ZOPP - Zopp

A rigorous, elaborate prog-rock approach steeped in Canterbury flavour marks the debut album from Zopp, a project born out of an idea by musician Ryan Stevenson and developed with the help of musicians of notable pedigree, such as Andrea Moneta of Leviathan, and two members of the band The Tangent, namely Andy Tillison and Theo Travis.

It's hardly news that the progressive music scene has been enjoying a resurgence, rehabilitated after years of being ostracised by rock critics, who condemned its opulence and sonic grandiosity. After all, the retro nature of prog music isn't conceptually all that different from the creative attitudes found across much of today's production landscape, made up of countless stylistic micro-niches with retro leanings, which survive and thrive thanks to the one contemporary element that sets their genesis apart, for better or worse: the near-disappearance of the major record industry and, as a result, greater freedom for musicians.

For Ryan Stevenson, this album represents the culmination of a love affair with the Canterbury sound that began almost twenty years ago, after the then-fifteen-year-old English boy stumbled upon an Egg record his father had loaded onto the computer, an event that sparked the musician's curiosity, leading eventually to the discovery of the album destined to change young Ryan's life forever, namely "The Rotter's Club" by Hatfield And The North.

The musical background of Zopp's leader doesn't stop at this simple infatuation: in his career as a composer of scores for films and documentaries, Ryan Stevenson came into contact with the noble art of Steve Reich's minimalism and with the grandeur of Igor Stravinsky's music, further enriching his already abundant melodic palette.

Organs (preferably Korg), synths, fuzz and wah wah pedals form the backbone of the sound across the nine tracks, all perfectly balanced between jazz and progressive rock, whose retro nature doesn't undermine the project's overall effectiveness, thanks to the skilled hand of Andy Tillison, who smoothed out the rough edges and did away with some unnecessary instrumental overdubbing, letting the author's strong melodic and compositional instincts take centre stage.

Add to this the occasional guest contributions from Theo Travis (flute), Caroline Joy Clarke (vocals) and Mike Benson (tenor sax), who add precious details to the record's instrumental and harmonic fabric.

A lovable and in many ways engaging record, "Zopp" wins you over above all with its light touch, never pretentious. Ryan Stevenson and Andrea Moneta (ultimately the band's true core) often capture the essence of Hatfield And The North's or National Health's music ("Before The Light", "Before The Light"), flirt with ambient and neoclassical suggestions on the murky "Sellanrå", and turn bold on the more elaborate "V", racking up plenty of worthwhile moments for genre enthusiasts.

At times the musicians try to inject energetic textures that betray a hard-rock nature ("Eternal Return"), or let themselves get carried away by superfluous prog digressions ("Sanger"), in the process exposing some creative limitations, most noticeable in the occasionally basic and rough keyboard tones, which also taint a few good ideas ("Swedish Love").

Setting aside the nostalgic charm of Zopp's music, there's no denying that, beyond a few minor cracks (the mannered flourishes of tracks like "Being And Time" and "Zero"), this debut is a breath of fresh air for genre lovers, who will be willing to forgive a bit of naivety and the occasional dip in quality. Still, it must be said that this album risks becoming a creative unicum, offering little in the way of future development — but for now, we'll bow to the logic of carpe diem.

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25/04/2020