On the heels of her Conatus world tour, Nika Roza Danilova was offered an opportunity to perform at one of the most prestigious modern art museums in the world, NY's Guggenheim. Rather than doing her standard Zola Jesus electronic set she decided she wanted to work with a classical composer who could arrange her songs for a quartet. She recruited legendary industrial pioneer JG Thirlwell (Foetus) to do the arrangements. If there is a common thread to Thirlwell's varied musical styles, it is dramatic intensity and evocative, cinematic quality. Thirlwell's bredth of experience in experimental and classical music makes him the perfect collaborator to help realize Danilova's vision.
The show went over amazingly well with the Village Voice proclaiming that Zola Jesus "conquered the Guggenheim". Removing the bulk of electronics from these songs gives them the space to breath, thusly opening them up to be received by a much wider audience who perhaps don't normally venture into.
