Zisko, Oliver: Global Warning

Oliver Zisko is a studio and session drummer who played with Hungarian black metal band Sear Bliss. With the foreboding album title, what type of music would present itself? The concept of the album has to do with Global Warming, and each track is a reflection on the various issues that we are dealing with on this Planet. The seeds for this album began in 2017, and outside of a few songs, Zisko wrote the entire album. The opening “Renewal� has a foot in the world of electronic music, with various keyboards and ambient sounds running through it. The music is a bit cold and mechanical, but, this is most likely the feel that Zisko was going for to convey the concept.

Zisko is a very skilled/precise drummer; his playing is impressive and often quite busy. As was mentioned, he tackles most of the synthesizers and programming throughout. For me, “Global Warming� shows me where Zisko can really go when collaborating. I feel the best songs are where Zisko enlists other artists to perform with him. “Ghost Notes� features Marius Pop (guitar) and Anthony Crawford (bass); both elevate the track with their performances. Adam Miski shares keyboard and programming duties with Zisko, and after a few listens to the entire album, this song in particular rises to the top. This holds true throughout the album, the standout tracks such as “Carnival of Abundance� and “Origin� feature guitarist Mike Gotthard, and “Travelin’� pulls off a nice Middle Eastern motif with Derek Sherinian (keyboards) and Marius Pop (guitar) who I am very impressed with here. I also need to mention the excellent solo in “Plastic�, I really liked the keyboard work, the solo really does have that fusion feel over an industrial backdrop.

On the songs where Zisko is a one-man band like “Rise up To the Mid-Alpha Level�, “21st Century Shock� and “Hoax�, they can come off stiff and sterile to my ear. I did take into account the albums concept, and that it is purposely harsh sounding at times, setting the mood for the songs and theme. To be fair, Zisko must be given credit for his talent, having put this together and playing many of the parts you hear (drums, programming, synthesizers). The music is well done and Zisko is obviously a fine musician. The record grew on me too, this could have been something I listened to once and determined that it was not for me. But as I listened, some of the songs began to resonate. You can hear all the work that went in by the various sounds, ambient textures, and drumming which are all impressive. I do have to go back to what for me stood out, when Zisko brings in other musicians, I feel it brings out the best in his music. For those that do dig the more electronic/synthesizer music that Zisko writes, I believe you will find this right up your alley. The package is very nice, and the ideas and inspiration behind each song are written out in the booklet as a guide to what each song is about. Zisko indicates in the liner notes that his goal was to simply create instrumental-fusion music that combines electronic effects, I believe he achieved his goal.

Track List:
1. Renewal
2. Ghost Notes
3. Carnival of Abundance
4. Rise Up To The Mid-Alpha Level
5. Origin
6. 21 st Century Shock
7. Hoax
8. Plastic
9. Rise and Fall
10. Controlled Substance
11. Travelin’
12. White Keys
13. Ghost Notes (Original Mix)
14. Carnival of Abundance (Original Mix)

Added: February 15th 2024
Reviewer: Eric Porter
Score:
Related Link: Artists @ Bandcamp
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Language: english

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