Moby Dick; or, The Album

The Evangenitals’ latest album is both ear-catching and head-scratching to hear, a song cycle that zigzags between old-time country, gypsy cabaret, garage rock, and electronica sounds (sometimes in the same song). Core members Juli Crockett and Lisa Dee bring a theatrical sensibility to the project, which dramatizes Melville’s thematic ideas obliquely but evocatively. Contributions from such notables as soundtrack composer Jeremy Zuckerman (guitar), audio/video artist Dorian Wood (vocals), and ‘60s folk-revival veteran Jim Kweskin (banjo) deepen the music's adventurous sensibility. Framed by the slowly unfolding soundscapes “Ahab’s Leg” and “Quee Queg,” the album veers into rambunctious gospel (“The Sermon”), sassy Devo-ish punk (“Turbulent Flow”), and brooding folk (“The Lee Shore”), held together by the band’s spirit of oddball camaraderie. Taken together, these songs resonate with a sense of both high tragedy and low-down humor. The Evangenitals chase the Great White Whale of their own creativity across the album, and if they leave some listeners somewhat flummoxed, they provide a thrilling ride along the way.