[ zero bridge ]
January 11th, 2007 by 
sasha
Do check out this band’s music at
http://www.myspace.com/zerobridge
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Biography (from original site)
Zerobridge is an actual bridge in Kashmir’s capital, Srinagar. The story goes that as they were building bridges to connect the suburbs to the city center, they would name them by numbers, 1 Bridge, 2 Bridge, etc. The only bridge that was there before construction didn’t have a name, and so they called it Zerobridge. The band zerobridge first formed out of informal jam sessions between brothers Din (vocals/guitar) and Mohsin (drums) in the fall of 1999 in their parent’s basement in Potomac, Maryland, USA. Soon after, Din moved to New York City and was joined by Mohsin the following year when he relocated to New York to attend Fordham University. The two got a rehearsal space, started playing shows, completed an EP and began work on a full-length record. In September 2003, the first self-titled album was finished and in 2004 NYC bassist Greg Eckelman and guitarist Kenji Shinagawa were recruited to complete the band that is now zerobridge.
Zerobridge combines Western influences with an inherent musicality and tonality that draws from their South Asian heritage. The family emigrated from their native Kashmir to the UK where Din was born (”I was born in a small town in England called Pontefract, which is in or around West Yorkshire. They’re known for their Pomfret cakes and hospital maternity wards. That’s all I know about the place.”). When they completed their journey across the globe and settled in the US, Mohsin was born to a family that now had three brothers from three different continents (the eldest brother was born in Kashmir before the family left their homeland). Din acknowledges these two sides of his musical development: “My biggest influences are U2, the Beatles, and the Stones. They set the bar. Basically I just love any band that writes great songs, like The Velvet Underground, Zeppelin, The Smiths, Wilco, The Clash, Oasis, Radiohead, Joy Division/NewOrder. A lot of South Asian music influences me as well, like The Sabri Bros and Hindi film composers like A.R. Rehman and Ishmael Darbar, but the list can go on forever.” “No gimmicks,” adds Mohsin, “we put our hearts, souls and sweat into whatever we do. It’s about love, war, and curiosity I suppose. It’s just painfully true good rock and roll.”
“The songs range from the overtly political, extremely personal, or are influenced by a book I read or even about nothing whatsoever,” says Din, “Lyrics or lyrical ideas just happen when I’m inspired to write them. When I listen to songs, I care about how everything sounds together. Melody is most important; the lyrics seem to flow once the music is sorted out.” The band’s first record contains many political songs (”Refugee Citizen,” “The Choice”) because at the time, and even more so now, the climate in the world was such that you could not ignore the issues. Specifically, there are lyrics from the brother’s experience traveling to Kashmir in December 2001; that trip set a lot of the tone for the overall recording of the record. Seeing and learning about the hardships that their family and the general population went through over the last 25 years was an eye opener for the brothers, especially during their time spent there in the harsh winter months. “I couldn’t help but write about what I saw,” Din says, but “even then, we still felt like outsiders. So when I wrote songs like ‘Suffering Moses’ or ‘Nothing Doing,’ I tried to be true to what I experienced and true to the fact that I was removed from it all at the same time. Reading authors like Edward Said, Agha Shahid Ali, Sudha Kohl, and Salmon Rushdie have also inspired me and enhanced the overall worldview of the lyrics. If I had to choose, my favorite song from our first record would probably be ‘Suffering Moses.’ That would be our finest tribute to Kashmir. Musically it’s just this short and sweet little pop ditty. I wrote it while I was on that trip on this cheap Indian guitar that I borrowed from my cousin’s friend. The name of the guitar was a “Givson,” which is hilarious.”
When their first record was completed, the brothers were in New York City ready to bring zerobridge to a live audience which was virtually uncharted territory and grueling, considering it was just the two of them. Din explains, “It was crazy and kind of a nightmare at first, but totally fun at the same time. There was so much production on that first record that we couldn’t possibly reproduce everything live. Our first gig was absolutely horrible. We played to a packed audience at the Sidewalk Cafe, in the east village. We played five songs, White Stripes style. When it was over, Mo and I just looked at each other and broke down in hysterical laughter. It was all so absurd, but it was the first step to what we were trying to achieve. Playing live is a completely different ballgame than being in the studio. I decided that I had to write new songs for the live setting, and figure out ways we could transpose our recorded songs for the stage. We also set out to find other members to form a complete lineup.
After countless auditions and playing more live shows, in July 2004, zerobridge had finally found their bass player. Greg Eckelman has been a bass player for countless bands in and around New York City, most notably Orange 9mm. Greg’s personal and professional experience in the music industry also played a pivotal role in the overall management of zerobridge. The band became a much stronger and tighter unit with the newer and older songs finally coming into their own for the live setting. More shows and a bigger following developed, and most significantly was the band’s endorsement and guidance and production from legendary David Bowie/John Lennon guitari st, Earl Slick.
“That has been the biggest thrill and honor so far,” says Din. “I never would have thought that the man who has played with John Lennon and David Bowie would like what we were doing and be so closely involved. It’s a total blessing.” From working closely with Earl Slick several years back, Greg had became fast friends with Earl. When he was sent the first zerobridge record and early demos of the newer material, Earl was enthusiastic about zerobridge and wanted to be more closely involved in the development of the band, primarily the with production. As Din says, “The Strokes have JP Bowersock; zerobridge has Earl Slick.”
In the summer of 2005, zerobridge retreated to upstate New York for a weekend to record 10 songs with Earl Slick as producer and guitar player. Mark Plati, who has played with and produced David Bowie and who has also worked with the likes of Robert Smith of The Cure was recruited as co-producer. The results were instant. Din explains, “We were psyched, totally focused, and relaxed. Earl was so easy to work with and his creative input was invaluable. What we’ve done with Earl and Mark just blows me away. The band sounds like a real band, capturing the strength of our live performance. Just the fact that Earl played on all these songs just does my head in.” As Din’s brother Mo said after the recent CMJ showcase at Arlene’s Grocery, “We’ve come a long way from playing in our parent’s basement in Potomac, MD. It’s amazing what we’ve accomplished in the last year and right now we’re taking it to another level.”
And what exactly are the new songs about? Din says, “They pretty much speak for themselves. Like I said before they capture a rawer, more live feel. There are still the political rants like “Taleban Shake” (a live favorite) and TWA. A lot of these tunes are a lot more personal, dealing with relationships, like “It is What it Is” and “All the Unnecessary Drama.” There’s a song called “2minutes5″ which is the first where the music was written by the whole band. It’s a total rocker. The songs are just more upbeat and we get off on the fact that the crowd loves to dance to the music. That’s the ultimate compliment.”
In Kashmir’s capital, Zerobridge is now a decrepit structure that people are only allowed to walk across. Just beyond the bridge is a café called the zero inn, a place where the bothers, family, and friends go just to hang out and have cold Kashmiri coffees (which are like frapuchinos, but far better according to the brothers). It’s a sentimental place with a really unique name. Sometimes bands and places inherit the same cool names.
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