Zero Hour

Posted on Dec 19, 2005

by Anders

I was carried into a new world when I had my first listen to the last release from Californian Zero Hour, "Metamorphosis", the album that turned me onto this amazing band, which delivers very technical progressive metal with good songs though, so one never gets lost in the technical frenzy. The band is right now ready with their new album "A Fragile Mind" and are working hard on getting a new one ready for release during 2006, so I have once again established contact to guitarist and songwriter Jasun Tipton, so I could ask him a bunch questions.

 

Hi there, will you please start off by introducing yourself?

Jasun Tipton here and I'm the guitarist of the progressive metal act Zero Hour.

A small introduction of the rest of the band will be great as well, together with a bit about what they contribute to the band with!

Mike Guy is the drummer for Zero Hour and the kat is definitely one of the best in the genre. My brother Troy Tipton who is an amazing bass player and again is one of the best in the genre. Fred Marshal is the singer on our new album "A Fragile Mind".

You are soon ready with your new release, how do you feel about it?

Yeah Zero Hour's "A Fragile Mind" has been out less than a month and we're very happy to have another release out to the fans.

What do you expect from it?

We just wanted write another CD to the best of our ability and feel we have achieved that. We're very proud of all our releases "Metamorphosis" and "The Towers Of Avarice". All are released worldwide by Sensory Records (www.lasercd.com) and please check the label's page for the distributors that carry "A Fragile Mind" in your area.

When you started out to write/compose new material, what did you then want to accomplish with it?

We wanted to get a blend of the two releases that came before "A Fragile Mind". It's Heavy, dark, technical material that has many clean tone passages, it's a very dynamic, cinematic and melodic CD.

Do you feel that you have accomplished that?

I do feel we accomplished this with "A Fragile Mind".

Where do you find inspiration when you write music?

You find inspiration from many places. There are so many bands that'll get you inspired to pick up the guitar and write a killer riff. I watch movies and mute the sound to create music around what I see. This gives us our cinematic feel to our music. All our CDs are thinking man’s music and are very dynamic.

Is there anything specific that have influenced the writing process on the new album?

Nothing specific influenced us we just wanted to stay as technical as on our earlier releases, but to be a little more direct and to the point with music and vocals as well.

Can you mention 3 bands and 3 songs that have meant the world to your way of writing music/singing?

As for music Pat Metheny 'Are You Going With Me' has such awesome dynamics. Meshuggah has a ton of songs and parts that get me inspired to write. Cynic and Michael Hedges have a couple tunes too. I can't really say just three songs because Zero Hour is pretty deep, thinking man's music.

What do you want to bring the world with your music and how do you want people to receive your music?

We want the writing, performance and production to be stellar and to be creating our own sound. We always want the fans to enjoy the music because they help us keep on going to push ourselves further.

Will you initiate us in the lyrical universe of the band, which themes do you touch etc.?

On "A Fragile Mind" you have drug addiction, freeing the mind and body from addiction to balance your life.

Where is the inspiration for the lyrics usually found?

Fred and Troy wrote the lyrics and they have a better take in presenting them. Unfortunately they're not around to comment on the lyrics.

Will you pick out your 3 favourite tracks from the new release and guide us through the music and lyrics, and tell us how you got the idea for the music and lyrics, etc.?

'Destiny Is Sorrow' has everything from very heavy to very chaotic exotic patterns. Slows down to a very cold, melodic guitar and vocal area which is very warm and beautiful sounding. It ends with an uplifting move rhythmic format to close the song out. 'There For Me' has a very catchy chorus and the song has a very heavy Nevermore-ish vibe. 'Intrinsic' brings you in with the warm keyboards and the bass is playing a very technical arpeggio pattern to create a beautiful melody.

How important is the lyrics compared to the music?

Everything is very important because of all the many different formats we play. We have songs that really don't repeat much. So the music is very dynamic and the vocals have to deliver the dynamics as well to grab the listener.

Do you have any touring planned in support of your new release?

We are going to play out in 2006 to support the release. We will do some shows in the States and Europe, but haven't put it together exactly yet. Please check out our website in early 2006 to check when we exactly will have shows going on. If anyone is interested in booking the band in 2006 please contact us at zhtowers@aol.com

How do you look upon the future of the band?

The future is stronger than ever for the band. We will have another CD ready in 2006 and the material is our best yet. We are very excited to start playing live again in 2006.

Will you share your 5 all time favourite albums with our readers?

In no order:

Cynic – Focus
Meshuggah - Chaosphere
Pat Metheny - Travels
Dillinger Escape Plan - Calculating Infinity
Rainbow - Rising

Thanks a ton for answering my questions, if you have anything to add, feel free to add it now!

I just want to thank everyone who supports us and please check out "A Fragile Mind". The band looks forward releasing another CD in 2006 and hope to see you all on tour in late 2006.

Zero Hour website