Hasidic New Wave
Kabalogy
(Knitting Factory Records)

The secret of Hasidic New Wave’s third record of Jewish-influenced fusion, out jazz, and funk may lie in its CD insert, which juxtaposes a passage about Creation from the Zohar (a Jewish mystical text) with a quote about political music from Marxist composer and Theodor Adorno cohort Hans Eisler. Kabalogy starts celestial, with three contemplative tunes of fusion-style guitars and prog-rock-esque rhythmic excursions. Then comes "H.W.N." — a nigun, or wordless vocal song related to Hasidic Judaism’s ecstatic mysticism. Band members sing the original tune against a backdrop of simmering percussion. The trumpet and sax take over the soulful melody and the guitar steps forward for a solo. The next track, "OK Dear, Who?" begins with a compound guitar rhythm; the winds join the line, and the percussion sounds almost Latin. From then on, the energy increases through the jokey "Frank Zappa Memorial Bris" and two spirited klezmer numbers. Just when your celestial body is revved up, Hasidic New Wave point you to a political target with "Giuliani Über Alles," a sarcastic klez/ska tribute to New York’s power-hungry mayor. Kabalogy, with music that can move the cosmos, make you dance and fight injustice, proves that in an age of nihilistic tinkering, Hasidic New Wave are reverent bricoleurs with a heart.
—Sara Marcus