Nebelnest: ZePTO

The group has been through a number of changes in guitarists since NoVa eXPReSS (Cuneiform, 2002), but the core trio of keyboardist Olivier Tejedor, bassist Grégory Tejedor and drummer Michael Anselmi maintains a consistent sound that continues to evolve. While plenty of progressive groups sport the infamous mellotron, few use it in as skewed a fashion as Olivier; Grégory's often fuzz-toned bass is the most ominous-sounding bottom end since Red-era King Crimson's John Wetton.

The ten-minute "Do What Thou Wilt is a crash course on how NeBeLNeST utilizes improvisation, shaping it in the studio into material with a compositional focus. Guitarist Cyril Malderez joins the trio for a free opening referencing the kind of improvisations King Crimson was noted for at the height of its '72-'74 incarnation. But while Crimson would find its way to backbeat-driven groove more often than not, NeBeLNeST remains harshly abstract and rhythmically tumultuous. Despite Wetton's sheer power, he was a harmonic weak link—but everyone in NeBeLNeST speaks a more sophisticated language, fluently. Halfway through the tune a fervent rhythm emerges, bass and drums storming with hardcore aggression, while Olivier blends a variety of synths with mellotron to create some of the most nightmarish music since Crimson's "The Devil's Triangle.

Elsewhere the writing is more clear-cut. "Pillars of Birth, despite its relative brevity, traverses considerably territory, from brooding ambience and potent, near-metal intensity to a clavinet-driven passage (suggesting how Gentle Giant might have sounded had it been of bleaker intent). "The Old Ones is equally episodic, and Olivier's mellotron is reminiscent of Gabriel-era Genesis—but, again, it's much darker. Sébastien Carmona's lengthy guitar solo on this piece is a cleaner, almost Canterbury-ish alternative to the sharper edge he adopts on the knotty "De Thriumpho Naturae.

Rarely an easy or uplifting listen, NeBeLNeST remains less overtly oriented toward wrist-slitting than the Belgium chamber-rockers Univers Zero. And with a more conventional instrumental lineup, the group has an inherently wider appeal. ZePTO is NeBeLNeST's strongest record to date: this is progressive rock for those who aren't afraid of music that leans far away from the light.

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