Weird Little Boy
John Zorn · 1998
43 min · 9 tracks · avant-garde jazz
A chaotic blend of avant-garde jazz, dissonance, and fragmented narratives that challenges conventional musical boundaries.
Top tracks — play these first
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Two Weeks on a Morphine Drip / New Dirt and New Flies / Lorne Greene Start here — This track exemplifies Zorn's ability to weave intricate soundscapes with disjointed rhythms, capturing the essence of his avant-garde aesthetic while showcasing his improvisational prowess.
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Weird Little Boy — The title track encapsulates the album's overall theme of surrealism and experimentation, presenting a brief yet impactful statement that reflects Zorn's unique compositional style.
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When Blood Fills a Cylinder — This piece combines unsettling sound textures with violent imagery, pushing the boundaries of listener comfort and exemplifying Zorn's confrontational artistic vision.
Elevation
Our rating, out of 100 — and why.
AI-generated from five scored dimensions. An opinion, not a measurement.
InstrumentalThe album's fragmented structure and dissonant sound create a unique listening experience, though it may not hold together as cohesively over time.
What we noticed
- The album features abrupt shifts in tempo and dynamics, often moving from frenetic sections to moments of silence or sparse instrumentation.
- Each track is structured around fragmented motifs that are revisited and deconstructed rather than following traditional verse-chorus forms.
- Several tracks incorporate unconventional instrumentation and extended techniques, creating a dissonant sound palette that challenges listener expectations.
- Composition 25% of the score
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8/10
- Craft 20% of the score
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7/10
- Durability 25% of the score
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6/10
- Distinctiveness 18% of the score
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9/10
- Sequencing 12% of the score
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5/10
the writing — melody, harmony, structure, lyrics
production, performance, arrangement
whether it rewards returning to it
whether it sounds like itself
running order, pacing, length
Significant within its genre. Reported but not counted — how far a record travelled describes its reception rather than the record, and a newer release has had less time to travel than an older one.
Is this for you?
Good fit if you like
- unpredictable emotional landscapes
- wave-like pacing with surprises
- immersive narrative explorations
- short bursts of intensity
Maybe skip if you
- prefer straightforward song structures
- seek immediate gratification
Where this album fits
- In the catalog
- Experimental — Features a chaotic blend of avant-garde elements, challenging Zorn's established sound.
- Career context
- By 1998, John Zorn had already established himself as a pioneering figure in avant-garde music. 'Weird Little Boy' followed his prolific output during the 1990s, including the acclaimed 'Naked City' and marked a continued exploration of unconventional structures and sounds in his work.
- Stylistic neighbors
- Mike Patton· The Thing· Merzbow
Tracklist
- 1 Two Weeks on a Morphine Drip / New Dirt and New Flies / Lorne Greene Start here 11:08
- 2 If the Gun Has a Mind / Redeye / Worms and Shit 8:32
- 3 Totally Poobied 2:14
- 4 Weird Little Boy 1:39
- 5 Lungfull of Water 8:20
- 6 Seance 3:04
- 7 When Blood Fills a Cylinder 2:59
- 8 Waiting 1:46
- 9 Blindness 4:04
Reference: Wikipedia · MusicBrainz · Wikidata
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