The electric energy of a live rock performance is something you never forget, and that's exactly what etched the Brooklyn-based rock trio ZO2 into my memory. On my podcast, I'll take you through the incredible journey of these rockers, from their early days to touring with icons like Kiss and Poison, and share a touching story that showcases their profound connection with fans. We'll unpack the story behind their new album "Begin Again," a tribute to their late bassist David Z, with the addition of Sean McNabb to the lineup. This tribute is not only a nod to their past but a powerful leap into their future, and we'll get into the nitty-gritty of what makes this comeback so special.
Shifting gears, I'm eager to share the scoop on what's around the corner for the podcast. With my recharged commitment to bringing you fresh and engaging content, we've got a lineup of guests and interviews that will keep you hooked. Despite missing the mark on our YouTube subscriber goal, there's an air of optimism that's hard to ignore with ZO2's resurgence and the promise of more electrifying content. Join me on this rock and roll journey, and let's keep the music playing loud and proud. #tellyourstory #thebenmaynardprogram #familymatters #classicrock #zrock #pauliez #davidz #joeycassata #seanmcnabb #beginagain
Thanks for listening! Follow me on Instagram: benmaynardprogram and subscribe to my YouTube channel: THE BEN MAYNARD PROGRAM I also welcome your comments. email: pl8blocker@aol.com
The electric energy of a live rock performance is something you never forget, and that's exactly what etched the Brooklyn-based rock trio ZO2 into my memory. On my podcast, I'll take you through the incredible journey of these rockers, from their early days to touring with icons like Kiss and Poison, and share a touching story that showcases their profound connection with fans. We'll unpack the story behind their new album "Begin Again," a tribute to their late bassist David Z, with the addition of Sean McNabb to the lineup. This tribute is not only a nod to their past but a powerful leap into their future, and we'll get into the nitty-gritty of what makes this comeback so special.
Shifting gears, I'm eager to share the scoop on what's around the corner for the podcast. With my recharged commitment to bringing you fresh and engaging content, we've got a lineup of guests and interviews that will keep you hooked. Despite missing the mark on our YouTube subscriber goal, there's an air of optimism that's hard to ignore with ZO2's resurgence and the promise of more electrifying content. Join me on this rock and roll journey, and let's keep the music playing loud and proud. #tellyourstory #thebenmaynardprogram #familymatters #classicrock #zrock #pauliez #davidz #joeycassata #seanmcnabb #beginagain
Thanks for listening! Follow me on Instagram: benmaynardprogram and subscribe to my YouTube channel: THE BEN MAYNARD PROGRAM I also welcome your comments. email: pl8blocker@aol.com
Speaker 1:
Hey everyone, welcome into the Ben Maynard program. Thanks for being here and welcome to 2024, a new year. How about that? So a little housekeeping before we get started. As a reminder, this program is available on multiple podcast outlets like Apple Podcast, amazon Music and Spotify, among others. Simply just search the Ben Maynard program and choose your option. You'll have several to select. Of course, if you can't resist this right here, then you can always watch on YouTube. And if you are watching on YouTube, please subscribe to the channel, Give me a thumbs up and leave a comment. I would greatly appreciate it. Last but not least, follow me on Instagram, simply Ben Maynard program. So plenty of ways to take in this show for your dancing and listening pleasure. And with that, hey, we're off and running for the new year.
Speaker 1:
Really no reason to recap the last episode. It was the final episode of 2023. So, yeah, we're just going to get right into it. And you can see I'm taking a little bit of different position in the studio, just trying some things out. Like I told you at the end of the year that we're still doing work in the studio, put up some new lights. So we're just trying some things out, and when I say we, I mean me. I say we and it. You know I make it sound like I've got a crew working here. Nope, it's just, it's just me. So you know, I've got something exciting that I want to, I want to share with everyone today. I want to talk about a band that I just just dig, this band, and it's one that I'm sure most of you haven't even heard of, and if you haven't it, it it makes me happy to be able to share this band with you. And that's what I'm going to do today, because the band I'm talking about and let me see, I'm going to show this to you You're not going to well here. Well, you won't be able to really read the cover, and if you're listening, you're definitely not going to read the cover, but I'm holding up their debut CD of a band called ZO2.
Speaker 1:
So, and if you've heard of them, then you know what I'm talking about it's a trio out of Brooklyn, new York. They started up in about 2002, 2003, right in that area, started by the, the Z brothers, paulie and David Z. They've got a great last name, it's a Zablodowski, so say that three times, okay, but started up by David and Paulie Z and they brought in their friend, joey Casada to fill out the lineup. That's it Trio. You have Paulie on guitar vocals, you had David on bass and vocals and Joey on drums and vocals, and you know they really got going right out of the gate. I mean, they shot like a rocket. Maybe they didn't get a lot of national exposure, certainly not on the radio, but by 2004, they released their debut album and that's the one that I just showed you for those watching. That album is titled Tuesdays and Thursdays and they released it in March of of 04.
Speaker 1:
And then, right away check this out went out on a national tour opening for Kiss and Poison. Poison was also. Poison was in the the middle slot and Z02 were in that, that real opening slot, or they sometimes they called a special guest star or something along along those lines. And Z02 was was on a triple bill with Kiss and Poison and I was fortunate enough to see one of those shows and I had. I had taken my son and I think at that time he was about, he was about 16 years old and so him and I went to see the show and we had no idea that Z02 was on the bill. We knew we were going to see Poison and Kiss and you know, whatever time the you know opening band takes the stage and we see these three guys come out and, man, it was an amphitheater, but if it had been an arena they would have blown the roof off. Let's put it that way.
Speaker 1:
These guys were so good and their sound was so I don't wanna say it was so loud, but it was rich, let's put it that way. It was rich and they were very tight. And I know my son and I we just looked at each other and he says who's this band, dad? And I said I don't know. And I'm looking at the kick drum. They had the logo on the kick drum and I'm looking at it, I'm trying to read it and I think I'm telling them. I think it says like Z, zero, z or something along those lines. And we finally got it down. It was Z-O-2,. But boy, man, they really just for their 30 minute set, whatever it was, they had going on and one album out. Man, they really, really were impressive.
Speaker 1:
And what was cool about that is I had an opportunity to meet the fellas in the band after their set. I had gone out to the merch stand just to check out, see what was there, and I look in the merch stand and they're selling CDs. And so I thought, well, I'm gonna help these guys out. I don't remember what. I paid 10 bucks or something like that bought a CD. And then, sure enough, I turn around and there's Paulie and Joey were standing right nearby and kind of talking to people a little bit and they were signing CD covers. They were taking the covers out of the CD case and they were signing them. So I hit up Paulie and I said, hey, can I get you to sign this for me? So yeah, sure, sure. So signs it, hands it to Joey, signs it. Then he yells over at David and he says he says, hey, come here, come here, david. And I say, hollered over to him, so yeah, here, handed this to him to sign. And I said, look, I just want you guys to know you guys are fabulous.
Speaker 1:
And what I really dug about your sound was that it was kind of a modern 70s sound. And David or I'm sorry Paulie he kind of gets this big grin on his face and he looks over to Joey and to David and he says he kind of gives him an elbow to say, hey, that's what it says on our website. I didn't even know who these guys were, so I was getting it right out of the gate, but they were really, really nice guys and, as a matter of fact, at the end of I believe it was at the end of the kiss set, the guys were out there again and so I dragged my kid over there and he got to meet the guys and shake their hand and tell them they did a great job. So it was kind of really, it was really kind of cool, and he was excited about it, I was excited about it, and as soon as we got out to the parking lot we put the CD in the stereo and just cranked it, and I still crank it to this day. It's such a good CD.
Speaker 1:
But I'm not here to talk about ZO2's debut album. Debut album no, I'm not even, though it is really just it's fabulous. It just kicks some major ass. So if you know ZO2, you know what I'm talking about. And if you don't, hey, give them a look, see, then about three years later they released their second album, and that one was Ain't it Beautiful? And for those at home watching, I don't have the CD. I don't know. I know I had it somewhere, but I don't know. A couple of years ago I had my truck stolen and I had a bunch of CDs in center console, cause I'm a CD guy, like I've told you before, and I think that one might've been in there. So I'll have to pick that one up. I didn't realize that it was gone. I didn't realize I did not have it until this afternoon, as I was kind of prepping for this show, I grabbed the CDs off my case bookcase and that one wasn't there. But yeah, so Ain't it Beautiful.
Speaker 1:
They released in 2007. Still not a household name by that time. And then, two years later, in 09, they released their third album. That one is Casino Logic, and the cool part about Z02 is they just have a unique sound. I shouldn't say unique sound. They have a sound that you know it's them, though. You know it's them. And Pauly Z has a voice like all get out, it's his voice. I really, really dig his voice. And so that was their third release in 09. And still, at that point, not a major household name. I shouldn't say major, not household name. They weren't even a minor household name.
Speaker 1:
Unfortunately, the guys in the band they had a even had a television show for two seasons. It was called Z-Rock. It was on the what was it? The IFC channel or something? Independent film channel, whatever it is. I used to watch it. I would record it and watch it. It was just a funny show and it was kind of like a how do you? How do you describe it? It was definitely based on their story as a band, but you know little. It wasn't scripted, that's for let's just say that it wasn't scripted, but it was based on their, on their story, and not completely improv. They'd have an outline drawn, drawn up for, but, but a lot of it was was just on the fly as far as telling the story itself. So good stuff, great band.
Speaker 1:
And then for the next couple of years, in 2010 and 2011, there were no releases. They had well, I shouldn't say there were no, really hadn't released any albums. They put out some singles. I think it was four or five singles they'd put out on the streaming platforms and Good stuff, but no albums. And then about 2013, they just stopped. They took a hiatus.
Speaker 1:
The guys in ZO to said, yep, we need a break, and and I don't know it's never you know, been disclosed as to why that happened. But one can imagine that you know, kicking around for six or seven, eight years and You're still playing, maybe at a large club or small theater level, and you haven't gained much national attention or awareness. I'm sure it can get really frustrating, especially if you know you're putting out good product and I can say those first three albums Really good stuff, really good stuff, just mmm. So, so, so, so good. But you know, that's, that's kind of the way it was.
Speaker 1:
They took a hiatus and, and, truth be told, david and Pauly were pretty known in the music business they had Played with, I want to say, trans-siberian Orchestra. I think they both did at one point not maybe not the same touring Group, because, for those who you don't know, there's a, there's an east coast and the west coast touring act for TSO has been for many, many years, but they were doing that. I believe they even played in the blue man group. So guys were doing stuff, you know, but they they took the focus off the band and went on hiatus. And then I know that that David, around 2017, was playing in Adrenaline mob and was out on tour with the band. And then there was a horrific accident on the highway in Florida where I don't know if it was a semi or not, but they're their tour bus was struck and burst into flames and there was more than one. There was more than one person killed in that accident and unfortunately David Z was one of those that was that lost his life as well.
Speaker 1:
And at that point Z02 was the hopes for for the band were. We're just, we're done. There were no more hopes for the band as far as coming back together or resurrecting or reuniting, none of that stuff. And it was pretty. You know, it was a bummer, let's put it that way.
Speaker 1:
I think Paulie started a David Z foundation and he would put on tribute shows or not tribute shows, but he put on shows to raise money for the David Z foundation. And no, he ran into a guy by the name of Sean McNabb and that name might not be familiar to a lot of people and, honestly, not real familiar to me as well, except for the fact that I knew he was in Lynch mob, the George Lynch band. I knew he did a stint in Lynch mob and there was I think it was one of the tribute shows they did for for the David Z foundation, but Sean had come up and played with Joey and David and the chemistry was there and I think that they just talked it out, figured you know what. Let's keep this band going, let's get it going one more time and let's do it in honor of our fallen brother David. And so that's why I'm here today to tell you about that.
Speaker 1:
Z02 is back. Yes, they are, and they have released. There it is. They have released begin again. This is their fourth album.
Speaker 1:
This one here is a two CD set. It was released right about a month ago and I was able to get it through the record company. It's on Kivill Records. This is what is really cool. I was blown away by the packaging on this. Well, it came in this nice purple bubble wrap envelope which, you know, for those who buy music through the mail, you get a lot of that anyway. But this is what I thought was cool.
Speaker 1:
This was the exterior envelope here which has got a picture of the cover, the album, the front cover, and then when you turn it over, it's got the back cover, and I saw that sitting in my mouth on my professional broadcaster here. I saw that sitting in my mailbox and I was like, wow, nice packaging, way to go guys. So I brought it in, I opened it up, I was excited and it's, I mean, what a great cover. It's great color. They stick with the theme of these. You know real pretty pinup girls. I just think the packaging is awesome. Oh yeah, let me show you this too I got a nice little Z02 button. Yeah, too bad I don't have a denim jacket to pin that on, right, yeah, but I think that was cool.
Speaker 1:
It's nice when you know you get some little chotchkees or something along those lines with an album, like we used to get way back when we were kids and when bands did that, especially KISS. I mean remember you would open up the album cover and you would shake it to see what fell out besides the album. And yeah, you usually get something in there. But yeah, let me open this up. It's just really, really, really cool.
Speaker 1:
I'm trying not to mess up the booklet here. You know how they get caught a little bit, so let's kind of take it easy here and get it out. There it is. But, as I said, the packaging is just. I mean, this is like first class stuff. It's great artwork. It's a great, great cover. I love the colors, love the colors in it. It almost, you know, when you open it up, kind of gives a little bit of history on the band, going backwards, starting in 2023. And then, well, I shouldn't say it doesn't go backwards, but it starts in 2023. The opening pages of the booklet and then it takes you back to the beginning of 2002 when the band officially formed, and then it just takes you through a brief history on the band, so what it looks like 04, 07. Yeah, they're talking about their album releases. Got some great pictures in here, great pictures.
Speaker 1:
So what is on these CDs? As I said, it's a two CD set. It's not all brand new material. The band just released a video and a single single for the album. It's called Begin Again. Now, if I have it right I think I do this is an older song that was written when David Z was still alive but never released. And I think what the band did since it was never released, they just kind of brushed it up, cleaned it up, you know, re-recorded it with the current members in the band and that's their new single, since it had never been released previously. So that's their new single and then on that first disc, that's the lead track and then it follows up with four, no four or five Let me check my notes here, I want to make sure I give you fairly accurate information Five songs, five songs off their debut album, tuesdays and Thursdays, and then it's got seven songs off of the second album Ain't it Beautiful? And then it finishes up with five tracks off of Casino Logic. So you, um, it's kind of a I guess you could say kind of a greatest hits. It's a career retrospective.
Speaker 1:
That first, that first disc, and then what I thought was really cool, as I'm dropping stuff, I see here's another Chachki I opened I just opened up Casino Logic. And here's another little Chachki that was cool. They had playing cards in the in that particular CD and apparently there were four of them, but each, each disc had a different card and there was a way to collect them all. In fact, so much so I had something fall on the floor here in the studio so I can't, I can't bend down and pick it up, but I think it said collect them all and it gave like a MySpace page to go to collect them. So, yeah, myspace, right? Anyway, what I thought was really cool about Casino Logic is let me get it here, get this booklet out again. I want to look at the, the liner notes. Look, I talk a lot about this guy on this show and I'm still crossing my fingers he's going to come on here one of these days.
Speaker 1:
But on two tracks. Two tracks on Casino Logic, song number four and song number five, and song number four and song number eight, which are oh gosh. I'm not going to go through them. I know one of them is Show Me. I'm trying to think of the other one. But background vocals by Steve Ageri yes, my guy, steve Ageri. Good stuff. So I just wanted to share that and get a little giggle myself because I was tickled when I saw it.
Speaker 1:
But getting back to the new album, begin Again. So the first disc I already told you what's on that. And then the second disc. The first track is the theme song to their television show Z-Rock. Just the theme song, no big deal. But then the next four tracks are previously released singles. Those are the ones I was telling you about that they released in 2010 and 2011. Really really good songs, really good songs. Let's see, it's a million pieces. I will be all right. Heart of confusion, and that's what's up. Good stuff.
Speaker 1:
Then they do a cover song. I think it was recorded in 2011. They recorded it for an Eric Carr tribute album called what was it called? Unfinished Business, I think is what it was and they did a cover version of All Hell's Breaking Loose from KISS. Then there are three tracks that have never been released. They were recorded in 2012, but never released. Those three tracks are complicated one, love and live today. Then it finishes up. The CD closes out with a live recording at the whiskey from earlier this year. They do a ZZ Top cover of what is it, I don't know, oh, waiting for the Bus, and Jesus Just Left Chicago. Yeah, so that right there.
Speaker 1:
Now, I haven't had a chance to listen to this because, catherine, she sets up her office not here in the studio and my stereo is not here in the studio. I'd have to take it out of here and do it up, and it's just not going to happen when she's working. So I'll have to wait, but I am so looking forward to hearing it. Like I said, I've heard some of the singles, the previously released stuff, and I know the stuff off of the first disc, so I'm okay. I want to hear disc number two. Yeah, so just really good stuff from a really good band.
Speaker 1:
I'm just so looking forward to what comes from these guys this year. I know they have a tour coming up. They don't have a website, though. They don't have a band website. They're just pretty much doing things through Facebook, I think, instagram also, and through YouTube. They just kind of relaunched their YouTube channel I think it was a couple of years ago, started posting some stuff on there and, but I'm really excited. I know they have a tour scheduled for this year, but I don't think any dates have been announced Nothing at least on the West Coast, and they've got to get out to the West Coast. Here I haven't seen them, and now it's 2024. So it's been nearly 20 years since I saw this band live and I'm so looking forward to it, can't wait.
Speaker 1:
I'd like to get the guys on the show. I've reached out to Pauly Z and I'm just waiting to hear back one way or the other. So I'm crossing my fingers and, if you have them, cross them for me too, please. I would greatly appreciate that. Yeah, so yeah, z02. They are back and you've got to check it out. Really really good stuff. I can't say enough. I'm really pumped for these guys and I'm really pumped for this band Because it's a band that never got a lot of exposure on a national level.
Speaker 1:
They had a nice following in their area of the country, the East Coast area, the Tri-State area, even into Ohio. They had a good following in the Ohio area around Cleveland as well, but not a lot out here on the West Coast where I am, and so I really want to see these guys get out here and I want to take it in, that's for sure. I really want to see them play again, but also looking forward to Pauly Z coming on the show. We'll see if that happens. Okay, like I said, cross your fingers for me. Yeah, with that look short show today, we'll keep it there.
Speaker 1:
Good stuff coming up. As I told you the end of last year, I got some good stuff coming up in the new year. I'm working hard to get some good guests. Not that the ones in the past haven't been good, of course they've been good. I'm not going to put anyone on this show that I don't feel is worthy of being on this show and it's not like this is a great big to do here. Anyway, I'm nobody special, but yeah, we got some.
Speaker 1:
You know, trying to get some good guests lined up, some good things. We'll have some good interviews, some good conversation. We'll have some more great music talk as well, and lots to look forward to. And remember, I'm going back to work soon, so, although I am looking forward to it, so I shouldn't gripe. I'm looking forward to it. I'm looking forward to a regular schedule, and you never know what's going to happen. You know, maybe through work it's going to lead to some some good things, some good content coming out here on the show as well. So we'll see.
Speaker 1:
Anyhow, again, that's a wrap, and I'll just remind you that, once again, this program is available on multiple podcasts outlets Apple podcasts, amazon music and Spotify, among others. Just simply do your search for the Ben Maynard program and you'll have several options to choose from. Pick your option. Hey, if you want to steer your way right into Buzzsprout, I like that one. That's where my website is. If you're watching on YouTube, continue to watch, continue to love it. Subscribe to the channel. If you haven't already, I'd greatly appreciate it. I didn't meet my quota or my goal for 100 by the end of the year, I think. After I made that announcement, I got one more. So subscribe to the channel, give me a thumbs up and leave a comment and then, last but not least, follow me on Instagram. Ben Maynard program. So there you go, short one, but remember Z02 is back. This is the Ben Maynard program. Tell a friend.