“369” opens with an energetic drum performance before quickly introducing an eclectic mixture of sounds, textures, and rhythmic ideas. From the outset, it’s clear that this is not a conventional jazz recording. Instead, the track occupies a space somewhere between experimental electronics, improvisation, noise, and contemporary jazz.
The groove itself is one of the track’s strongest elements. Off-kilter and constantly shifting, it provides enough structure to hold together a constantly evolving arrangement. Around it, modular synthesizers, brass, guitars, and electronic textures collide and interact, creating a sound that feels unpredictable but never directionless.
Although Frequency State does not often feature straight jazz releases, “369” feels particularly relevant because of its experimental approach and willingness to blur genre boundaries. There are moments where the music feels almost electronic in its construction, while elsewhere the improvisational energy and live performance aspects take centre stage. The result is a track that feels equally informed by avant-garde jazz, experimental electronics, punk energy, and leftfield sound design.
“369” serves as the lead single from Un Jazz, the forthcoming release from the New York-based collective Nu Jazz. Described by the band as “Woodstock ’99 at Montreux Jazz Festival”, the project embraces maximalism, fragmentation, and stylistic collision. Rather than attempting to reconcile genres neatly, Nu Jazz actively explores the spaces where those boundaries fail.
Comprised of musicians from projects including Deli Girls, Murderpact, CGI Jesus, Trap Music Orchestra, and Wrens, Nu Jazz brings together artists with backgrounds spanning experimental electronics, jazz, punk, and improvisation. That diversity of experience is evident throughout “369”, which succeeds by embracing contradiction rather than avoiding it.
