Oubliette Perish

It’s amazing that Chico’s Oubliette Perish front man/songwriter (and supremely nice guy) Curtis Zinn hasn’t heard old-school Chico bands Uncle Rosco or Land of the Wee Beasties. The songs on O.P.’s debut—which also features Kyle Marcelli (bass) and Jake VanDerLinde (drums) of locals Stationary Legs—would have fit right into that post-punk-meets-math-rock scene. Much as was the case with those old-schoolers, the complicated arrangements are most effective in the live setting, where the band jumps from piece to piece, stretching out together to catch up to one alternately spinning song-section in one precise moment, and then colliding into one another over and over with impossible-to-comprehend separate parts that combine to form muscular jazzy grooves. This home-recorded version of O.P. is not the same explosive display—more of a clean and clear presentation of the million little intricate parts—but it’s still fun to follow along. I have favorite parts more than favorite songs: the breezy bounciness that pops up throughout “Mathe Man,” the rushed progression of “Pink Hands” and the Thingy-like melody clusters in “Guide to a Paper Airplane.” And I’ve just heard the tip of the iceberg.