Standing with the non-stop buzzing whir of the duet of welcoming yet comically oversized fans moving muggy air through Sound Garage on Geary Ave, I was thinking about how long it had been since I had heard tell or paid attention to the long running Toronto three-piece, Picastro. It must have been 20 years. However, following the buzz they received in the early 2000s, I was also wondering how they’d fit on the August 7th bill with Tennessee tenor saxophone phenom, Zoh Amba (more on that below). Beginning the warm night with their intentionally lethargic meanderings, the plucky guitar, smoothly bowed bass, ample drumbeats, and moody synths allowed their crescendos to shine and their subdued melancholy to resonate. A 30-minute set of slowcore was the perfect amount of time to reflect on what I’d forgotten about the band and reconnect with why my ears had previously categorized the band in the company of artists like Yo La Tengo, Ida, and Barzin.
A quick backstory: After a friend recommended this event a few months back, I went about reviewing a pair of Zoh Amba albums, one being the John Zorn-produced and guested, O, Sun, and its 2025 spirit-album of similarly freeform composition, Sun. When it comes to the Tennessee tenor sax player, Zoh Amba, there is regular mention of Albert Ayler. Sure. Coleman, Gilmore, Shepp, et al. However, I hadn’t realized that a new album had dropped in the meantime on Matador Records. It turns out that there’s a lot more to the artist than improvised sax squeals and jazz freakouts.
Cut back to present day and one of the notable things Zoh bantered about on stage: Announcing mid-set that a car accident on this tour had messed up her shoulder, Zoh had been soldiering through the pain. However, there was no way any audience member would’ve been able to tell without her explanation. Okay that out of the way, more drastically unexpected than a broken shoulder, Zoh’s artistic range is currently being displayed on this tour supporting her change of direction that is her latest release, Eyes Full. Only somewhat disappointingly, yet very pleasantly, the guitar and drums accompanying Zoh’s rhythm guitar and voice, clashed their way through not jazz, not improvised avantgarde, but instead, slashing through a strict checklist of alt-country, grunge, bluesy folk, and psych-rock conventions. The new sound was tastefully ruckus, melodic, and mournful, and I was given a new sense of her maturity and intelligent musicality. At first, I chalked it up to trendy Adrianne Lenker-worship, but there is an earnestness when she claims she is now trying to “bring it back” to her home state, which had previously exiled her. After 30-minutes of the new-found sounds, she finally whipped out a saxophone and proceeded to rattle off a solo, I guess aware that this is precisely what I’d been awaiting. The electric guitar and drums were likewise entirely capable of following along, providing the necessary improvisational chops needed to accompany her former music style. This sadly lasted a mere 2-minutes and then the band, maybe for the sake of anyone who’d become a fan after her most recent album, graciously returned to guitars and cracked vocals for another final few tracks. An ultimately enjoyable set, but for a lack of low end that 2 guitars couldn’t quite rumble out — That and my incessant craving for a skronky sax encore that never arrived, understandably I suppose, given the reported road rash.
In the end, this bill was a solid pairing, and while it was nice to reacquaint myself with Picastro, I’m thoroughly intrigued at what other directions Zoh Amba might yet explore. Please ice that shoulder, rest up, and surprise me again!!