“Wordless Ecstasy”
For many, knowledge of Hasidic music is next to nil, with scenes of wedding-chair dances and bar mitzvahs gleaned from television and film. Trombonist Dan Blacksberg, however, has made a career out of reinterpreting Ashkenazic Jewish music in interesting ways. After broaching hardcore with Electric Simcha, Blacksberg recruited four other musicians and combined traditional wordless melodies with doom metal for a new project called Deveykus.
The band’s first track, “Wordless Ecstasy,” is a slow burn, built of trombone, electricity, and weighty, slow-motion beats. Moments of complexity flirt with the ear, building a deceptive drone. It’s a Zen kōan through a Jewish lens.