James Zero's latest track, "Fear of Heights," revisits early 2000s rock with a raw, nostalgic edge. In this interview, he dives into the inspiration, emotions, and creative process behind the album.
1.
James, "Fear of Heights" captures the essence of early 2000s rock
with a modern twist. What inspired you to revisit that era’s sound in such a
raw and gritty way?
I grew up downloading songs off of Limewire and Ares in the early 2000s, and a lot of that was mid-quality CD rips of pop-punk bands like blink-182. I wanted to make something that spoke to my childhood both in style and in sound.
2. In your quote, you called this track your "emo magnum opus."
Could you tell us more about what this song represents for you emotionally and
artistically?
This song, and the term "Fear of Heights", has is a double meaning - at least for me. It's about not being afraid of anything as a kid, only to grow up and randomly develop a fear of heights. Then there is a metaphorical fear that I have when it comes to drugs. I tried to morph these two emotions into something best said by you guys: something raw and gritty.
3. You’ve mentioned that "Fear of Heights" delves into themes of
acrophobia and drug use. What prompted you to explore these particular themes
in the song, and how do they resonate with you personally?
Throughout
the 2010s, the northeast part of the United States was grossly affected by the
Opiod Epidemic. I lost a lot of friends to drugs, including one of my best
childhood friends and a few of my closer family members. I think it's very
obvious that this song is also touching on these subjects, and spreading
awareness about the dangers of drugs.
4. Your upcoming album, "early2thou," has an early 2000s vibe. Can you describe how that decade’s music influenced your sound and songwriting process on this project?
As I mentioned before, growing up and listening to alternative and punk rock, I've always had an intense love for the genre. As a producer, it's hard to go from EDM to indie to alternative rock - especially a much harder form. There's only so many instruments, and it gets hard to make it sound full in the ways that we were used to hearing in the early 2000s. I think I was able to harness some of that energy sonically in the production as a nod to the music I grew up with.
5. This track seems darker compared to your typical sound. How did you
approach creating a moodier atmosphere for "Fear of Heights"?
I will concede that this one is pretty dark, and is the darkest song on the album. For all intents and purposes, you have correctly identified my darkest song. When I approached this song, I was thinking about watching MTV Cribs in the mid 2000s. You had a lot of flashy rappers and sports players, but you also had some emo musicians and dark rockers. The style of the show completely changed depending on who was there. I loved the idea of going into a dark rocker's life and seeing the often dark settings around them. I wanted to hone in on this energy, as it largely reflects the way I life. A lot of my life is dark, and that's alright, because that's my style. I wanted to let listeners know that this is the case for my music as well.
6. You’re responsible for almost every aspect of the production—writing,
recording, producing, mixing. What challenges do you face wearing all those
hats, and what do you find most rewarding?
We were
talking a little bit about how it can be challenging to face the rock genre as
something new. Growing up as one of the guys that took an interest to Hardwell
and Skrillex in the early 2010s, my music production has always been very full
and anthemic due to my ability to add as many layers and synths as I want to
get the full picture. With rock, it's not so simple. You have vocals, a guitar,
a bass, and drums. There's a lot of space to fill in, and when you try to use
synths to get there in rock, you end up with this weird mashup of both that
starts to lose its own identity. I will say that there are some more
synth-heavy songs on this album, but the attempt was to keep it as close to a
2000s record as possible. Because I have oversight on production, I can hone in
on the goal a lot more easily.
7. "Fear of Heights" was recorded at Winter Station Studios. Could you walk us through a bit of the recording process and what it was like working with RJPasin and Leighton Antelman?
Winter Station Studios is an awesome studio that I love to record music at in my home state of Pennsylvania. It really feels like home to me, and as much as I'm there, I might as well call it my 2nd home. As far as the collaborators, working with RJ Pasin and Leighton Antelman has been a dream come true. RJ is one of the most innovative producers and instrumentalists I've seen in the last few years. Leighton Antelman is the lead singer of "Lydia" - which is one of my all-time favorite groups - and helped me with the songwriting process of writing this and other songs on my album. Both guys are sweethearts, and its easy to work with good guys, and its awesome when good guys win.
8. You’ve named some major influences, like My Chemical Romance and Madeon.
How do you merge those rock and EDM elements into a cohesive sound in your
music?
I am so glad you asked this question, seriously. If you had asked me who my favorite music group was in the early 2000s, it would totally be My Chem. Everyone loves Gerard, but the instrumental style of My Chem is this mix of gothic shock-rock that meets Brit pop, overlayed on jazz and blues. Even though there's so much there, it's just inherently emo, and I love it. I try to emulate some of their instrumental styles on this record for sure, and sometimes I take notes from Gerard's voice - most notably, his inflection and scream style. If you ask me who my favorite active artist is today, the answer is Madeon. He is truly a genius, and his production and vocals are just heavenly. I particularly love his vocal processing, the way it sounds so clean but so distorted, so heavenly but so obscure. There's this autotune, chorus, reverb, distortion thing going on. I love every second I hear it, and I totally try to emulate it on this record while also being just inherently emo, ala MCR.
9. The early 2000s were also an era of gritty, low-quality downloads on
platforms like Limewire. How did that “low-fi” influence shape your approach to
"Fear of Heights"?
This speaks
more to my age and what kind of era I grew up in. I grew up in a time when you
would hear a song on the radio, write down the lyrics, and then look it up on
limewire. There was a lot of effort involved in finding one song or one artist.
When we finally found the song and got it on our speakers, we didn't really
care about the quality so long as it was listenable. I sometimes find old songs
on my old drives when I'm going through, and the quality sounds just like it
did when I was a kid. I love this concept. I tried to sonically reproduce it in
this album - the idea of almost dumbing down the quality just a few hairs to
get the right fidelity.
10. Beyond music, how does the culture of the early 2000s influence the themes or aesthetic choices on "early2thou"?
I love everything about it. The Limewires, the Winamps, the AOL instant messengers. I loved the internet when it was more playful and more of a toy, and I loved the styles and aesthetics of the early 2000s. I tried to introduce it in other mediums on this album by recording the music video in the style of an early 2000s song, and tailoring my content to that timeframe as well.
11. You host an annual show, "James Zero & the Heroes," where
you perform live lounge jazz covers of your songs. What inspired you to
reinterpret your rock tracks in such a different style?
That was inspired by Madeon! I loved his Fireplace session, so I really wanted to do something like that myself but with artists from around the world.
12. Finally, with "Fear of Heights" being released around Halloween,
do you feel that timing plays into the song’s darker tone, and are there any
other seasonal influences on the album?
Another
awesome question. The cause-and-effect is in reverse! I chose to release this
song first because of the Halloween season, just because I was finally ready to
release something. My next single, "Ethereal", is a lot more personal
and vulnerable, so I'm releasing that around Christmas. It's about the death of
my best friend. I wanted to say thanks for your time today and for having me
<3
Post a Comment