
Yet another worthwhile and compelling addition to the Tzadik Cinematic Universe.
