In the six years we’ve been publishing The Agit Reader, we’ve watched Nika Roza Danilova (a.k.a. Zola Jesus) develop from a dilettante creating bedroom cacophonies into an artist capable of astounding depth and range. Indeed, she had only just released her first single when we first went to press in 2008, but now she is on her third full-length and playing sizable venues like Manhattan’s venerable Webster Hall, where she made a tour stop this past Sunday.

Zola was preceded by Martin Rev (pictured below), one-half of legendary electro punks Suicide. In addition to playing that group’s classic “Rocket USA,” he deconstructed oldies and generally used his synthesizer as much as a rhythmic instrument as a conveyance for melody, which, of course, was really a secondary concern. Indeed, the mechanized, noise-laden music he created was appealing for its texture and contrasting tones and not any semblance of songs. Rev generally seemed more interested in satisfying some wonton itch rather than impressing the audience, but he likely accomplished both.

Zola Jesus (pictured top), on the other hand, has grown increasingly interested in tunefullness as she has continuously dived further into pop waters. On her latest, Taiga, she indulged those tendencies without retaining the atmospheric nuances of her other full-lengths. But live she was able to breathe some chilly air back into the new album’s songs. Backed by a keyboardist, drummer, and a six-piece horn section, she focused primarily on that new record, playing it in its entirety and in order, save for a break for a couple older tracks midway through. “Hunger” benefitted most from its live arrangement, with its techno cadence being cut by a greater emphasis on the horns.

In general, the record’s at times overbearingly synthetic nature was lessened as Zola found the emotional heart of each song and presented it to the crowd. Interjecting, The Spoils’ “Clay Bodies” and Valusia’s “Sea Talk” helped break the album’s frenzied pace and give the set some levity, with the latter being delivered particularly powerfully. She finished, as the record does, with “It’s Not Over,” which was true because she returned for two more songs. “Vessel” was a startling juxtaposition of electronic backing and Danilova’s soaring voice, but “Night” remains her masterwork and no better way to end. Admittedly, I wasn’t so sure about Taiga, but as this show demonstrated, it is another suitable development in this endlessly compelling chanteuse’s career.