November 2006
Pinski Zoo have been playing their own concoction of post-Coltrane, post-Prime
Time and post-Albert Ayler abstract funk since the early 1980s. This two-CD
anthology pulls together material from live gigs, recorded over a three
year span, into
a sort of idealized Pinski Zoo performance. Tenor man Jan Kopinski and keyboard
player Steve Iliff were in the group’s original incarnation, while Bingham
and Harris joined in the mid-80s. Add Stefan Kopinski on electric bass and
the basic group aesthetic is unchanged? Pinski Zoo is bigger than any single
member.
One could criticize a lack of dynamic range in the performance (somehow
even the quiet passages are loud) and a formulaic feel to the music’s structuring,
but Pinski Zoo have an immediacy and vigour that’s always compelling. Unlike
many post-fusion bands, their music retains a rockist edge and they’re
unafraid to be a bit nasty.
“Bounce” is dominated by the sort of retchy bass line that’s a trademark, while Jan Kopinski’s tenor has rarely sounded so authoritative. “Father Daughter” treads into what could be described as the ‘driven ballad’ territory that David S Ware occupies so skillfully, allowing Kopinski to reveal his lyrical side. But it’s their up-tempo mania that makes most impression – compromise isn’t a word in their lexicon.
Philip Clark