Music Blog

The first thing you notice about Nika Roza Danilova tonight is her starch white tunic. She stands out against a blackened stage. Band members on drums, guitars and keys are all dressed black to match the curtain behind them. This contrast makes sense; Danilova makes up Zola Jesus— it’s her project, her animal. 

Zola Jesus is a less than 5 foott, less than 100 pound vocal powerhouse; her voice, which carries tones of Stevie Nicks and Grand Opera, is unmistakably her own. You haven’t heard it before. Her stage presence, moving her hands frantically like a composer on speed, snaking the microphone around her left arm, convulsing to the beat of the drums, you haven’t seen that before.

There’s something spiritual about what’s happening on stage tonight— Danilova’s howling lyrics border between English and something intensely ancient, like a chant calling for something much darker than rain. With help from a heavy handed drummer merging metal and tribal influences, Zola Jesus is able to take everyone in this audience somewhere else. It’s obvious, as everyone stands trance-like, covered from the October rain in this Northeast Portland venue, that no one’s really here at all.

Then, as quickly as it started, the music stops and drinks start pouring again and we’re all back to bitching about the cold as we huddle outside to smoke a cigarette. It was a beautiful break, though. 

Tagged: live review