The music of Reza Askari’s xAYb v8v dYAx is obviously inspired by his background in avant-garde jazz, but it also carries the physical intensity and structural aggression of some less apparent influences: metal and punk. Despite these genres tending towards abrasiveness and being hard-sounding in nature, the instrumentation on this most recent LP is fully acoustic, and comparatively soft. For this reason, it might be a challenge for listeners to pick up on his nostalgic cues so immediately.

In Reza’s own words: “Imagine an improvising ensemble haunted by the logic of extreme metal: asymmetrical or symmetrical cycles, collapsing forms, obsessive repetition, abrupt ruptures, and overwhelming physical force, all rendered acoustically with no amplification wall to hide behind. The music draws equally from modern creative jazz, reductionism, noise, chamber music, and the psychophysical impact of bands like Meshuggah, Car Bomb, the Melvins, the Dillinger Escape Plan, etc. The result is a transformation of metal’s architectural and emotional language into a highly detailed improvisational context.”

For this fifth round, ROAR sees the return of Reza’s “long-time superheroes” Stefan Karl Schmid on clarinets and tenor saxophone, as well as Fabian Arends on drums. The outstanding Christopher Dell is also back for his third album with the group on vibraphone, and the band expands even further into a quintet with the addition of the amazing Lina Allemano on trumpet. Reza talks about the powerful essence of this constellation: “For me, this release feels not like presenting polished compositions, but more like documenting a group of my favourite musicians pushing against their own limits together. That energy is what makes me excited about it.”

Reza reflects; “It’s a form of communicative weirdness where glimpses of order constantly emerge and collapse, shaped by dynamic contrasts and structural chaos.” Perhaps this chaos can be echoed in the albums cryptic title “xAYb v8v dYAx,” and the strange and occasionally palindromic song names: “404”, “0 YxY 0” and “xAxDx."

The only way to decipher the code?
By listening to the music, of course…