Zeitgeist Zero’s Teresa Dead reflects on the band’s legacy, attitudes to success and more in this revealing new chat around new album, ‘Meddling With The Forces’.
S] It has been a long time! How are you all?
We’re good, thank you. I am still making music and playing live, although I have been to university since we last spoke. I took four years out studying filmmaking and am now in charge of the band’s live visual show and making music videos. I love being able to express myself visually as well as aurally. Plus, when I need music for my films, Zeitgeist Zero can compose music to capture the tone perfectly.
S] How has your attitude to success changed since you started your career?
I think we’re more open to collaborations and supporting fellow musicians in any way we can. I feel that being open helps lift us all. A high tide lifts all boats.
I would also say we’ve become quicker at writing. Corin and I now exclusively write the songs, and it’s a faster process. We bring Ian in when the music is more developed to get his feedback. Corin also mixed the album, which he hasn’t done since the first. It was necessary, as we hadn’t played a show for 18 months due to the pandemic, and the band couldn’t afford to hire a professional producer. However, through need came something unique, as Corin did a brilliant job mixing the album and bringing the songs to life.
S] Do you think about your legacy as artists at all?
I think it’s hard to do that from the inside to see how others view you. I always feel awkward when I try, as I can see our potential and flaws. So, instead, we try to focus on making songs and music videos we’re proud of and avoid comparing ourselves to others or thinking about our legacy. We’ve had so many distractions over the years that it’s good to eliminate them and concentrate on doing what we love.
S] How does ‘Meddling With Forces’ push you in new ways as artists?
We wrote most of the album, which is much more electronic, during lockdown. We looked around the studio and had synths, a drum machine and guitars. So we worked with what we had, and I’m pleased with the blend of electronics and guitars. It’s much truer to our original vision for the band in many ways. Our last album, ‘Ghosts Of Victory’, was more on the rock side with acoustic drums, but on this album, we have returned to our unique blend of catchy darkwave.
S] How do you look back at ‘Dead To The World’ now?
I’m still proud of that album, it has some great tunes. The poppy ‘Party for One’, electronic ‘Dance Of The Fallen’, the bluesy ‘Caress’, and gothabilly ‘Big Bad Wolf’. However, ‘Meddling With The Forces’, while still musically diverse it, has a more cohesive concept throughout with the tone and lyrics. The CD also comes with a pull-out Ouija board lyric sheet, all tied into that spooky concept. I think we’re all looking for answers beyond the disappointment of reality right now.
S] What would you say to your younger selves now, reflecting on the history of the band?
Speed up and write a bit quicker. We’ve traditionally been relatively slow, leading to my next point. I would also perhaps say that letting more people in the band into the studio can be counter-productive to creativity. When we were a five-piece, we ended up with everyone wanting their idea laid down on the track. Plus, if you wanted to concentrate on one instrument at a time, the other band members would start chatting, which could get distracting. When we wrote ‘Meddling With The Forces’, it seemed to work with just the two of us, Corin writing nearly all the music and me doing almost all the lyrics. Then Ian comes in to give his perspective when the song is at a stage where it has legs.
S] What’s motivating you most outside of music – think specific people, places and movies for example?
I’m working on trying to get my first-ever feature film made. I’ve been working on a script and collaborating with a writer on another. I don’t know how I will do that, but I have had work colleagues who have made multiple feature films between them, so I have people I can ask.
Hopefully, I will get one of these projects off the ground over the next year. I am also just putting the touches to my 8th short film and hope to put that into festivals. Now we have released the ‘Toxic Twisted’ music video, I want to make a new video for our song, ‘Seance With Ghosts’ and ‘Period Parlour Tricks’. I also worked with Skeletal Family on their music video for ‘Cry Baby’. I love working with other musicians to create a great music video for them.
For more on Zeitgeist Zero visit: https://www.zeitgeistzero.com/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QGXr6HdD-Rc
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