Experimental post rock is a genre that can the kill a mainstream party in less than a minute, but English musician Glenn O'Halloran can steer the adventurous listener to the dance floor with some of the songs on Walking Quickly Standing Still, the latest album by his Dogzen Zendog. Dub, Krautrock, a bit of jazz all come together in tracks like Bill's Great Day and Hi-Fi Story.
The music is gnarly, eccentric, stubborn, knee-deep in effects, with his longtime friend, collaborator and fellow multi-instrumentalist Blake Leyh as his partner in crime. O'Halloran's aloof vocal delivery will be pigeon-holed as an acquiered taste - think Ivan Doroschuk (Men Without Hats) in a pissed off mood. The atmosphere of the BBC Radiophonic Workshop is brought back with Outbound, when technology acts up as he tries to get his email to work. Relying on appliances with a mind of their own apparently has gotten him into trouble more than once - there is a broken fridge in Carlisle. Anger and anxiety are powerful emotions and he uses them to create harsh but alluring melodies that keep lingering for quite awhile after a track has finished.
O'Halloran wants to move forward, but he has second thoughts about where to go next. If anything, it makes him an artist with an open mind, not giving a fuck about boundaries and genres. Listeners are welcome to join him, but if not, that's fine too.
Glenn O'Halloran: voice, vocals, electric guitar, acoustic guitar, bass guitar, disruption guitar, keyboards, programming, percussion
Blake Leyh: bass, electric guitar, soprano guitar, electric cello, programming, backing vocals
“Big Tenor" Joe O’Halloran: saxophone
Howard Lewis: lead guitar ("Carlisle")
Jack O’Halloran: drums ("Carlisle")
Ryoko Leyh: backing vocals ("Carlisle")
Brent O’Halloran: backing vocals ("Carlisle")
Astrid Baerndale: voices ("Outbound")
Walking Quickly Standing Still is released via Xenotone (vinyl, CD, digital). Buy it from his website.
Tracks:- Carlisle
- Take His Time
- Bill's Great Day
- Hi-Fi Story
- Outbound
- Peter Walking
- John's Gone
- 10K V2
» Dogzen-Zendog on Instagram