Adolf Plays The Jazz is an instrumental band from Athens, Greece. Despite their cryptic name, you will find no jazz here. Instead you will find densely arranged post rock lightly peppered with samples and dialogue. Their six albums, with five of them being featured here, are as good as anything you with find in instrumental rock.

Stealth EP is their 2008 release. “Nothing to Lose” starts almost industrial yet develops into a freely flowing soundscape of multiple tones and a ethereal melody. “Nameless” has a beautiful piano solo mixed in a soft electronic environment. APTJ appears more interested in atmosphere than flashy musicianship and for the most part it is a wise move.

Day 4 Urban Fiction is a full album that starts with a jolt. Blasting guitars and a cynic dialogue makes this a more tense experience than what was experienced on the album mentioned before. It may be too jolting from some. However the mood calms down quickly with “Terminal”, a quiet tune at first but also developing with some disquieting themes. “Norman Bates” could be called a personality study. There something sinister in this track as should be for a song named after the world’s most famous motel manager. This album is a bit more tense than the first but that makes it a more interesting listen, in my opinion.

The three EPs Melt, Cognac or Brandy, and Muzzle The Birds round out the five picks. The overall feel is pretty much the same; nice melodies swamped with dense soundscapes. The musical talent may be, as I previously said, not flashy but the musicianship of these artists remains impeccable throughout. I especially like “Over The Hill” on Melt, “Frank Zappa Needs Haircut” plus “Sad Story” on Muzzle The Birds, and the 11 minutes “Beerla” on Cognac and Brandy which almost qualifies it as a jam. If anything, I would like to occasionally see these musicians in an session a bit less structured as they clearly have the chops.

Cognac and Brandy is available in 128kbps MP3. Melt, Muzzle The Birds, and Day 4 Urban Fiction is 192kbps MP3 while Stealth is at a healthy 256kbps. There is also a sixth album titled Art Brokolo but I could not get it to download from the inexorable Zshare (lose the Zshare, guys). I’m sure it is as good as the others but until I hear it I can’t recommend it. Nonetheless the other five albums will give you plenty of enjoyable listening.

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