Zun Zun Egui: Bal La Poussiere EP

“Prrrrooouuussss!”

That’s what my best friend exclaims every time he sees a cat. In an exuberant falsetto voice, rolling the r’s. He got it off someone, who got it off someone else.

There’s a number of tie-ins here. Zun Zun Egui are as infectious and contagious as this strange feline declaration/tick. They are also as endearing, uplifiting, and as related to psychedelic experiences. They’ve also used a syllable in the title of their EP which allows me to shoehorn the phrase in whenever I announce it. I’d demonstrate, but you’re not here…

Also, my friends who say this would love Zun Zun Egui. So it’s all related. I’ll play it to them.

Having already written two live reviews of the band this year (here & here) I wasn’t sure I’d have much else to say, but there’s still fish swimming in the barrel, so without further ado here’s why you should all be buying this 12” as fast as effing possible (likely to include further ado for illustrative purposes).

Zun Zun Egui, who are Kushal Gaya, Luke Mosee, Matt Johns & Yoshino Shigihara, make a strange and potent brew. On ‘Brown Mao’ the only distinguishable lyric is “how now Brown Mao”, recalling the “brown cow” of the nursery rhyme dimension and the founder of a socialist sub-ism all at once. If the other lyrics relate to the Sino-Russian dispute and it’s implications on the Somalian-Ethiopian war of the late 70’s (and its further implications on Cuban activity in Africa), I’m a monkeys uncle, ‘cause it sounds like gibberish to me.

Much of what Zun Zun Egui hurl lovingly at you is in fact gibberish. But the meaning, sincerity and downright ability they imbue it with happens to be one of the most uplifting sonic philosophies these ears have yet encountered. ‘Chunk and Swirl’ basically decimates my prose by describing itself. The Chunk is Gaya’s thick crunchy telecaster and Mosee’s life-saturating basslines, helmed by Johns’ tight, playful drumming. The swirl is all kinds of arpegiatting wonder from Shigihara’s synth and perhaps some extra guitar, serenaded by all sorts of devotional backing vocals.

There’s some fantastic Bungley metal breakdowns, but they neither exhibit the aggression of Mike Patton, nor the flaccid loveableness of a Rainbow character. Though these people are rainbow characters of sorts… what is it with all these connections? Speaking of Rainbow, check out the video below this review.

Hahaha, twangers… Where was I? ‘Brown Mao’ is one of my three favourite cuts, and for absolute lack of understanding I’m going to use the word “polyrhythmic” and maybe even the country “Mali” as poor substitutes for knowledge. Oh and why not throw “colourful” into the bargain, none of it approximates the effect of the music anyway. The sound is glorious; these three songs have been exceptionally well recorded. The sixth minute breakdown on ‘Mao’ has all sorts going on, slowing out for a woozy trip on their ecstatic blanket, but it’s all there and all audible. As the quivering electric guitar twangs, the tom drums, the bass and the synths slip away we’re left with some incidental noises and a delicate piano sample trundling away till the end.

For me, the crux of it all is this: Zun Zun Egui are relentlessly uplifting, and can steer you through all sorts of cloud formations once they reach said altitude. But this excitable nature never gets rammed down your throat. It’s something that requires similar engagement and energy from the listener (conscious or not) in order to become what it can be. It doesn’t rely on force, which is a hell of a thing to achieve with such tumbling lunacy.

‘Sun God’ brings it to a close with a slow ten minute groove (within which there are fast grooves). Gaya gets into his most exuberant rags and announces all manner of undulating nonsense in the most convincing way. His guitar sounds very warm and very full as he dances his little jig all over it. Zun Zun Egui sound like a band and not like a streamlined project for the hip young things. They have weight and gravity to them, they have bodies and hair and chubby bits and worn out shoes. They also sound like they’re having a good time. I hope my review sounds the same…