John Zorn, Bar Kokhba
Lucifer: Book Of Angels Volume 10

As morningstar has already noted in these pages (see the beautiful reviews of "Orobas" and "Molock"), the figures to which the "Book Of Angels" are dedicated are actually all demons, or fallen angels, and now we are faced with the most famous of them: Lucifer, the rebel par excellence and the architect of the celestial diaspora.

Although I have no expertise, I would like to propose a bit of simple kabbalah. The number 10 is the reiteration of Unity, often indicates the Law (the ten commandments), also because the tenth sephirah (Malkhut=kingdom) represents the earth in union with God. However, 10 follows 9, which is a symbol of gestation (the nine months it takes for a creature to be born), of love (remember Dante?), and above all a number that in Jewish tradition indicates Truth (multiplied by itself it reproduces, that is, if you add the digits of the totals you always get nine). What could this mean? Well, if two is the symbol of the first opposition (Lucifer) to Unity (God) because it follows one, 10, following 9, could paradoxically represent, besides the Law, also a contrast to Truth, or rather, a lie.

10 is also a double 5, a number that symbolizes harmony (the pentagram, but also the pentacle) and the number of seeds in an apple cut in half because -I read in Elemire Zolla- the apple (the knowledge Eve desired) is the fruit of Venus (whose number is indeed 5), the morning star (as morningstar well knows) and a light-bearing planet. Luci-fero.

You might find all this exaggerated, but this could perhaps explain why John Zorn – who never leaves anything to chance – dedicated the volume 10 specifically to this biblical figure. Less challenging is understanding why he entrusted his favorite ensemble with the task of celebrating this angel since, as the scriptures tell us, he was the most beautiful of all.

As also mentioned on Tzadik's site, 10 years have passed (yes, exactly 10!) since the sextet's last studio work, and compared to "Circle Maker," the 10 tracks (you read that right, 10!) proposed this time are all unpublished.

"Sother" ("the savior"?), opens, exactly as you imagine, in perfect Bar Kokhba style: Latin tempo (with the usual backing from Baron/Baptista and a crystal-clear Greg Cohen) and plucked violin and cello until the entrance of Ribot’s reverberated guitar which, after a beautiful solo by Feldman, launches into a final sprint. The next track, "Dalquiel", is a half-milonga in which, to be honest, we still don’t have the opportunity to fully enjoy the interplay that Friedlander and Feldman had accustomed us to (notable, however, before the end, are Friedlander’s intervention and Ribot’s short blues solo enhanced by the crescendo of the strings).

After two pleasant, but not memorable, pieces, just when we begin to think that Lucifer might have deserved more, comes -foretold by a lugubrious ostinato- "Zazel", a maleficent Middle Eastern theme "in Morricone style," so beautiful that it ends too soon, and a perfect soundtrack for "the king of the people" in exile on earth. The neurotic "Gediel", an ideal sequel to "Hazor", is even more explosive with Baron and Baptista in endless solo, with one of the best Ribot performances ever and especially with Friedlander and Feldman beginning to converse as they know.

The subsequent "Rahal" -in which there’s a nice solo by Cohen to note- is however simply listenable and one can surely have better things to do than endure the insipid "Zechriel". Definitely better are "Azbugah" (a delightful waltz disguised as an astonishingly sunny habanera) and the frenetic "Mehalalel".

The poignant "Quelamia", gently introduced by Friedlander, and "Abdiel" -a track characterized by an exotic odd-meter and rich in beautiful solo inventions- lift, although not entirely, the value of a must-have album for Zorn fans like me, but of which -unlike "Circle Maker"- one could perhaps do without. In conclusion, despite the presence of Bar Kokhba, I do not consider this the best of the "Book Of Angels" and at times there is the distressing sensation that easy listening is making its way into Zorn's entire production.