zZz is back! Five years after ‘Running With The Beast’, the illustrious duo have delivered their album, ‘Juggernaut’. The set-up of drums and organ hasn’t changed in ten years, but the sound has gone through an unmistakable evolution. zZz (pronounced like the French pronounce ‘jazz’, sans the j and a) have been influenced by all the cool stuff in musical history. On title track ‘Juggernaut’, traces of Neu! And Kraftwerk can be heard. More references come to mind. Butthole Surfers on opening track ‘Blood’, for instance and it doesn’t require too much imagination to hear the ghost of Billy Idol haunting ‘Wild Girl’. But above all, zZz is zZz.
‘Juggernaut’ was recorded in two parts: before their last American tour, and after. Jan Schenk, who recorded and mixed the record, had a clear philosophy: get a good basic take, musically, structurally and technically. This is also how the 20-minute title track came about: recorded in...
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zZz is back! Five years after ‘Running With The Beast’, the illustrious duo have delivered their album, ‘Juggernaut’. The set-up of drums and organ hasn’t changed in ten years, but the sound has gone through an unmistakable evolution. zZz (pronounced like the French pronounce ‘jazz’, sans the j and a) have been influenced by all the cool stuff in musical history. On title track ‘Juggernaut’, traces of Neu! And Kraftwerk can be heard. More references come to mind. Butthole Surfers on opening track ‘Blood’, for instance and it doesn’t require too much imagination to hear the ghost of Billy Idol haunting ‘Wild Girl’. But above all, zZz is zZz.
‘Juggernaut’ was recorded in two parts: before their last American tour, and after. Jan Schenk, who recorded and mixed the record, had a clear philosophy: get a good basic take, musically, structurally and technically. This is also how the 20-minute title track came about: recorded in one take, early in the morning, right after coffee. There are not many overdubs on the record, yet it sounds richer and fuller than its predecessors. Songs start out structured, then merge into improvisation, and then the improvisation turns into songlike structure again. The band had already fully digested these songs before going into the studio. Most of them originated from jams on tour, like ‘Wild Girl’, which came into existence when Daan’s organ broke down during a show in Moscow. Improvising without their characteristic organ sound, a genuine zZz electro set was born.
zZz debuted in 2005 with ‘Sound of zZz’, followed up by 2009’s ‘Running With The Beast’. Both records were released worldwide, to international critical acclaim: 5/5 reviews in Dutch newspapers, a 4/5 review in Mojo Magazine and Album of the Year in the Russian Rolling Stone. They have toured the albums through America, Russia and Japan and played festivals like Glastonbury, Benicassim, Lowlands, CMJ and SXSW. zZz’s music was featured in international games, movies, tv-series and commercials, such as GTA, CSI, a European Fiat campaign and a commercial for Japanese mayonnaise.
‘Juggernaut’ was released on the 13th of March on Excelsior Recordings. An exciting European tour with A Place To Bury Strangers followed. Currently, the band is doing the rounds at the festivals and gearing up for upcoming tours through Europe and America.
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