Currently on a cross-Canada tour, The Zolas will be playing with Hollorado at The Commodore Ballroom on Nov. 14. As you might expect, guitarist/vocalist Zach Gray said that playing in their hometown of Vancouver is something they always look forward to: “Every city has its benefits, but it doesn’t really matter . . . where the most Zolas fans are — that’s the most fun.”
While on tour, the band has been working on performing new songs that they have never played live, such as “Cold Moon.” Gray said that they don’t really do much writing while touring because “it’s hard to find time to be creative on the road.”
Their songwriting process is a collaboration between all band members, and Gray’s ex-girlfriend also contributed to the chorus of their single “Knot in My Heart.” Gray said that the lines “It’s hard and weird not to know how your day begins though I’m lying next to someone new” are attributed to her, verbatim, from something she said over the phone. “I wrote it down and put it in the chorus. She gets royalties.”
Gray describes “Ancient Mars,” the title track of their second and most recent album, as being about “a beautiful place you can’t get back to once it’s gone. Mars used to have life and now it’s barren; relationships can work the same way. Give it time and there can be nothing between you. I find it sad and beautiful.”
When asked which artist or group they’d love to work with, Gray laughed and said André 3000, in a collaboration “where we stay out of his way.” Some other sources of inspiration — whether completely serious or not — that came up during our interview included Liberace, Dog the Bounty Hunter, Chris Angel, and Dave Matthews.
Mars used to have life and now it’s barren; relationships can work the same way.” Zach Gray, guitarist/vocalist
There are a few references to ancient civilisations in their songs, including mention of a pharaoh and the Nile in “You’re Too Cool,” and in the song title “Euphrates and Tigres,” but Gray said that he doesn’t have a particular interest in the subject. “It’s just from being a nerd; it’s not a theme. I have a degree in history, so it percolated in.”
Another influence from his history degree is the band name. The name, chosen last minute because they couldn’t agree, was inspired by Emile Zola, whom Gray learned about in one of his classes. “He committed slander against the president of France which is a pretty badass thing to do.” He also likes the fact that it’s not a name that has to be spelled: “You can make any name cool.”
The Zolas have a great sense of humour and had a lot of fun telling me about the many new, exciting features of their live show. These include an animatronic spider, pyrotechnics, male dancers, and live bears. “If people aren’t excited for that, I don’t know what to do,” said Gray.
He also explained, “I start suspended in a block of ice and the audience has to watch me melt before we start our set. It was too cold in Montreal, so they had to chisel me out. Hopefully Vancouver will be a warm enough audience.” I guess you’ll have to check out their show to see if any of that is true.
