Z73… Interview by Tzina Dovve ( DJ Lady Davinia )…
Z73… A brand new band is born in the depths of Sweden… Z73… Newcomers on the dark/alternative/ goth scene give an insight on what their band is all about…Z73… By Tzina Dovve ( DJ Lady Davinia )…
Tzina: Z73 are a new band to appear on the Swedish dark/goth/alternative scene. How did you come about and who are the members of this band?
It all started late summer of 2018 when Claes (bass) was looking for other local musicians who wanted to “make noise” with him. Robin (lead guitar) and Patrik (drums) had some contact before this, so they both joined, along with our E-Bow player Christian.
On a drunken night out, Robin met Jon (a singer who was also very drunk at the time) and invited him to join the band without knowing who he was. It turned out well enough, fortunately.
Tzina: What is the story behind the band’s unusual name? What motivated you to give your band this particular title? Can you elaborate..
We used to rehearse in Zakrisdal, an old ammunition depot with thick concrete walls to contain any explosive accidents. We had a hard time agreeing on a name, until we found out that the building hosting the transformer supplying our crib with power was named Z73. As several members of the band use far more pedals than they need, we thought it was only fair to name the band after Z73, our hardest working band member.
While making sure there were no other bands with that name, we also found out that Z73 was a subcategory in the psychiatric DSM-5 index, called ‘Problems related to life management difficulty’. As most of us personally related to this description, we were even more certain that Z73 was the name that was meant for us. Furthermore, researching the DSM-5 Z73 index gives people an answer to why our productivity is so low.
Tzina: Who is the main songwriter in Z73? What inspires you the most to write music and what are your main musical influences?
We’ve used a lot of Robin’s (lead guitar) material. He’s written ‘Storm’, and several of our upcoming songs. Otherwise we usually jam to get new ideas and keep building on the ones we like. In the end, everyone takes part in deciding the arrangement and finer details of our songs.
So far we’ve recorded, mixed and released everything by ourselves. Robin does the recording and mixing, (with relentless feedback from us), with Joy Division and Martin Hannets’ production style as his greatest influence.
We all come from very different musical backgrounds. Our hope is that this creates an interesting mix of genres that feels genuine and interesting to listen to. If you want a closer look at our musical taste, we made a playlist where every member chose 20 songs that have influenced us across the years:
Tzina: Your lyrics are written in your native language Swedish. Is there a particular reason for this? Are there any plans for songs sung in English in the near future? Are you working on any new material at the moment?
Jon: When I wrote the lyrics for our first song ‘Storm’, I tried writing it in both Swedish and English. In the end, I felt that singing it in Swedish made the text more interesting and thought that it might be a breath of fresh air. She Past Away, who sing in Turkish, were a big influence there. Choosing a different language other than English mixes things up and gives a different feeling. I thought the language went along well with the feel of the music, and after the first songs I just kept feeling that I wanted every new song in Swedish. That being said, we’ve got our first song with English lyrics coming up! Furthermore, if we start getting more listeners abroad I’m planning to write proper translations of the Swedish lyrics to give a better idea of the stories in them.
Tzina: As l understand you have released four digital tracks, two last year ‘Helix’ and ‘Storm’ , and two this year, ‘Himmel’ and most recently ‘ Amentia’ on Bandcamp. What feedback have these tracks received? Do you have any plans of releasing physical copies of these tracks?
Very little feedback, to be honest. No professional reviews so far. That’s on us though, we haven’t done a lot to spread our songs around. We’re all a bit too shy and introverted for our own best. We’ve talked about releasing an EP for some time, and it will likely happen this year. A physical release is being discussed, but we can’t say anything for certain yet.
Tzina: Are there any music videos in the pipeline for Z73? How important do you think the visual side is for a band in this day and age of the digital music world?
No plans at the moment, but we’ve thought about it. We recently found an abandoned industry with lots of derelict goodies. It could definitely work as a recording location. Apart from that, we’ve thought about recording a simple video of us playing in our rehearsal space. We’re certain the visual side is very important career-wise, but we don’t really have a big interest in the traditional visual elements of a band.
Tzina: Z73 has a very dynamic sound and strong vocals. Is taking your band to the stage something you wish to do once the world finally re-opens? Do you have any plans for live shows in the near future?
Thank you! Yes we do. Unfortunately covid-19 happened right as we were getting brave enough to play live. As things are starting to move in the right direction, however, we recently hinted that there might be a first live show coming up at the end of August.
Tzina: What are your ambitions for Z73? What would you like to achieve with this band?
Hanging out, rehearsing our songs, writing and recording great songs. We’re… not really thinking these things through as much as we should. We’re not really aiming to become big rock stars and go on huge tours, but we would certainly love it if more people would find out about us and enjoy the music we make.
Tzina: What is the dark/goth/alternative scene like in your home country? Do you believe it is much different from the rest of the world?
Several of us aren’t really connected to the alternative scene, as our musical backgrounds vary a lot. Patrik was somewhat part of the synth/goth scene in Gothenburg in the late 90s, but his authenticity was frequently questioned because he repeatedly showed up in a light blue t-shirt of Swedish indie rock band Bob Hund.
Robin: I guess the swedish scene has a fairly high average age nowadays. Up until Covid happened I used to attend gigs all over the country on a regular basis and seeing someone younger than 35 was quite rare. I hope that differs from the rest of the world, at least that’s my impression of the post punk scene abroad.
Jon: For me, there’s been a hole in my chest since the ‘Arvika Festival’ shut down in 2011. There are clubs, but they’re mostly located in the three big cities and rarely in little Karlstad where I live. In recent years ‘Subkult Festival’ has showed up and it’s been wonderful to visit an alternative festival again. From the get-go, it’s been a personal dream of mine to play there someday. I’ve also been hoping that our band might be able to breathe a little more life into the local scene.
Tzina: Anything else you would like to share with music fans? What can they expect from Z73 in the near future?
We’re working on several new songs, and we’re hoping to do a couple of shows when our country opens up again. Once again we’re not aiming to become world stars, but we’d love it if more people would find out about us and enjoy the music we make. Since the diagnosis code Z73 describes us pretty well, we’re probably going to keep releasing songs one at a time and perhaps release them as a compilation later on.
Z73 are on Facebook
Z73 are on Bandcamp
Z73 are on Instagram
