“This is an Urban Junkyard record.”

It’s a descriptor that J Hacha De Zola – previously described by UTNE as “the kind of alluring character found in old children’s books,” and by PASTE as simply, “a wild man” – has been casually using over the course of three album releases. With the upcoming full–length Icaro Nouveau (out March 8th), the Rahway, New Jersey–based musician defines the genre in detail.

Produced by iconic engineer John Agnello, a career–long cohort of another “J” – J. Mascis of Dinosaur Jr, and most recently the man behind albums by Waxahatchee, the new Hacha De Zola songs are described by the artist as full of “villains, spells, desires, romance, danger, redemption, and revelations.”

He adds, “and a eulogy,” referring to “Ode To Ralph Carney,” about the late, legendary saxophone sideman of Tom Waits (and many others), who served not only as a player, but more importantly, as a spiritual guide for Hacha De Zola over the course of the latter’s young career.

“My heart aches,” Hacha De Zola says about the man he calls “Johnny Marinara” on the tune, directly lifting Waits’ own nickname for Carney, as called out following a particularly gnarly solo during a late–80s appearance on “Late Night with David Letterman”. The “Icaro” of the new album’s title speaks to that aching; the word refers to “language taught through other worldly sources intended to heal those who hear it.”

Indeed, Carney was Hacha De Zola’s compatriot in developing the Urban Junkyard sound that now has a life of its own on Icaro Nouveau.

“He was an integral part of this sound. He was my secret weapon,” Hacha De Zola says. “His horns were ever–present, as was his input. Not having him around for Icaro Nouveau was unsettling for me.”

Fortunately, Carney’s spirit was still in the room, and helped Hacha De Zola get in touch with his creativity in a new way, with greater depth. More specifically, the “Nouveau” portion that completes the new album’s title.

“I’ve been developing my own new language, through the elements that are most familiar to me,” Hacha De Zola explains. “My neighborhood – ‘mi barrio’ – where I’m from, and the diversity of cultures and vibes there.”

“Environment is everything,” he continues, “There’s power in the intent behind words and in their delivery. You might not even understand a certain language, but can get a sense of the intent when it’s spoken.”

You can feel it in the Urban Junkyard.

Hacha De Zola’s day job is as a biochemist, and as such, he wrote what amounts to a dissertation on the origins behind the meaning of Urban Junkyard. In abbreviated form, he states the following:

“Urban Junkyard is my hand grenade to explode accepted forms of existing music. It is a deconstructionist approach to music composition, and not only of music, but also of poetry and lyricism, drawn from the past. I blow them up, and the resulting fragments are allowed to reform to create my own musical universe. It’s an acquired taste, with strong spices, and an underlying chaos.”

He continues, “This music works in the service of the mind, as opposed to being intended to only please the ear. I want to dismantle any excessive loyalty to any particular musical idea and look for the more fundamental or primal aspects that might lie below the surface. I never wanted to be committed to one thing. I’m more interested in musical ideas than musical genres.”

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