Recorded in shadow of a maximum security prison, Escape From Fat Kat City praised by
Utne, CMJ, more; Two follow-up LPs forthcoming.
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J Hacha De
Zola as photographed by Miguel Peralta
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PLAY, POST
& SHARE
Listen to “Let
It Go” by J Hacha De Zola at CMJ and see
the video at The
Big Takeover or at the links below!
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“Like a creepy city tour at night, this
long-player will shake you up and leave you thankful for the daytime.” – Songwriting
Magazine (UK)
In its recent write-up, Utne Reader said that “One could be forgiven for assuming J Hacha de Zola is a transient, back
alley carnival showman followed through town by a band of tangle-haired
misfits. The kind of alluring character found in old children’s books.” It’s an apt description of the Jersey City
native who has been drawing attention to his newly released record Escape
From Fat Kat City.
The album effortlessly zig-zags from the whimsical
moments described above, to distinctly Tom
Waits-style allusions to a more conventional sound that Slug Magazine recently praised by
saying, “Not since The Hold Steady’s
Separation
Sunday has a concept album provided both emotional depth and
entertainment.” CMJ simply summed up Hacha
De Zola as a “lounge lizard weaned on Primus”
in its premiere
coverage of the album’s “Let It Go”
single.
Escape
From Fat Kat City was recorded in
Rahway, New Jersey in the shadow of a maximum security correctional facility
and an oil refinery, a setting that perfectly contributes to the slinky back
alley strut, dizzying waltzes, and surf-raga-samba-freakouts that populate the
record.
“I don’t write happy songs,” says Hacha De Zola. “Maybe one day I will, but not today.” Indeed,
themes of alienation, paranoia and isolation can be found all over the record.
“I realize these subjects are quite recurrent in my songs,” Hacha De Zola continues, “But I can’t
help it. Growing up in ‘Fat Kat City,’ you see a lot of things that leave you
numb.” Ultimately, the artist takes away
something positive from these experiences, however. “I am grateful for my
experiences here. They have roused the fighter in me. When you don’t have much
to lose, you learn to be fearless.”
With its abandoned industrial parks, rail road tracks,
and refinery flares, Rahway was the perfect setting in which to create the
album, which composites various musical styles ranging from Blues, Folk, Jazz,
Latin, Funk, and Psychedelia and influences such as Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, Syd
Barrett, Cesar Romero, and Waits. A salvaged toy piano, noise
makers, 25-cent whistles, rattles, plastic flutes, and cheap candy ocarinas
also help to color what has become Hacha
De Zola’s unique “urban junkyard” sound.
J Hacha De Zola’s Escape From Fat Kat City is out
now. The artist is currently in
pre-production on two follow-up records with more details and release dates
forthcoming. J Hacha De Zola is available for interviews. Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic for more information.
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J Hacha De Zola
Escape
From Fat Kat City
(S/R)
Out Now
Track Listing:
01. Welcome to Fat Kat City (Instrumental) (VIDEO)
05. Death Rant #1 (Rant)
07. Poison Wine
08. Hold Tight
09. Down
10. Ice Cream and Cigarettes
11. City Girls
12. Moonpies and Penny Whistles
13. 7 League Boots
14. Blue Sky
15. Next Exit (Instrumental)
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J Hacha De Zola Links
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Contact Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion
