| Black Shabbis | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 2009 | |||
| Recorded | 2008 | |||
| Studio | Electric Plant Studios, Brooklyn, NY | |||
| Genre | Heavy metal | |||
| Length | 59:08 | |||
| Label | Tzadik TZ 8133 | |||
| Producer | Jamie Saft | |||
| Jamie Saft chronology | ||||
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Black Shabbis is an album by multi-instrumentalist Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2009. [1] The extreme metal album examines a number of antisemitic concepts and incidents throughout history.
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [2] |
In his review for Allmusic, Thom Jurek notes that "Black Shabbis is not for everybody, not even some Saft fans necessarily, but it is a powerful, excellent work that uses the metal genre well – expertly even – and will convince headbangers of its essential importance as one of the voices out there that stands tall and defiant in the face of much of the anti-Semitism that is promoted by some black and death metal bands. For everyone else, it is an angry howl of both pain and resistance whose anger is carried beautifully as the artist's ultimate weapon: his imagination and creativity to provoke, to give pause and reflection". [2] Metal Reviews stated "Black Shabbis takes in a range of styles, and taking into account the previous works of its creator it's difficult to know whether Black Shabbis is a serious attempt at making a metal record, or more a pastiche of the genre as a whole ... Black Shabbis has some good ideas, but it's an awkward, bitty album. Saft clearly has talent, but he's effectively crippled by a weird, overly dry production and a steadfast refusal to stick to any one idea. Still, there's hope here, and if Jamie Saft ever raises his game and makes a Black Shabbis II he might be on to a good thing. As it is, Black Shabbis is an interesting idea with a rather messy execution". [3] Keith Kahn-Harris wrote that "Black Shabbis is not the product of a metal band rooted in the metal scene, but of a one-off project that sets out to explore a particular aesthetic ... Saft is clearly a genius at wielding and manipulating the musical tools available in the metal armoury. Contrary to the stereotype of metal as a stock of banal clichés played by morons, metal has diversified enormously in the last three decades, creating a sophisticated and complex panopoly of sounds and possibilities. Saft shows no loyalty to any one style and the tracks skip radically between influences and sub-genres ... Black Shabbis will provide unnerving delights for anyone like me who is as obsessed with the possibilities of distorted guitar as they are with Jewish identity". [4]
All compositions by Jamie Saft
Masada is a musical group with rotating personnel led by American saxophonist and composer John Zorn since the early 1990s.
Bobby Previte is a drummer, composer, and bandleader. He earned a degree in economics from the University at Buffalo, where he also studied percussion. He moved to New York City in 1979 and began professional relationships with John Zorn, Wayne Horvitz, and Elliott Sharp.
Beat the Donkey is an album by percussionist Cyro Baptista, which marked the debut of his rotating percussion and dance ensemble that would become known as Beat the Donkey, which was released on the Tzadik label in 2002.
Taboo & Exile is an album by John Zorn. It is the second album to appear in Zorn's Music Romance Series following Music for Children (1998). Three of the tracks on this recording are from Zorn's Masada songbook.
The Gift is an album by John Zorn released in 2001 on the Tzadik label as the third volume of his Music Romance Series and described as an album "for lovers only".
At the Mountains of Madness is a 2005 double live album by American composer and saxophonist John Zorn's Electric Masada featuring performances recorded in Moscow and Ljubljana. It is the second release by Electric Masada.
Filmworks X: In the Mirror of Maya Deren features a score for film by John Zorn. The album was released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2001 and contains music that Zorn wrote and recorded for the documentary film In the Mirror of Maya Deren on the life and work of Maya Deren directed by Martina Kudlácek.
Filmworks XI: Secret Lives features a score for film by John Zorn performed by the Masada String Trio with guest appearances from Vanessa Saft on vocals and Jamie Saft on piano. The album was released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2002 and contains music that Zorn wrote and recorded for Secret Lives: Hidden Children and Their Rescuers During WWII, a documentary on Jewish children hidden during the Second World War directed by Aviva Slesin. The documentary was originally to be titled Under the Wing and several sources still refer to the soundtrack under this name.
Filmworks XII: Three Documentaries is an album containing three scores by John Zorn for documentary films released on Zorn's own label, Tzadik Records, in 2002. It features music that Zorn wrote and recorded for Homecoming (2002), a tribute documentary about the dance program at Performance Space 122 in New York by Charles Dennis, Shaolin Ulysses (2002) a film by Mei-Juin Chen and Martha Burr that follows Shaolin monks living and training in the United States, and Family Found (2002), a portrait of outsider artist Morton Bartlett which was directed by Emily Harris.
The Dreamers is an album by John Zorn released in 2008 featuring performances by a band which would later become known as The Dreamers. It is viewed as continuation of the Music Romance tradition expressed on his 2001 album The Gift.
Masada Anniversary Edition Volume 3: The Unknown Masada is the third album in a series of five releases celebrating the 10th anniversary of John Zorn's Masada songbook project. It features twelve previously unreleased Masada compositions performed by Erik Friedlander's Quake (1), Rashanim (2), Dave Douglas (3), Tatsuya Yoshida (4), Naftule's Dream (5), Jamie Saft (6), Zahava Seewald (7), Koby Israelite (8), Julian Kytasty (9); Fantômas (10), Wadada Leo Smith and Ikue Mori (11), and Eyvind Kang (12).
Freak In is the 20th album by trumpeter Dave Douglas. It was released on the RCA Bluebird label in 2003 and features performances by Douglas, Jamie Saft, Marc Ribot, Karsh Kale, Joey Baron, Romero Lubambo, Brad Jones, Ikue Mori, Seamus Blake, Chris Speed, Craig Taborn, Michael Sarin, with Stephanie Stone contributing vocals on one track.
A Dreamers Christmas is an album of Christmas music by John Zorn released in October 2011 on the Tzadik label. It was produced by John Zorn and released on his own label Tzadik Records. It was Zorn's 5th album in 2011.
A Bag of Shells is an album of music written for film by Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2010. It features the music that Saft wrote and recorded for the documentaries Murderball (2005) and God Grew Tired of Us (2006), Dear Talula (2007) and Brooklyn Exile (2007).
Trouble: The Jamie Saft Trio Plays Bob Dylan is an album by Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2006.
Breadcrumb Sins is an album by Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2002.
Sovlanut is an album by Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2000.
Borscht Belt Studies is an album by Jamie Saft which was released on the Tzadik label in 2009.
Love the Donkey is an album by percussionist Cyro Baptista's percussion and dance ensemble Beat the Donkey, which was released on the Tzadik label in 2005. The album was privately released as Beat the Donkey Beat in 2004.
The Only Juan is a live album by drummer Jerry Granelli and keyboardist Jamie Saft which was recorded in Southport, Connecticut and released on the Love Slave label in 2002.
