Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

On Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at 21:30, Jarboe and Zu take the stage at Monk: Jarboe, the longtime voice of Swans, together with Zu, the Roman experimental instrumental rock band, for the first of the four European dates of the Paragate project. Monk is at Via Giuseppe Mirri 35, in the Casal Bertone neighborhood, less than a kilometer from Tiburtina station, served by metro line B and the FL1, FL2 and FL3 regional trains. The club's website also lists bus lines 163, 409 and 545. Doors open at 21:00. On the ticketing page linked to Monk the presale ticket costs 18 euros, while the first discounted tier is already sold out. Tickets are sold from Monk's official website, which refers to the presale network authorized by the organizers.

It's a meeting fans of experimental music have been waiting for. Zu took their name from a Swans record, and 30 years later they share the stage with the singer who stayed in Swans for 13 years alongside Michael Gira. In our opinion it's one of the most interesting evenings of the Roman fall for those who love experimental rock: a band that has played with Mike Patton and the Melvins and a voice that has crossed the international post-industrial scene, in an intimate hall a short walk from Tiburtina.

Paragate: Jarboe and Zu together on stage

Paragate is the name of the four special dates on which Zu share the stage with Jarboe, between November 10 and 14, 2026: Rome at Monk on the 10th, Bologna at Cinema Perla on the 11th, Prague at Alternativa Festival on the 13th, Budapest at Vörös Yuk / Blue Hell on the 14th.

Rome, the first date

Rome opens the cycle. For Zu, a band born in the capital, it's a kind of homecoming, within a tour that takes them to Italy, the Balkans and Central Europe. For the Roman audience it's the only chance in Lazio to hear this lineup.

Two worlds

The tour presentation published by the music press describes the meeting as the union of two worlds only seemingly far apart: on one side the Roman band's free jazz and incendiary noise, on the other the American artist's ritual and visceral vocals. Zu's baritone sax, bass and drums meet a voice that has crossed experimental rock, post-industrial and ambient.

What you'll hear

Monk doesn't publish a set list, and since it's a special project it's impossible to know in advance how much room there will be for Zu's songs, how much for Jarboe's repertoire and how much for material created specifically for these dates. The ticketing page lists a running time from 21:30 to 23:30: two hours of music, or a little less.

Ferrum Sidereum

The dates with Jarboe are part of Zu's Ferrum Sidereum tour, named after the band's new album, out in 2026 on House Of Mythology. The tour started on September 26 in Cuneo and, after the Paragate cycle, continues on November 18 in Naples, on the 19th in Messina and on the 21st in Catania.

Who Jarboe is, the voice of Swans

Jarboe is an American singer-songwriter and keyboardist born in New Orleans, known above all for having been part of Swans, Michael Gira's New York band, from 1985 to 1998.

The years with Swans

Classically trained, Jarboe joined Swans in 1985 and stayed until the 1998 breakup as the only permanent member alongside Gira. Her name appears on records such as Greed, Holy Money, Children of God, The Burning World, White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, Love of Life, The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, through Swans Are Dead. In 2012, after the reunion, she contributed vocals to The Seer.

World of Skin

Alongside Swans, Jarboe and Gira created the project Skin, later World of Skin, with albums such as Blood, Women, Roses and Shame, Humility, Revenge in 1987 and 10 Songs from Another World in 1991. It's the most intimate and melodic side of their collaboration.

Her solo career

Her first solo work, the cassette Walls, dates from 1984. It was followed by 13 Masks in 1991, Sacrificial Cake in 1995 on Alternative Tentacles, Anhedoniac in 1998, The Men Album and The Conduit in 2005 on Atavistic, Mahakali in 2008, Durga in 2009, Alchemic in 2010, Indemnity in 2011 and A Symphony for Shiva in 2013. She also composed the soundtrack for the horror video game The Path.

Her collaborations

The list of collaborations is long: the album Neurosis and Jarboe, released in 2003 on Neurot Recordings, J2 with Justin K. Broadrick in 2008, her vocals on Jesu's Lifeline, A Perfect Circle's Thirteenth Step, Kirlian Camera, Steven Severin, Byla, Vampillia. Her name is linked to Neurosis, Justin Broadrick and the international post-industrial scene.

Who Zu are, the Roman experimental rock band

Zu are an experimental instrumental rock band formed in Rome in 1997, with a name inspired by the Swans album Die Tür ist zu. The current lineup is Luca Mai on baritone sax, Massimo Pupillo on bass and Paolo Mongardi on drums.

The origins between Ostia and Rome

The story begins in 1992, when Massimo Pupillo was rehearsing with his noise group in the room of the Spaziokamino social center in Ostia and met a very young Jacopo Battaglia. After their experience with Gronge, in 1996 Pupillo, Battaglia and Luca Mai decided to start again with a completely instrumental project, rehearsing for entire days in the room in Piazza degli Zingari, in Rome.

The name

In 1997 they chose the name Zu, at Pupillo's suggestion, from the Swans album Die Tür ist zu. In German zu means closed, and it described their situation at the time well: always shut away in the rehearsal room. The concert with Jarboe ideally closes a circle almost 30 years long.

From jazzcore to Carboniferous

Their first album, Bromio, came out in 1999 on Wide Records with Roy Paci on trumpet, and someone coined the label jazzcore for them. In 2001 they recorded Igneo at Steve Albini's Electrical Audio in Chicago, with Ken Vandermark and other musicians of the city's new jazz scene. In 2004 came Radiale, in 2006 How to Raise an Ox with Mats Gustafsson. In 2009 came Carboniferous, on Mike Patton's Ipecac, which many consider their masterpiece. The same year they won the PIMI award for best band.

A band on permanent tour

In the early 2000s Zu played an average of 200 concerts a year, in Europe, the United States and Asia. They opened for Fantômas in Japan, played as a quartet with Mike Patton, recorded with the Melvins, and worked with Romeo Castellucci's Socìetas Raffaello Sanzio on the show Vexilla regis prodeunt inferni. In 2009, in South America, they played in front of 30,000 people at the Pepsi Fest in Santiago, Chile.

Splits and side projects

Alongside the albums, Zu released a series of splits: in 2005 with the New York hip hop duo Dälek, pressed in only 600 copies, in 2006 with the American band Iceburn, in 2008 with guitarist Xabier Iriondo and Damo Suzuki, the voice of Can, and with Il Teatro degli Orrori, in 666 copies on vinyl. In 2005 the trio formed the supergroup Ardecore with Geoff Farina of Karate. In 2007 came Identification with the Enemy, recorded with Japanese composer Nobukazu Takemura, the band's first record marked by electronics.

The break and the return

In 2011 Battaglia left the band and Zu stopped. They returned in 2014 with Gabe Serbian, released Cortar Todo in 2015, then entered an introspective phase with Jhator, Mirror Emperor with David Tibet of Current 93 and Terminalia Amazonia. After the tour with Tatsuya Yoshida of Ruins and the record JazzisDead, Paolo Mongardi joined on drums and Ferrum Sidereum was born, the new 2026 album.

Monk: from La Palma Club to the Casal Bertone club

Monk is a cultural club at Via Giuseppe Mirri 35, in the Casal Bertone neighborhood, less than a kilometer from Tiburtina station, active since 2014 and named after jazz pianist Thelonious Sphere Monk.

La Palma Club

Before Monk, according to the venue presentation published on the club's ticketing network, the same facility hosted La Palma Club, from about 1995 to 2007: for more than 10 years, concerts and festivals focused mainly on jazz, world music and singer-songwriters.

The 2014 reopening

After seven years of closure, in 2014 the space was reopened thanks to cleanup and redevelopment work by the social promotion association C'MON!, with the aim of improving access and preserving its importance for the neighborhood.

Two farmhouses in a park

Monk occupies two farmhouses, about 500 square meters in all, with two outdoor areas inside a one-hectare park, at the far end of Via Mirri. The website describes it as a small rural world in a densely populated neighborhood: you arrive between apartment blocks and tracks and find yourself in the green.

The fall program

In the weeks around the concert, Monk has hosted or will host the Fleshtones on October 29, Mark Guiliana on November 8, Thylacine on November 11, Marlene Kuntz on the 17th and Henge with Mark the Hammer on the 21st. General information about the club is on our Monk page.

Tickets and times for Jarboe and Zu at Monk

The Jarboe and Zu concert starts at 21:30 on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, with doors opening at 21:00. The presale ticket costs 18 euros on the ticketing page linked to Monk's website.

Price tiers

The ticketing page lists a first tier at 15.65 euros, already sold out, and the presale at 18 euros. The price at the door on the night of the concert isn't given: if you want to be sure to get in, it's best to buy ahead.

Children and minors

Monk applies a general rule: free admission for children up to 12, accompanied by an adult with a ticket, and minors admitted only with a parent or an adult companion with an authorization. The same ticketing page, however, also lists a minimum age of 18 for the evening: the two pieces of information don't agree, and it's best to ask the club before bringing minors.

A single date

Rome is the only stop of the Paragate project in central and southern Italy. The next evening, November 11, Jarboe and Zu are in Bologna.

How to get to Monk

Monk can be reached on metro line B or the FL1, FL2 and FL3 regional trains to Tiburtina station, less than a kilometer away, or on buses 163, 409 and 545, as listed on the official website.

By metro and train

From Tiburtina to Via Giuseppe Mirri it's about a 10-minute walk. From Termini, metro line B reaches Tiburtina in a few minutes. With a concert ending around 23:30 on a Tuesday, check the time of the last metro run before going out.

By bus

Lines 163, 409 and 545 serve the area. For the exact route and evening frequencies, it's best to use the ATAC journey planner.

By car and taxi

Casal Bertone is outside the ZTL, and on a Tuesday evening finding parking in the nearby streets is easier than on weekends. On the way back, a taxi is the most convenient solution for anyone living far from a direct line.

Casal Bertone and the area around Monk

Casal Bertone is a neighborhood in the eastern part of Rome, squeezed between the Tiburtina railroad, Via Prenestina and Portonaccio, which grew in the 20th century next to the rail yard.

Verano and San Lorenzo

Beyond the tracks, to the west, are the Verano Cemetery and the basilica of San Lorenzo fuori le Mura. The San Lorenzo neighborhood, with its student and evening life, is a few minutes away by bus or taxi.

Villa Torlonia and Porta Maggiore

To the north, along Via Nomentana, is Villa Torlonia with the Casino Nobile and the Casina delle Civette. To the south, beyond Via Prenestina, Porta Maggiore and the ancient aqueducts are a reminder that even this outer district rests on 2,000 years of history.

Where to eat at Monk and nearby

Monk has its own bar and kitchen: having dinner at the club before the concert is the most practical solution, especially with doors opening at 21:00.

The club's kitchen

The menu published on the website includes burgers, supplì, falafel, eggplant parmigiana and other dishes, with vegan and gluten-free options. Anyone with particular dietary needs should let the staff know.

Nearby

Between Casal Bertone and Portonaccio there are neighborhood trattorias and pizzerias. The widest choice is in San Lorenzo and Pigneto, a few minutes away by taxi or bus.

Accessibility and practical information at Monk

Monk states that its spaces are free of architectural barriers and publishes a page dedicated to accessibility, with the rules for children and minors and the services for deaf people.

Vibrating vests

On some evenings flagged in the program Monk provides Woojer Vest 3 vibrating vests for deaf people. To find out if the service is available on November 10, write to info@monkroma.it.

Volume and protection

Zu's music is often powerful and loud. Anyone sensitive to sound, or bringing kids, should bring earplugs: they take nothing away from the listening and protect your hearing.

How to plan the evening at Monk

The Jarboe and Zu evening is organized around three times: doors at 21:00, start at 21:30, expected end around 23:30 according to the ticketing page.

Arriving

Getting to Tiburtina around 20:15 lets you walk to Monk without hurrying, crossing Casal Bertone. If you come by bus, you can check lines 163, 409 and 545 on the ATAC journey planner.

Dinner

The club's kitchen is the most convenient solution: you eat something in the park or in the farmhouses, and you go into the hall as soon as doors open. If you prefer a trattoria, you can have dinner beforehand in San Lorenzo and then take a taxi.

Your spot in the hall

In an intimate hall your position matters. If you want to see the sax and drums up close, stand at the front. If you prefer more balanced sound, choose the center, away from the bar counter.

Getting back

With the end around 23:30 on a Tuesday, check the last metro B run from Tiburtina in advance. For anyone living far away, a taxi booked for when you come out saves you waiting in the November cold.

The November cold

You reach Monk by crossing a park, and between Via Mirri entrance and the hall you walk outdoors. In mid-November the evening is cool and often damp: a heavy jacket and a small umbrella make arriving and leaving more comfortable.

Swans and Rome: the thread that ties the evening together

The November 10 concert ties together two stories born thousands of kilometers apart: the New York band Swans, with whom Jarboe sang from 1985 to 1998, and Rome's Zu, who took their name from Swans.

Die Tür ist zu

Die Tür ist zu is a Swans compilation that, according to the band's history, had just come out when Pupillo suggested calling the project Zu. The German title means the door is closed, and it's from that word, closed, that Zu took their name.

A natural meeting

Over the years Zu have worked with musicians from the same circles Jarboe moves in: David Tibet of Current 93, Mike Patton, the Melvins. The meeting with the historic voice of Swans is the logical consequence of a path, more than a surprise.

A curious fact about Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

The nicest curiosity of the evening is in the band's name. In 1997, when Massimo Pupillo, Jacopo Battaglia and Luca Mai were looking for a name for their instrumental project, Pupillo suggested Zu, inspired by the Swans album Die Tür ist zu, a compilation that had just come out. In German the word means closed, and it described the band's life in those years well: entire days shut away in the rehearsal room in Piazza degli Zingari, in Rome, and nights spent doing all sorts of jobs, including putting up concert posters, to get by. In those same years Jarboe was the voice of Swans alongside Michael Gira, and would remain so until 1998.

Almost 30 years later, the band named after a Swans record shares the stage with one of the two souls of that group, and does so in its own city. The second curiosity concerns the club: before becoming Monk, Via Mirri facility was La Palma Club, where from about 1995 to 2007 you mostly heard jazz, world music and singer-songwriters. Zu, born in those very years with a sound the press called jazzcore, now play in a place that has jazz in its name and in its history.

Something nobody tells you about Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

What few people know is how intertwined Zu's story is with experimental theater and film. In their early years the band composed music for theater shows and radio dramas. In 2007 they worked with Socìetas Raffaello Sanzio, playing live in Vexilla regis prodeunt inferni, directed by Romeo Castellucci. And in the summer of 2008, in Rome, the surprise host introducing their quartet concert with Mike Patton was American actor Danny DeVito. These episodes say a lot about a band able to move between clubs, international festivals and theater stages.

The second thing concerns Jarboe. Many remember her only as the voice of Swans, but her path also includes video game music, with the soundtrack for the horror game The Path, and collaborations with very different artists, from A Perfect Circle to Neurosis. Anyone arriving at Monk expecting a concert of Swans songs only may be surprised: the evening is born as a new project. A practical tip: arrive when doors open, at 21:00, to get a spot near the stage. In an intimate hall, with music that works a lot on dynamics, position makes the difference.

My advice for seeing Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

My advice is to prepare with two listens before the evening. The first is Zu's Carboniferous, released in 2009 on Ipecac: it's the record many consider their masterpiece, and it gives a precise idea of the power of Luca Mai's baritone sax and Massimo Pupillo's bass. The second is Swans' Soundtracks for the Blind, from 1996, or alternatively the 2003 album Neurosis and Jarboe: they help you get to know Jarboe's voice in its most varied registers, from a whisper to a ritual scream.

The second piece of advice concerns the ticket. The first price tier is already sold out, and a project with only four dates draws fans from outside Rome too. Buying the presale ticket at 18 euros avoids the surprise of a full hall.

The third concerns the evening. It's best to arrive at Monk around 20:30, have dinner without rushing at the club's kitchen and then go into the hall when doors open. And for the trip back, with the end expected around 23:30, better to check the last metro from Tiburtina beforehand or book a taxi.

Another well-known fact, yet seldom mentioned

It's well known that Zu are one of the Italian bands best known abroad in experimental rock. Less often mentioned is the impressive number of concerts that made them so: in the early 2000s they played an average of 200 dates a year, across Europe, the United States and Asia, and they shared the stage with names such as The Ex, Nomeansno, Ruins, Fantômas and the Melvins. They also organized a traveling festival, Zu Fest, with guests such as The Ex, Karate, Chicago Underground Duo, Nels Cline, Dälek, Mats Gustafsson and Lightning Bolt.

A second fact known to fans but seldom cited concerns recognition. Carboniferous, released in 2009 on Mike Patton's Ipecac with guests such as Patton himself and Buzz Osborne of the Melvins, was named record of the year by several publications and put the band on the cover of some specialist magazines. The world tour that followed had many sold-out concerts. It's hard to find another Italian instrumental band with a comparable international path. Monk, which in these years has built its reputation precisely as a venue where you can hear international names up close, is the right place for a homecoming of this kind.

The right photo to take at Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

During the concert, use your phone sparingly. In music that lives on tension, crescendos and ritual moments, a lit screen distracts the people around you more than you'd think. If you want a souvenir of the stage, take it in the first few minutes, with the lights full on, and then put your phone away.

The right photo is taken outside. At nine in the evening in November Monk's park is dark, and the two farmhouses lit up among the trees, with the city around them, are an image few venues in Rome can offer. The best spot is Via Mirri entrance, looking toward the farmhouses with the hall lights on behind the windows.

The third, for those arriving by train or metro, is Tiburtina station at night, with its big canopy and the tracks. Monk was born between the railroad and Portonaccio, and a photo of the tracks tells the story of the neighborhood well. For those who collect tickets and posters, the evening's poster at the entrance is also a souvenir worth keeping: only four dates, and Rome is the first.

Some important events that happened here

The story of the place begins before Monk. According to the venue presentation, from about 1995 to 2007 Via Giuseppe Mirri facility hosted La Palma Club, which for more than 10 years offered jazz, world music and singer-songwriter concerts and festivals. Then came seven years of closure.

In 2014 the space was reopened thanks to cleanup and redevelopment work by the social promotion association C'MON!, and Monk was born: two farmhouses surrounded by a one-hectare park, at the end of a street in Casal Bertone. Since then the club has become one of the reference venues for live music in Rome, with a program that moves into the garden in summer and into the indoor hall in winter, and with a kitchen, family activities, markets and festivals.

In recent years Monk has also developed an accessibility policy, with free admission for accompanied children and, on some evenings, vibrating vests for deaf people. The neighborhood around it has a longer history: Casal Bertone grew in the 20th century next to the railroad, and beyond the tracks Verano and San Lorenzo fuori le Mura tie this area to the ancient history of the city. On November 10, 2026, the club hosts the first date of the Paragate project.

Who has passed through Jarboe and Zu in concert at Monk, November 10, 2026

In the weeks around the concert, Monk's program lines up a piece of independent music history: the Lemonheads on October 25, Azymüth on the 26th, corto.alto on the 27th, Fink on the 28th, the Fleshtones with their 50th anniversary show on the 29th. In November Mark Guiliana on the 8th, Thylacine on the 11th, Marlene Kuntz with the concert dedicated to Il vile on the 17th, Roberto Colella on the 19th, Henge and Mark the Hammer on the 21st. In September Destroyer and Merzbow, the Japanese master of noise, had also played here.

Before Monk, the same place, as La Palma Club, hosted jazz, world music and singer-songwriter concerts for more than 10 years.

On November 10 two names with a long history behind them join this list. Jarboe, the voice of Swans from 1985 to 1998, a collaborator of Neurosis and Justin Broadrick, and Zu, who in almost 30 years have played with Mike Patton, the Melvins, Mats Gustafsson, Ken Vandermark, David Tibet and Tatsuya Yoshida. In a hall of this size, hearing them up close is one of those small privileges Rome can still offer.

Frequently asked questions about Jarboe and Zu at Monk

When do Jarboe and Zu play in Rome?

Jarboe and Zu play at Monk in Rome on Tuesday, November 10, 2026, at 21:30, with doors at 21:00. It's the first of the four dates of the Paragate project, which continues in Bologna, Prague and Budapest.

How much is a ticket for Jarboe and Zu at Monk?

On the ticketing page linked to Monk the presale ticket costs 18 euros. The first tier at 15.65 euros is sold out. The price at the door isn't given, so it's best to buy ahead.

Where is Monk?

Monk is at Via Giuseppe Mirri 35, in the Casal Bertone neighborhood, less than a kilometer from Tiburtina station, served by metro line B and the FL1, FL2 and FL3 trains. Buses 163, 409 and 545 also pass nearby.

Who is Jarboe?

Jarboe is an American singer-songwriter and keyboardist, born in New Orleans, the voice of Swans from 1985 to 1998 alongside Michael Gira. She has a long solo career and has worked with Neurosis, Justin K. Broadrick, Jesu and A Perfect Circle.

Who are Zu?

Zu are a Roman experimental instrumental rock band formed in 1997, with Luca Mai on baritone sax, Massimo Pupillo on bass and now Paolo Mongardi on drums. They released Carboniferous on Ipecac and have played with Mike Patton.

Why are Zu called that?

Zu took their name from the Swans album Die Tür ist zu, at Massimo Pupillo's suggestion. In German zu means closed, and it described the band, always shut away in the rehearsal room. That's why the concert with Jarboe has a symbolic value.

Can you have dinner at Monk before the concert?

Monk has its own bar and kitchen, with burgers, supplì, falafel, eggplant parmigiana and vegan and gluten-free options. With doors opening at 21:00, eating at the club is the most convenient solution.

Final advice on Jarboe and Zu at Monk

Jarboe and Zu at Monk are a date for those looking for something different from the usual concert in live music: a special project of four dates, a historic voice of the international experimental scene and a Roman band that has toured the world, brought together by a thread that starts from a Swans record of 30 years ago. My advice is to buy the presale ticket, listen to Carboniferous and a Swans record in the days before, arrive when doors open and have dinner at the club. With Tiburtina a 10-minute walk away, it's an evening that's easy to organize and hard to forget.

Article written by the editorial team of Tour Leader Pro, contact them for Private/Corporate/V.I.P. Tours and Experiences.

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