PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Planetmosh caught up with German melodic Death Metal’s brightest hope to discuss past, present and future.
Thanks for taking time out to talk to us. Firstly take us back to the
start of the band, how did you all get together?
Hi Simon, thank you for having us! The band exists since 2006. All band members played in different bands at that time. But Pascal, Tobias and Thomas had the vision of a new band which plays metal that concentrates more on melodies. So they searched for some allies for their band. Maik and André had been around in their nearer circle of friends and musicians. I was the only one who was introduced to them by a good friend. We played some songs together and it fitted perfectly.
Did you always plan to have your 3 guitar sound or was that something
that developed over time?
Yes, Pascal wanted to have three guitars from the beginning. He was often disappointed that many metal bands could not recreate their songs live. So it was a natural decision to have three guys playing guitar in the band and now it is our trademark.
I had the pleasure of reviewing the debut album ‘Surreal World’ for
Planetmosh and I was very impressed with how mature and polished it
sounded, you must be really proud of it?
Thank you! After the original release of “Surreal World” in late 2010 we actually could not estimate what we created. But after some time and many awesome feedbacks, we finally also think that the record must be good, ha ha. Seriously, we are very happy with it and the mature songwriting is a result of the age difference between us.
How long were you in the studio for and who produced it?
It was a very long process and took nearly seven months. We produced the record on our own, so we tried to do everything right. But it was a really hard and long journey and I hope it will be a bit different the next time.
Although the album is very heavy and powerful, you’ve managed to keep
plenty of melody in there as well, has this always been your style?
The melodies are ZERO DEGREE’s essence. That’s what sets us apart from other bands, I think. We are absolutely into it and we will keep it in our music. Some guy wrote in a review that the twin melody guitars piss him off but we exactly want the leads in our music, nothing else. Unfortunately, he will not like us in the future.
The album has many stand out tracks, my favourite being ’Grapes Of
Wrath’, were they all recently written or are there some songs that have
been kicking around for a while?
The album consists of songs from our very beginnings until the recording process. “Grapes of wrath” was written somewhere in between. Some of the other songs were written quite a while ago. For example, “The storm and the silence” and “Where angels die” existed before the band was even founded. Not in today’s version but the structures of them.
Are there any plans to take the album on the road?
Yes, we hope to play some shows in summer and fall of 2012, but a whole tour is not planned at this point because there is simply no offer to go on the road. If there is someone out there who has a good possibility, just tell us!
Signing to Massacre records must have opened many doors for you, you
must be really positive about the future of the band?
The amount of promotional stuff is overwhelming. We couldn’t have achieved that without a professional supporter. We hope that this will reach a higher level and make us more attractive for concert organizers.
When do you start thinking about writing new material, any ideas
floating around?
Yes, we have more or less half of a new album and the tunes are turning out to be great and it is fun to play around with the new ideas. I think the people who liked “Surreal World” will like that stuff too.
Finally for those who haven’t come across the band as yet, how would you
describe your sound?
It is really hard to describe your own music, so I asked a friend a few minutes ago and he said that it is loud, brutal, melodic, structured and he would play it at his marriage, ha ha.
Again many thanks for your time and best of luck for the future.
You’re welcome and thank you for the support!
Simon Bower.
Zero Degree’s latest release ‘Surreal World’ is out now via Massacre Records.
