Zach Goode: Singer Zach Goode
and Guitarist Jeremy Ronstadt originally met
in Hawaii during high school and moved to San
Diego in the early 90's to form a band called
Ghoulspoon. Drummer Jason Vick joined the fold
in 1996 and bassist Rice joined in 1998. Ghoulspoon
sold tens of thousands of units without the
benefit of a manager, agent, or record label
to become an independent music success story.
The 1999 album "Fever" became the number one
selling locally produced album in San Diego
and the band won the award for "Best Hard Rock
/ Metal Band" at the 2001 San Diego Music Awards.
In addition, Divided By Zero's music was featured
on Jim Rome's nationally syndicated sports talk
show, "The Jungle", and on the soundtrack for
the video games Twisted Metal 4 and TJ Lavin's
Ultimate BMX. 2nd guitarist James Albers was
added in 2002 at which point the band changed
the name to Divided by Zero and started a new
chapter.
TL: You released your debut on Sik World
Records, which is probably most known for their
t-shirts, a couple weeks ago. How did you guys
hook up with them?
ZG: Sik World is the leading
producer of attitude-based novelty clothing
and accessories for men and women. Sik World's
t-shirts are consistently worn by an extreme
variety of high profile recording artists from
mainstream stars Eminem, Lil' Kim, Slash (Guns
N' Roses, Velvet Revolver) and Cypress Hill
to metal's most blistering bands such as Slayer,
Chimaira, Every Time I Die, Static-X and Lamb
Of God. They've been a clothing sponsor for
DBZ and many other bands and most of the members
of our band have worked for the company throughout
the years. Sik World has a proven track record
in the clothing industry and when they approached
us to be the first act on their new record label,
we were honored. They're spending the time and
money to get the album out there. It may take
awhile in this crowded market, but once people
hear the album and see the show, the word will
spread.
TL: What made you chose Sik World over other
labels?
ZG: The record industry is
in such turmoil right now. If bands don't hit
with their first single, they rarely get a second
chance. Sik World has been around and fought
their way up through the ranks in the clothing
business, so they know what it takes to develop
a long-term career. We're obviously not going
to get the kind of money we would get on a major
label, but we are the number one priority and
we have to sell a lot less albums to see a profit.
TL: How would you describe the album
and what went into recording it?
ZG: The band did months of
pre-production with executive producer Jaysun
Chall from Sik World Records. We spent a lot
of time picking the right material and honing
down the songs to the proper arrangements. We
spent night after night practicing to a click
track and just getting the songs super-tight.
By the time we hit the studio with our producer
Mikey Doling, we were able to lay everything
down in our first few takes. I'd say 90% of
my vocals on the album are first takes. The
entire CD was recorded and mixed in 30 days.
I'm very happy with the way it turned out. The
guys in the band really stepped up musically
and played super tight and powerfully. There's
a bunch of amazing drum parts and guitar solos,
plus interesting keyboard and sitar flourishes.
The album also sounds great due to Mikey and
engineer Brad Dujmovic working their asses off
for us. Plus, the cover art by Sas Christian
is really beautiful and eye-catching, so the
overall package is very powerful. The album
is called 'The Black Sea' and has a running
theme throughout, so check it out , read the
lyrics, and let me know what you think.
TL: The album was produced by ex-Snot/Soulfly
guitarist Mike Doling, what was it like working
with him?
ZG: Mikey was awesome. He loved
the material and added some really cool ideas.
He's a really easygoing guy, so the atmosphere
was very creative. We came in very prepared,
but all the stuff we added in the studio just
made it better.
TL: Who was your biggest musical influence
growing up?
ZG: I grew up listening to
a lot of diverse stuff. Everything from classic
rock, 80's new wave and punk, reggae music,
hip-hop, etc. I'd say my overall biggest influence
is DEVO. Their first 4 albums are genius and
they had the whole image and concept behind
the band that made it very appealing to me as
a kid. I was into them when everybody else was
into Ozzy and Iron Maiden and they really represented
the counterculture to me. I still love them
and saw them live twice last year.
TL: Being a new band on an indie label, is it
hard to get radio to take notice and play the
single?
ZG: So far we've been added
to KNAC and AOL Radio and a few other random
stations. We have a radio guy who's working
the album for us, so we'll see…We just finished
the video for the first single "Chemical" with
director Mark Racco (Guns n Roses, Nirvana,
Jane's Addiction), so hopefully it'll get picked
up.
TL: Are there any summer tour plans?
ZG: We've been on the road
now for a few weeks on the Sik World Rock n
Roll Circus Tour and let me tell you - we bring
the fucking show to your town! In every city
we have a few of the top local bands plus Divided
by Zero, Murrugun the Sword Swallower, Hell
on Heels Burlesque Troupe, and Spike and Mike's
Sick and Twisted Animation, plus tons of giveaways
from our sponsors Sik World, Electric Lingerie,
and Hardcore Watches. It's a pretty big and
risky production, so we're keeping it to the
West Coast for the Summer and hope to expand
it in the Fall.
TL: What's your opinion of the entire
music industry?
ZG: That's a pretty big question.
I guess without the record industry, I never
would have heard of a lot of my favorite bands,
so it's important to get the music out there.
It's gotten worse over the years as it's transitioned
into a short-attention span, single-oriented
marketplace, but there's always been shitty
bands that are huge and great bands that are
undiscovered.
TL: With rock albums being downloaded illegally
more than other genres, do you think the number
of legal downloads will ever surpass the number
of illegal downloads?
ZG: I don't know what the numbers
are, so I can't give you an educated answer,
but I think we've just seen the beginning of
downloading.
TL: What kind of impact has the Internet
had on Divided by Zero?
ZG: Myspace has been huge for
a lot of bands and we were always on the forefront
of maintaining our mailing lists and websites
when they first started, so I love it. I can't
imagine being in a band without it anymore,
but I spent many hours back in the day licking
stamps for our snail mail lists.
TL: Today's music or music from 20 years
ago and what do you think is the biggest difference
in two?
ZG: Hmm…I guess the copout
answer is that there are good and bad bands
from both eras. I guess things were more mysterious
and exciting before you could Google anything,
but that's the way life goes. I used to sit
there with albums and write down all the lyrics
to every song, rewinding the tape a million
times. Now I just go online and get the lyrics
and tabs to any song I want. Nostalgia is fun,
but you have to keep up or get run over. I still
get all the new music and keep up with every
new band and read Spin and Rolling Stone, etc.
A lot of musicians get bitter about new music,
but I think it's important to stay current (not
trendy) and at least know your competition.
TL: That's all I have, anything you'd
like to add?
ZG: Thanks for taking the time
to get to know Divided by Zero. Our new album
is in stores now at all Best Buy and Tower locations
plus independent record stores. Fans of System
of a Down, Skindred, Faith No More, Incubus,
311, Red Hot Chili Peppers, etc. will probably
like our sound. We have a heavy element with
double bass and heavy guitars, but there's also
a lot of melodic singing and mellow parts, plus
a little bit of a reggae vibe, so it doesn't
really sound like anything else. We'll be on
the road all Summer with the Sik World Rock
n Roll Circus Tour, so come out and say hi if
we come to your town! Hit us up on www.myspace.com/dividedbyzero
