Black Ox Orkestar - Everything Returns [Constellation Records 169 Promo]

"Everything Returns". A well suitable title for the first full length album by Black Ox Orkestar in 16 - !!! - years. Making a return to their homebase that is the Canadian label Constellation Records on December 2nd, 2k22 with a total of nine cuts rolled out over the course of roughly 45 minutes the band, still featuring all its core and founding member after its re-formation in late 2k21, presents a new, yet still familiar take on traditional European Jewish Folk and Klezmer instrumentals as well as newly written songs, as usual sung in Yiddish as the initial starting point for the B.O.O. in the noughties was the urge of all band members to explore their Jewish heritage from a musical point of view. This being said and despite the album being held together by what can be described as an innate melancholia and touching beauty we're rather split on this album, gravitating towards the deep, more folksy and intimate cuts like "Tish Nign", "Perpetual Peace" or the slightly jazzy "Viderkol (Echo)" whilst other, rather obviously Klezmer-leaning cuts do not speak to us on a deeper level but might rather resonate with a target audience that has been brought up on a diet of traditional Jewish music - a phenomenon that seems to be rather common for any form of traditional music typical for a very specific group of ethnic or religious heritage that's not that widespread or widely listened to beyond the cultural confinements of this specific group of people. Yet, if deeply melancholic acoustic music is a thing you'd love to indulge in there's surely something to be found on this album.

Album artwork on Instagram!