Punk with curls

Besides being the funniest oxymoron in music, Hasidic New Wave is the brainchild of two of New York's finest horn tooters, Frank London and Greg Wall. "Kabalogy" is the third record that blends the musical and religious customs of Hasidic Jews with the band's acid and klezmer jazz textures. From the sprawling opener, "Purple Vishnu," where London's trumpet writhes like a serpent, to the manic riffing of "Ok dear, who?" "Kabalogy" captures the essence of Hasidic spirituality with a mixture of orthodoxy and downright irreverence. A trumpet in "Burkan Cocek" approximates Hasidic's ecstatic meditative chants, called zemirots, over a polka beat, while "The Frank Zappa Memorial Bris" pays tribute to the master of frenetic jazz. The closer, "Giuliani Uber Alles," is an almost punkish rant against the New York mayor's thuggish social tactics and shows how far Kabalogy pushes the aesthetics of the band's own brand of "Hasid Jazz."