Hello Ferdinand, how are you doing?–> Hello Heiko! Doing great. Thank you for taking this interview with Zubzero! Please tell us something about your hometown?–> Our bands headquarter is in the city of Leeuwarden. You may know it from the Into the Grave festival. We practice in a cold war bunker in the heart of the old town, where we meet our friends of bands like Ancestral Sin (grinding hardcore), Kronol (crust punk) and Kletus (deathcore). A great place to hang out for some music, cold beers or hot snacks. Can you tell us how the band was formed?–> Zubzero was formed 25 years ago by the brothers Dirk (guitar) and Lars Draaisma (drums). Back in the old days the band was a hardcore band with metal influences. I became a fan of Zubzero when I got the Words Will Kill EP in 2005 and 15 years later they asked me to join the band as vocalist. I think nowadays we are a metal band with hardcore grooves. You Guys just played the Fajtfest in Neushoorn, Leeuwarden. Please tell us about how it was playing this festival in the north of Holland?–> Fajt Fest Fryslân was really awesome. The original festival takes place in the Czech Republic and they send two bands to Leeuwarden: a nu-metal band called Black Row and the hardcore squad Crippled Fingers. What a bunch of great guys! We played early in the afternoon, which was the perfect opportunity to bring the young Draaisma kids with us. They watched the gig from the side of the stage and loved every minute of it. The show was filmed as well and we hope it will be on Youtube soon. In 2025 another show is planned in Groningen, at Metal Café De Witte Wolf, Wolfsonic Festival. Please tell us about it?–> Wolfsonic takes place during the Eurosonic week, when a lot of pop bands showcase their new stuff to labels and bookers. Metal Café De Witte Wolf offers heavy music and a shelter for people with good taste amidst all the pop music in the week of 15 to 18 January. We play on Wednesday with Pander (doomed stoner) and Phantom Distressor (thrash / heavy metal). Come early, the place will be packed! In 2023 the band released a EP called Frostbite. How did the press and the fans received this material?–> Lovers of underground metal like the energy and the rough sound it has. Haters didn’t get the message, I guess. Shortly after we recorded four songs, the studio burnt down to the ground. Our recordings were saved, but there was no way our producer could complete or master them properly. Out of respect towards our producer, we didn’t want to take it anywhere else. So ‘Frostbite’ is what is: the final recordings ever made in the illustrious Landscape Studio. Who was responsible for the front – cover of the EP?–> Herman (bass) and I came up with the idea of an aggressive polar bear exposing his teeth for a frosty bite and Koert Posthumus designed it for us. The 2022 demo ‘Lost Sun’ was done in the same way and worked out splendid. Never change a winning team! How did you Guys get in contact with Tamme Oosterhof, Big Bad Wolf and Marco V. Empel from Headbangers Records?–> Tamme and I used to be partners in crime. From 2011 up to 2018 we released the Frisian Metal Massacre LP’s and lots of albums together through Big Bad Wolf Records. For me this was a hobby next to my job and I couldn’t keep up with the work pace of Tamme, so we parted ways and Tamme teamed up with Marco who we knew from the Headbangers Magazine. Releasing ‘Frostbite’ with them was obvious for Zubzero. What about a full-length album?–> A full length is on our bucket list, but first we’ll hit the studio to record a new EP. I cannot share the title yet. We will unveil it later this year. How do you describe The Music from Zubzero and What are Some of your favorite bands?–> Metal/hardcore I would say, but some call it hardcore thrash and it has been named ‘downtuned groovy death’. If you take Sepultura’s ‘Chaos AD’, blend in some hardcore and add a few stoner riffs you’re pretty close. Prong should definitely be named as an influence for Zubzero. Personally I love anything from brutal death to gothic doom and black metal to hardcore, as long as it is honest. Cryptopsy, Oceans of Slumber, old Enslaved and Rykers are some of my favorites. Do you have a last word for the readers of Bonavox? Check out our tunes on https://zubzeroband.bandcamp.com/album/frostbite and we hope to meet you at a show.
