Klaus Nomi Za Bakdaz - Unfinished Opera (CD)

(Heliocentric) 12 tracks, digipack
The unfinished opera by Klaus Nomi. Completed and released by his band members after he had left the planet.

Klaus Nomi's unfinished symphony, or operetta, or “space western”. It was also a song from his show, and it is the title of this new release. Loosely translated, it means “heaven” or “home for Nomis”. He left behind recordings, photos and a few videos - but if you were never in the same room with him, you'd never know it. Klaus Nomi was a performer with astounding vocal abilities and an even more astounding appearance that was second to none - and due to his untimely passing, the world will never know how he may have used those talents. When he left Earth on August 6, 1983, Klaus Nomi took with him the denouement of his magnum opus - a work we always assumed would be titled Za Bakdaz or “Nomi Homeland”. We decided to present it now, a quarter of a century later. We weren't able to complete it exactly as he might have; the result is equal parts collaboration, homage, historical artifact and enigma. The parts are sung in several languages - English, German, French, Italian - and, interestingly, in his personal “Nomi language”, which we like to call “glossolalia”. For this reason, the libretto could be open to interpretation. In this incomplete state, we are dealing with a musical Rorschach - perhaps not what Nomi fans would expect - but still true to his classical operatic roots and his fascination with all things experimental and futuristic.