Telling The Tale is the debut album by Chris Batchelor’s Zoetic, a close-knit and sympathetic band of  long term musical partners joining together to play Batchelor’s evocative compositions. The unusual combination of trumpet, viola, guitar, double bass and percussion, with this particular personnel, creates a distinctive and atmospheric group sound.

The collective sensibility shared by Zoetic’s stellar line up is the result of years of playing alongside in many different projects. Guitarist John Parricelli and bassist Steve Watts were fellow members of the legendary ’80’s big band Loose Tubes, for which Batchelor was a key composer. Paul Clarvis, here on tabla and hand percussion, has been a member of Batchelor’s eclectic quartet Pigfoot for over ten years, while violist Margrit Hasler is a more recent addition to the UK scene, having previously featured in Mark Lockheart’s ‘Ellington In Anticipation’, another post Loose Tubes connection.

Telling The Tale portrays eight imaginative scenes reflecting the breadth of Batchelor’s global influences and inspirations, from the mysterious, cinematic title track to the rolling township groove of Elephant Lane, and the spiky rock sounds of Huckster. Washington Lyon grows from lyrical solo bass to a band waltz that revolves around a simple figure. Corneta brings us to a vibrant Andalusian inspired scene, while the sparky Luck slips into a bluesy riff as the setting for the improvising. The only piece not composed by Batchelor is the beautifully melancholic ballad Canto Triste by Brazilian singer songwriter Edu Lobo.

Line Up: Chris Batchelor – trumpet, Margrit Hasler – viola, John Parricelli – guitar, Steve Watts – bass & Paul Clarvis