Zeel Bio
After so many years in a wasteland of dance and pop culture,
rock music is finally beginning to reclaim its rightful place as the soundtrack
for getting drunk, getting high and getting laid. Not since the Grunge revolution
of the early nineties has there been such interest in the genre complemented by
such excellent artistic output, namely from new bands like The Strokes, The
White Stripes and The Hives and also from more seasoned veterans like The Red
Hot Chili Peppers and Deus.
Dublin is now being viewed
as one of the leading scenes in this rock music revival, with particular
emphasis on the live music aspect. Venues that would traditionally have been
geared exclusively towards dance music are now featuring rock bands on a
regular basis. Dublin has always been notorious as the city of a thousand bands
but right now many of those bands are exceptional for their musical talent and
creative originality. What is more exciting is that the bands that encompass
the Dublin scene are widely diverse in their approach to song writing and
performance. In their own individual ways bands such as The Redneck Manifesto,
singer-songwriters like David Kitt and old pros like The Frames can all draw
big crowds while staying true to their original musical vision.
Zeel are aiming to ensure rock music is at the forefront of
the Dublin scene. The band began life in the late nineties as a vehicle of
musical experimentation for a group of musicians and friends. Encompassing many
musical styles, the live jamming sessions eventually became discordant and
began to fragment. One group, in particular, began to concentrate exclusively
on heavy rock music. In early 2001, this group formally adopted the name Zeel
and began gigging around Dublin, featuring the four members: Morgan Condon,
animal drummer supremo; Owen Connors, playing bass and guzzling beer; Mark
Greville, lunatic guitarist and vocals when he’s in the mood and Barry Streek,
guitar feedback hero and vocals whether he likes it or not.
The name Zeel comes from one of Barry’s old demo tapes,
recorded on his four-track before he started playing with the band and pretty
much sums up the enthusiasm and intensity the band display towards music and
performance. Barry and Owen met each other in their first week in secondary
school in a desperate attempt to make contact with other kids who gloried in
the music of the Dead Kennedys. They have been in bands together ever since and
somehow still manage to talk to each other. Mark and Morgan met in the first
week of National school, in a desperate attempt not to talk to anyone, and have
been happily miming away for years.
The band’s first gig was in Isaac Butts and was well
received by friends and family! Gigs at The Temple Bar Music Centre, Eamonn
Dorans, Voodoo and Whelans then followed. Other gigs of note include a support
slot with Bran’do in Cuba in Galway City where the venue kindly provided the
band with fantastic amounts of free beer (always greatly appreciated). In
February 2002, Zeel travelled to Greenfields Recording Studio in Galway to
record their first two-track single. Superbly engineered by owner Gerald
O’Donoghue, the eponymous debut single is set to be released by the band’s own
Misty Curtain Records label at the forthcoming IMRO New Bands Showcase gig at
Whelans on 11th April 2002. The band are headlining the gig which
also features the talents of Arizona, Oz and Bluetide.