www.lizardrecords.it/zolder-ellipsis-entropy-override/
"Entropy Override" (originally released as "Zolder Ellipsis" by Tom Aldrich) began as an attempt to reverse-engineer Frank Zappa’s last, monumental Synclavier opus "Civilization: Phaze III", and spilled out to encompass excursions into ancient Greek and Roman music, free jazz/improv, post-metal, and experimental electronics. The natural (if unintentional) result is a radical concoction bearing the hallmarks of avant-garde progressive rock. The group converged for only a week in the summer of 2019 and developed an immediate rapport—although Zolder Ellipsis is the province of Aldrich's music, each member of the band is a composer in his own right, leading to a sort of mediated group composition that transcends the bounds of any one person’s pencil and paper.
Thematically, the album confronts different types of automation—symbolized by robots (artificial mechanization) on the one hand, and zombies (reflexive obsession) on the other—and the idea that such closed behavioral cycles could somehow be broken, either from without or within. Entropy Override is the sound of the needle jumping the groove.
Reviews:
"Tom is a frank guy, whose drastic soundscape I could not imagine at first. … this portable madness can be recommended for fans of various progressive rock subgenres, like Experimental/Post-Metal, Avant-Prog, Krautrock, Electronic, not art-rock lol. Good."
- Prog Archives,
www.progarchives.com/album.asp?id=65322
"Raises the bar of cacophony into dimensions previously unknown … a far-out, bizarre, experimental maze of improvisational avant-garde madness!" - Jan Buddenberg,
www.dprp.net/reviews/2022/028#zolder-ellipsis
"a stunningly good album that has elements of progressive rock, RIO, free improvisation, and more" - Jon Davis,
expose.org/index.php/articles/display/zolder-ellipsis-entropy-override-2.html
"Every single note reveals a great musical culture … the teaching is simple: open your mind, let yourself be infected, be spontaneous, dare" - Massimo Salari,
nonsoloprogrock.blogspot.com/2022/04/zolder-ellipsis.html
"Avant-garde and disorienting, but at the same time rich with dark charm." - Giancarlo Bolther, Rockerilla magazine
"Aldrich and his collaborators perform music with a fixed structure that allows plenty of room for them to flaunt their own – in this case quite remarkable – talents ... this is music that rewards repeated listenings." - Vital Weekly,
vitalweekly.net/1330.html
"Zolder seem to operate from a strident and, at times, breathtakingly complex standpoint ... Dazzling heights of band interaction are scaled effortlessly" - Sound Projector,
www.thesoundprojector.com/2022/11/04/progtasmagoria/
"Prog, jazz, jazz fusion, psychedelic, space, avant-garde, metal, modern classical, atmospheric, free jazz, it’s all here. ... Challenging, but worth the effort."- KFJC,
spidey.kfjc.org/45888/zolder-ellipsis-entropy-override-lizard-records/
"[5/6 stars]. I come across people on a regular basis that bemoan the lack of original and challenging music released inside of the progressive rock spectrum. This is an album that appears to be tailor made for that specific audience. ... creative, expressive and challenging throughout" - ProgressoR,
www.progressor.net/review/zolder_ellipsis_2022.html
"If, as recommended by the poet John Keats, it is necessary to become familiar with the 'negative capacity', or rather the ability to tolerate and make our own the many ambiguities, contradictions and uncertainties that the world (both internal and external) presents us with, 'Entropy override' is a disc suitable to accompany us on this journey." - Music Map (Italy)
www.musicmap.it/recdischi/ordinaperr.asp?id=9058
"like a golden nugget discovered in a muddy and viscous pond. 9.0" - Profil Prog,
www.profilprog.com/quick-reviews-2/Zolder-Ellipsis
"Its main theme may be robots and mechanisation, but in the end the overall result still sounds gloriously organic." - Disagreement,
www.disagreement.net/reviews2022/zolderellipsis_entropyoverride.html
"This is some serious next level-stuff. And simultaneously, Aldrich and his guests still know how to take their listeners by the hand and lead them into the next experimental sonic delusion." - MangoWave,
mangorave.blogspot.com/2022/07/fresh-mango-july-13-2022.html
released January 20, 2022
All songs composed and produced by Tom Aldrich (Stave In/ASCAP)
Tom Aldrich, keyboards, piano, and organ
Sean Moran, guitar
Chad Langford, electric and acoustic bass
Théo Lanau, drums
Ivo Bol, sampler and electronics
Recorded June 13-14, 2019 at Wedgeview Studios in Woerdense Verlaat, Netherlands
Recorded and mixed by Micha de Kanter
Mastered by Peter Brussee
Zombies vs Robots created by and © Chris Ryall and Ashley Wood
Art by James Stokoe
Special thanks to Loris Furlan and Lizard Records