Pandemic Ballads, the latest EP from Los Angeles-based musician/composer Zach Tabori is out now via his own label Flesh Fury. The EP features “remote” collaborations with Tommy Mars, the keyboardist for Frank Zappa, Rachel Eckroth who plays piano for Rufus Wainwright and Stewart Cole who plays trumpet in Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros. Listen to/share Pandemic Ballads HERE.
The new music has received praise from Glide Magazine who proclaimed, “[‘Warning Call’ is] a melodic leaning track that ruminates with a nostalgic kaleidoscope of ’70s AM Gold, helium harmonies and various DIY goodies. Tabori offers a welcoming new voice that is a comfortable companion during this ongoing pandemic,” while Pursuit of Dopeness declared, “[‘Divine Insanity’] has a lot of pep and it’s so catchy, with an earworm quality that will make you put this on repeat and will have you humming the melody in no time. If you’re a sucker for ‘happy’ sad songs, this one’s for you.”
Recorded predominately at his home, the Los Angeles native reveals that many tracks off the EP were taped specifically in the bathroom while playing nearly all the instruments himself. “We realized early on that putting a guitar amplifier, or an acoustic guitar, or even a vocal in a bathroom gave it a very live and unique sound. Capturing a ‘live’ feeling was crucial for this particular project because I wasn’t able to actually record with the full band due to COVID concerns and quarantining,” Tabori notes. As a result, it took over a month to get the recording and mixing just right, resulting in an EP that incorporates rock, funk, jazz and even cabaret into the release.
“The mood of a pandemic aligns with the mood of this EP,” Tabori furthers. “A lot of my songs deal with existential crisis of some sort and a feeling of isolation after being overwhelmed by life experiences and various emotions. These lyrical qualities seem to fit with the qualities of life during COVID. Everybody feels isolated.”
Tabori’s a multi-instrumentalist whose creativity, drive and love of performing and writing music has been a huge part of his life since youth. The musician, producer, film composer and songwriter grew up in Los Angeles and spent his teenage years doing odd jobs in the industry for producers, songwriters and composers, all the while teaching himself how to record, mix, arrange, and play a myriad of instruments.
When Tabori isn’t making his own music, he’s collaborating with other artists—most notably co-writing and playing guitar on “Fire Dept.” and “K” from Jaden Smith’s latest album, Erys and playing guitar for ¿Téo?. He’s also produced, played guitar and co-written songs for Kid Bloom’s albums and if that were not enough to keep him busy, he has also scored films, including the 2016 Cannes Film Festival contending short, Midnight.
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