“John Denver’s Greatest Hits” cover art inspires “J Hacha De Zola’s Greatest Hits,” wrapping 2021 alongside new “Faded” video, shot in London.

Derelict townhouse is setting for clip for “irrepressible blues” cut taken from current “East of Eden” album; Artist’s “Not Acoustic” EP drops Jan. 28^th.

 
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J Hacha De Zola as photographed by Christine Samaroo
 
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Out Now | J Hacha De Zola’s Greatest Hits
 

Obviously, as a songwriter, J Hacha De Zola and John Denver come from vastly different places, with different musical ideas… As for the could-be-ironic, mostly inexplicable, definitely fun tribute that is the J Hacha De Zola’s Greatest Hits album cover, a dead-on approximation of singer-songwriter John Denver’s own eponymous and iconic John Denver’s Greatest Hits album image… Hacha De Zola focuses in on, and connects with what they have deeply in common, saying, “I loved this idea of being exactly what you are. Whatever you are, be it.”
 
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J Hacha De Zola | “Faded”
 

[VIDEO]: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zzzw3aGsoZI
 
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J Hacha De Zola | “Faded” | Behind The Scenes
 

 
“Irrepressible blues,” says Backseat Mafia in its premiere coverage of the “Faded” music video, going on to call the clip for the opening track on the Jersey City-based artist’s latest album East of Eden, “beautifully shot.”
 
Filmed by Victoria Rio of Pulp Productions in a gorgeous derelict townhouse in the heart of London, the director explains, “J Hacha De Zola’s music is an ode to strangeness, an invitation to dream and wander through dark, deeply poetic tales. We were incredibly lucky to be able to film in this location.”
 
Hacha De Zola says, “‘Faded’ is my personal favorite song off of my latest album, and I was thoroughly enthralled by Victoria’s vision for the video. I am so moved to see that all of these elegant, talented and absolutely beautiful people came together to make this.”
 
Writer J. Poet comments on the song for Rock & Roll Globe, saying, “On ‘Faded,’ street corner harmonies wash over Hacha De Zola’s voice as he croons his devotion to a love that’s dissolving in the mist.” Read more about the heavy influence of New York on Hacha De Zola’s new album in the full Rock & Roll Globe interview here.
 
Hacha De Zola also chatted with American Songwriter recently, touching on the theme of freedom from judgment, including when it comes to criticizing himself.
 
 
 “I’ve never really been comfortable with my singing voice. I don’t consider myself a singer… I’m more of a conceptual artist,” he says. “To get an understanding of where I’m going, I have to look back at what I’ve done previously, and I always challenge myself to do something that makes me uncomfortable.”
 
It’s a technique and an approach to his artistry that dates back to Hacha De Zola’s formative years of first being exposed to world music as a child. In a wide-ranging recent discussion with Ghettoblaster Magazine, he vividly remembers, “My first love was Latin music, particularly Perez Prado. It’s funny, that’s the first thing I ever heard when my dad was drinking his wine in the evening. That and a lot of Afro-Cuban music. That was my introduction to it.”
 
Hacha De Zola is currently finishing up his next full-length, which will continue to refine the mix of his conceptual persona of earlier albums and the more conventional sound of East of Eden. In the meantime, he will release the EP “Not Acoustic” on Jan 28^th. The four-song release, accompanied by live videos for each tune (including Hacha De Zola’s candid spoken intros) offers new interpretations of previously released Hacha De Zola songs, including several compiled on the recent J Hacha De Zola’s Greatest Hits compilation.
 
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J Hacha De Zola
East of Eden
Out Now
(Caballo Negro)

Streaming Link:
STREAM FULL LP
 

Track Listing:
 
01. Faded (VIDEO | LYRIC VIDEO)
02. Lost Space (STREAM | VIDEO)
03. Which Way (STREAM | VIDEO)
04. East of Eden
05. A Viral Spring
06. Shadows On Glass
07. That Pleading Tone
08. Sad Song
09. Green and Golden
10. Meet Me
 
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J Hacha De Zola | In The Press
 

“A wild man.” — Paste
 
“Alluring and unsettling.” — NJ.com
 
“The kind of alluring character found in old children’s books.” — UTNE
 
“Dangerously delightful.” — The Big Takeover
 
“Bound to light the way forward and inspire a legion of imitators.” — PopMatters
 
“Beckoning listeners somewhere exciting.” — BTRtoday
 
“Possessed and cacophonic.” — Atwood Magazine
 
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J Hacha De Zola
J Hacha De Zola’s Greatest Hits
Out Now
(Caballo Negro) 
Streaming Link:
STREAM FULL LP
  

Track Listing:
 
01. Blue Sky (STREAM | VIDEO)
02. Strange (STREAM | VIDEO)
03. El Desgraciado
04. No Situation
05. El Chucho
06. On A Saturday
07. Lightning Rod Salesman
08. Bubble Gum
09. Black Sparrow
10. Anarchy
11. A Fools Moon
12. Syn Illusión
 
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“As enticing as it is distant and strange.” — MAGNET
 
“Sits at his own, most likely oddly shaped table.” — Pancakes and Whiskey
 
“No one around left to hit him with any sort of healthy competition.” — Ghettoblaster
 
“One of the most important and singular artists making music today.” — Stereo Embers
 
“A challenging, at times daunting, listen.” — BLURT
 
“Mutant blues rock.” — Treble
 
“A modern day Frank Zappa.” — Adam’s World
 
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J Hacha De Zola | About
 

For his fifth album, East of Eden (Caballo Negro, Out Now), J Hacha De Zola has left the “urban junkyard” of his previous albums and slipped into a natty white suit.
 
His look is more accessible this time around – see the dignified vibes of his latest single and album art – and his sound matches.
 
“This record is unlike any other I have made previously,” the Jersey City-based artist acknowledges. “I stayed focused on what was truly best for each song, keeping it somewhat simple – at least for me – rather than allowing myself to become overly self-indulgent in terms of running away on tangents.”
 
The result is an album that exemplifies the universe that Hacha De Zola has built over his four previous albums (as well as EPs that cover ground from the all-Spanish “Syn Illusión” to his versions of hits by female pop stars on “UnPOPular”), while also charting new territory.
 
East of Eden is some kind of place where Jim Morrison did downers instead of acid in the control room during the recording of Pink Floyd’s “The Great Gig In The Sky.”
 
As Hacha De Zola tells it, the creation of this record was actually less frenetic than all that.
 
“I came into the studio with a developed concept, and the songs written already,” he says. “This time, I had a clear cut direction ready to go. I have to be honest, I have never really been comfortable with my singing voice, and I wanted to do something that would be more challenging.”
 
The push pays off, as Hacha De Zola’s vocals are the focus here. Where previous records saw him vocalizing in a way that complimented the music, this time the music compliments the man.
 
“A big inspiration for me on East of Eden was the vocal group tradition from the 1950s and 60s,” he says. “Especially those from New Jersey, New York, and Detroit. Doo-wop groups like Sha Na Na, The Temptations, The Four Seasons, and others. Being a Jersey boy, I couldn’t help but be influenced in the rich vocal singing group tradition and history in this area.”
 
Digging into the roots of his musical soul, literally and figuratively, sounds pure in context throughout the new album, and especially on its pre-release singles “Lost Space” and “Which Way,” showing off a level of maturity and thoughtfulness that can only come from the development that years of album-making brings.
 
“Even with all of its imperfections, it was very important for me to bring the nuances of the vocal components of this record right to the front. I truly feel that I have found my own voice,” Hacha De Zola says.
 
With that, he may never return to the “urban junkyard” and his method of rendering records via his “reductive synthesis” method (read about it here) ever again. It is a position that is congruent with the state of the world that longed to “return to normal,” but may never be able to find the way back to exactly that.
 
“The title of the record reflects that,” Hacha De Zola explains. “East of Eden, a sense of being left behind or abandoned, banished from the ‘garden.’ Off to the Land of Nod where Cain was banished for murdering his brother, Abel.
 
“It’s a bit of a biblical reference that I found was quite apt,” he continues. “Especially during this moment of divisiveness among so many people over so many things. Lyrically, I couldn’t help but infuse many of these feelings into the songs.”
 
Hacha De Zola’s “Which Way” single is one that best reflects his hard-won ability to infuse these real emotions into what has become known as somewhat esoteric work.
 
“That song was a way of taking inventory of the chaos and confusion of the moment. It’s a somber song, and it wasn’t an easy one to write. At the time, it was very difficult to focus on anything other than trying to protect the vulnerable members of my family and not getting sick. I had to push myself pretty hard to work through the fear.”
 
His new strength and resolve fits Hacha De Zola well, just like the natty new clothes on his back.
 
East of Eden, the fifth album by J Hacha De Zola, is out now.
 
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J Hacha De Zola | Links
 
ASSETS : WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : INSTAGRAM : BANDCAMP : SPOTIFY : APPLE
 
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Josh Bloom at Fanatic Promotion | Contact
 
WEBSITE : FACEBOOK : TWITTER : YOUTUBE : INSTAGRAM : SOUNDCLOUD : SPOTIFY : BLOG : E-MAIL