ZERO ONE ZERO – AN INTERVIEW WITH JAMES AND ROB

By Ralph Beauchamp

Zero One Zero is one of New England’s premier hard rock ensembles. The hard hitting foursome just released a new full length entitled Traces Of Yesterday. The album is full of melodic groove laden gems. The songs carry a spicy vigor while hitting the listener with an avalanche of pulverizing rhythms. Lead vocalist Rob “Boots’ Zawisza’s voice is monstrous. His inflections are embellished with huge cinematic edges. It also harbors a dynamic and tension filled timbre. James Ferrentino on guitar slays with stellar licks and divine solos. His playing is fearless while still remaining totally relatable.

The backbeat of Mark Russell (Bass) and Mark Ahles (Drums) is extremely ambitious. Russell’s bass slaps with a voracious fierceness while Ahles’ drums are singular in nature. Every beat is a thunder ridden monster. These two turn every track into an incendiary rush.

All the songs on Traces Of Yesterday deliver barrages of sonic density. Tracks like “It’s Me Again” establish Zero One Zero as ruthless songwriters. The tune is aggressive while still having tons of lush textures. Ferrentino’s solo completely destroys. Another gutsy track is “Crumble”. Zawisza’s voice is audaciously dirty with a beautifully addictive element. Ferrentino’s guitar riffs are on fire while Russell’s bass lays down a gnarly punch. The inflamed ballad “Fortunes Burn” showcases another side of Zero One Zero. The vocals are emotive and the cadence is deliciously intense. Ahles’ drums fills every corner with a righteous flare. The bluesy “You Knock Me Out” is another imposing behemoth. All in all, Traces Of Yesterday is a spellbinding offering.

Rob Zawisza and James Ferrentino were kind enough to sit with AMP for this exclusive interview.

AMP: We last spoke in 2020 and we see a lot has happened since then including a new album, Traces Of Yesterday, just being released on Deko Records. How did that happen?

JAMES: It’s been a long road. We started recording in 2021, right in the middle of the pandemic. That definitely put a damper on things. We were going up to The Music Room in Yarmouth, right in Cape Cod. We began working with the late amazing producer, Paul Nelson. I think it was our drummer Mark’s brother Charlie who hooked us up with Paul. Paul was producing one of Charlie’s friend’s wife, who is a well respected blues guitarist, and Charlie pulled up one of our Who covers and Paul was blown away. He met with us and loved our new material. Paul also has deep roots in the Ct. music scene.

ROB: Initially there were a lot of hiccups in the studio. We aren’t new to recording but it was rough in the beginning. Eventually we smoothed things out. When we thought we were done, James and I came up with a couple of new songs. Once Mark and Marc (our rhythm section) added their parts to the new material, we started playing them out live and loved the audiences’ responses. So, we decided to add them to the album. It took a while to convince Paul to set up a new session. We basically told him we weren’t done yet. That’s another reason it took so long. We just came up with better ideas and tunes.

AMP: Continuing with your producer Paul Nelson, he unexpectedly passed away this year. Our condolences to his family, friends and associates. How influential was his input on the new album?

ROB: We first met through a Zoom meeting. Afterwards we wrote a shit ton of songs and sent them off to him. At a later meeting, Paul mentioned that the songs were great but were too long. He wanted us to chop out some verses and cut some bridges. We did what he asked of us. So, he definitely helped with some of the structures which in turn helped us to become better songwriters. At the next get together, he was pleased with what he heard. I feel he was pretty influential.

JAMES: Absolutely! His experience with arrangements helped us a lot. Especially for me, Paul being such a great guitar player. I have a small recording here at my house and Paul came down, sat on the couch while i was recording my parts and from there we went back and forth on how to enhance my sound. I don’t think he won a Grammy for nothing.

ROB: Paul was also so energetic. He was always so upbeat. That’s why we were so surprised that we lost him so soon. He seemed so healthy.

AMP: Can you give us some insights into your new full length, Traces Of Yesterday?

ROB: When we hooked up with Paul, we just got hit with COVID. We had some time to focus on the songwriting. In addition, knowing that things would eventually move forward, it gave us this fire inside. The four of us were letting out a lot of energy because of this spark. From there, the songs came easy. Lyrically I don’t like to write about things I don’t know about. Therefore, it tends to be about how I feel and my personal stuff. At my current age, my sense of perception of the world is different than when i was 21. All I try to do is be honest. I try not to bullshit myself when I’m writing.

AMP: We asked you last time “what were your musical goals” and you laughingly answered back “to be rich and famous”. Has that changed?

ROB: That’s funny. it’s still all comedy to me. Like I said before, all of us are more mature. My goal is to sing in this band and being surrounded by these fabulous musicians. Whatever comes down the pike, so be it. We aren’t chasing anything. It’s all about living in the moment. Just trying to write a better song.

JAMES: It’s alway been about the music. I just want people to hear our songs. At this point in the game, the other stuff really doesn’t matter. I want to be able to play our music out, have people come see us and everybody just have a good time.

AMP: Do you feel these new songs are an evolution in musical style from your previous material?

JAMES: If there is one thing I have to say about the band it’s the fact that it is hard to put a label on us because from one song to the next, the sound is totally different. It’s not on purpose. It’s just the way we are. We all come from divergent backgrounds. That filters into the songs. I can go from a blues to jazz to metal riff with no problem. Same with the rest of the band.

ROB: Also, the evolution of it all is the fact that James has a lot of guitars. When he comes to practice, he has a different one with a different sound. That creates a whole new feel. Even though we all come from those divergent backgrounds, because of time, the four of us understand each other much better. So, as we grow as people, our music grows but there are some jewels in our older catalogue that are still strong. In addition, we make music for us.

JAMES: The next record could and should sound completely different from this one. As Rob said, what grows on the inside comes out in our songs.

AMP: How would you describe the band’s internal energy?

ROB: I think we run pretty high. We get bummed because it’s so hard to get decent gigs but when we are playing we all combust. Together we are always on fire.

JAMES: We sometimes play with younger bands and we always keep the energy going. We’ve played with death metal, hardcore, nu metal and punk bands. We will play with anyone just to get out there in order to showcase our material. All the people at these shows are always banging their heads with us.

ROB: One thing i have to say is that the present music scene in the Northeast is pretty cool. All the bands support each other. We’re all human and we should look out for each other. I’m proud of our positive relationships with a host of other amazing artists.

AMP: Collaboration has been at a fever pitch in today’s music scene. Who would the band love to collab with?

ROB: Lee-Ann Lovelace. She’s amazing.

AMP: Any touring plans?

JAMES: There isn’t a plan yet but hopefully one in the very near future. Our next step is to look to build a team to further our goals.

AMP: What’s next for Zero One Zero?

ROB: Keep stepping forward. Keep playing live and push the record.

JAMES: Promote the hell out of the album. Our last record opened quite a few doors for us and we are hoping the same is true with Traces Of Yesterday. I want to play out a lot more because that is where we truly shine. We are professionals on stage and we hit the audience with a ton of good music.

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