Untitled Document


	<< back 1. Hello! How's the band lately? Jeff - We're currently sleeping. It's been a wild couple years of touring and recording. We just finished up our 4th tour of the year and we're at home recharging until next spring. 2. ZAO is at the moment one of the most influential bands from the metal scene. What's your point of view on how you got there? Jeff - I think it's a combination of a lot of things. The constant inner-turmoil in the band with the line-up changes and soap opera there. Dan's lyrics having a pretty personal slant for the genre, and the band constantly trying different things with it's sound have led people to really pay attention. As soon as the fans have figured out what Zao is trying to do... the band changes what it's doing. I think that operating that way has gotten more and more rare with bands. No one is taking risks anymore. 3. How would you describe your music and what do you think you have more than the others in the scene? Jeff - I'm not really sure. We don't really think about it. We're a bunch of guys that grew up on metal but also other types of music that have NOTHING to do with metal. The music that comes out is just something that happens naturally. There are a lot of things that are imbedded in the music that most bands either deny as an influence or try to downplay. I'm not going to tell you what those things are... why give away the secret? 4. Are you still normal people with regular jobs, regular problems or now you're spending all your time with and for the band? Jeff- Yeah, we have regular jobs. It's hard to do that as much as we've been on tour. We're actually in the phase now where we're going to go out on tour less. More time with the families and working. We WERE spending all of our time with the band. Scott (Mellinger, guitarist) had gotten married about a year and a half ago and has maybe seen his wife for 3 months total. That's not right. We're too old at this point to devote as much time to the band as we have been. That's not to say that we're done. Just not as in your face as we've been. Trust me, we have problems like everyone else. They seem to magnify themselves when you're on the road. And we're not well off enough to throw money at them and make them go away. 5. Your newest release is receiving an overwhelming response from people all over the world. Can you please present it with your own words? Jeff - It's funny that it is. For all intents and purposes it shouldn't be. We basically made an ugly thrashy record expecting people to find it too abrasive and unlistenable... and many people did. hahaha. But, I guess I can understand why people have been getting it. It's just a really honest punky thrashy metal record. No gimmicks. No delusions of granduer in terms of being "the next big thing". No commercial potential. Just ugly music for ugly people. Made by the ugliest people. The way it SHOULD be. 6. Do you think this personal and intimate way of writing lyrics helped you get closer to the audience and viceversa? Jeff - Absolutely. I think a lot of times people get so in to Dan's (Weyandt - vocalist) lyrics is because you they're not easily interpreted. You sort of have to dig into them and find your own meaning. He's really good at setting up a situation where, if you know what the song is about, the lyrics are really powerful. But if you don't... you can still get something out of them. Even if your version of them is completely wrong... they can still make sense. 7. Is there a story behind this album or there are one each song? Jeff - Not directly. Not as it was on The Funeral Of God. All of the songs are different. But there is a running theme of "loss of control" or the idea of this thing called "The Fear" that controls you. It runs your life. Fear is a powerful thing and it makes people do some really stupid things. 8. Which are the improvements on sound and instrumental technique/exposure this time? Jeff - I think this lineup of the band is really strong. Everyone in the band thinks that. We toured a lot right before we wrote and recorded so we were really in tune with each other musically. We all really wanted to make the same type of record. There was very little convincing or lobbying for ideas going on. Everyone was pretty much on the same page. As far as the recording, we wanted it to sound a little rough and dangerous... like the records we used to hold so fondly when we were growing up. Records that SOUNDED like they were made in the worst conditions. Now, this record was made in the best of conditions... but that's not important. What was important was that it SOUNDED like we were in a really fucked up situation. 9. How is this new album promoted and how's the public response so far? Jeff - This is the most attention that has ever been paid to a Zao record. I guess it's paying off. It's selling faster than any Zao record has in the past. The response has been mixed. People either get what we were trying to do, or they are angry at us for doing it. Honestly, we weren't sure if ANYONE was going to like it, so it's all good. 10. Do you think you'll evere reach Romania in your tours? Any feedback from these lands so far? Jeff - I would love to come to Romania. I don't know how feasible it would be. But I would never say no. We get a lot of interview requests from your direction, but I don't know how our records do over there or if anyone is listening. We're very in the dark about what our fanbase is outside of the US and select parts of the UK 11. How was it to work with Steve Albini? Which is his touch on the whole album? Jeff - It was pretty amazing but at the same time it wasn't totatlly alien. I've been in recording situations like that before. Usually with friends of mine around my home town. And that's just it. He doesn't have any delusions about what he does. He makes records. He doesn't write music for the bands. He has his own bands for that. So for a band that knows what they want and what they want to hear... he's a great guy to work with. He's not going to turn you into a hit machine. He's not going to tell you to play something again if you felt good about it. He's not even going to offer an opinion on what he heard. You tell him what you want it to sound like and he does it. It's a great way to work. I'd go back in a second. 12. Ferret Music is maybe the best label in this genre. How are you content of their help so far? Jeff - What can I say? They let us make this record when most labels would have run away from it. They let us put out a 2 disc, 6 hour DVD on the history of the band. They allowed us to make a really overblown concept record. THat's a type of freedom you don't find much these days. Even in Indie labels. They're growing really fast and I'm happy for them. 13. What new peaks are to be reached by the band in the near future? Jeff - Lots more records. We have a lot of sounds we want to play with.

<< back

1. Hello! How's the band lately?

Jeff - We're currently sleeping. It's been a wild couple years of touring and recording. We just finished up our 4th tour of the year and we're at home recharging until next spring.

2. ZAO is at the moment one of the most influential bands from the metal scene. What's your point of view on how you got there?

Jeff - I think it's a combination of a lot of things. The constant inner-turmoil in the band with the line-up changes and soap opera there.
Dan's lyrics having a pretty personal slant for the genre, and the band constantly trying different things with it's sound have led people to really pay attention. As soon as the fans have figured out what Zao is trying to do... the band changes what it's doing. I think that operating that way has gotten more and more rare with bands. No one is taking risks anymore.

3. How would you describe your music and what do you think you have more than the others in the scene?

Jeff - I'm not really sure. We don't really think about it. We're a bunch of guys that grew up on metal but also other types of music that have NOTHING to do with metal. The music that comes out is just something that happens naturally. There are a lot of things that are imbedded in the music that most bands either deny as an influence or try to downplay. I'm not going to tell you what those things are... why give away the secret?

4. Are you still normal people with regular jobs, regular problems or now you're spending all your time with and for the band?

Jeff- Yeah, we have regular jobs. It's hard to do that as much as we've been on tour. We're actually in the phase now where we're going to go out on tour less. More time with the families and working. We WERE spending all of our time with the band. Scott (Mellinger, guitarist) had gotten married about a year and a half ago and has maybe seen his wife for 3 months total. That's not right. We're too old at this point to devote as much time to the band as we have been. That's not to say that we're done. Just not as in your face as we've been. Trust me, we have problems like everyone else. They seem to magnify themselves when you're on the road. And we're not well off enough to throw money at them and make them go away.

5. Your newest release is receiving an overwhelming response from people all over the world. Can you please present it with your own words?

Jeff - It's funny that it is. For all intents and purposes it shouldn't be. We basically made an ugly thrashy record expecting people to find it too abrasive and unlistenable... and many people did. hahaha. But, I guess I can understand why people have been getting it. It's just a really honest punky thrashy metal record. No gimmicks. No delusions of granduer in terms of being "the next big thing". No commercial potential. Just ugly music for ugly people. Made by the ugliest people. The way it SHOULD be.

6. Do you think this personal and intimate way of writing lyrics helped you get closer to the audience and viceversa?

Jeff - Absolutely. I think a lot of times people get so in to Dan's (Weyandt - vocalist) lyrics is because you they're not easily interpreted. You sort of have to dig into them and find your own meaning. He's really good at setting up a situation where, if you know what the song is about, the lyrics are really powerful. But if you don't... you can still get something out of them. Even if your version of them is completely wrong... they can still make sense.

7. Is there a story behind this album or there are one each song?

Jeff - Not directly. Not as it was on The Funeral Of God. All of the songs are different. But there is a running theme of "loss of control" or the idea of this thing called "The Fear" that controls you. It runs your life. Fear is a powerful thing and it makes people do some really stupid things.

8. Which are the improvements on sound and instrumental technique/exposure this time?

Jeff - I think this lineup of the band is really strong. Everyone in the band thinks that. We toured a lot right before we wrote and recorded so we were really in tune with each other musically. We all really wanted to make the same type of record. There was very little convincing or lobbying for ideas going on. Everyone was pretty much on the same page. As far as the recording, we wanted it to sound a little rough and dangerous... like the records we used to hold so fondly when we were growing up. Records that SOUNDED like they were made in the worst conditions. Now, this record was made in the best of conditions... but that's not important. What was
important was that it SOUNDED like we were in a really fucked up situation.

9. How is this new album promoted and how's the public response so far?

Jeff - This is the most attention that has ever been paid to a Zao record. I guess it's paying off. It's selling faster than any Zao record has in the past. The response has been mixed. People either get what we were trying to do, or they are angry at us for doing it. Honestly, we weren't sure if ANYONE was going to like it, so it's all good.

10. Do you think you'll evere reach Romania in your tours? Any feedback from these lands so far?

Jeff - I would love to come to Romania. I don't know how feasible it would be. But I would never say no. We get a lot of interview requests from your direction, but I don't know how our records do over there or if anyone is listening. We're very in the dark about what our fanbase is outside of the US and select parts of the UK

11. How was it to work with Steve Albini? Which is his touch on the whole album?

Jeff - It was pretty amazing but at the same time it wasn't totatlly alien. I've been in recording situations like that before. Usually with friends of mine around my home town. And that's just it. He doesn't have any delusions about what he does. He makes records. He doesn't write music for the bands. He has his own bands for that. So for a band that knows what they want and what they want to hear... he's a great guy to work with. He's not going to turn you into a hit machine. He's not going to tell you to play something again if you felt good about it. He's not even going to offer an opinion on what he heard. You tell him what you want it to sound like and he does it.
It's a great way to work. I'd go back in a second.

12. Ferret Music is maybe the best label in this genre. How are you content of their help so far?

Jeff - What can I say? They let us make this record when most labels would have run away from it. They let us put out a 2 disc, 6 hour DVD on the history of the band. They allowed us to make a really overblown concept record. THat's a type of freedom you don't find much these days. Even in Indie labels. They're growing really fast and I'm happy for them.

13. What new peaks are to be reached by the band in the near future?

Jeff - Lots more records. We have a lot of sounds we want to play with.