Darkest Heavy: Remembering Z.O.E.

Osaka’s Z.O.E. boasted members of some of Japan’s best crustcore bands, but reveled in blatant unoriginality in mining the AMEBIX field for everything it could possibly be worth. They formed as a bedroom band by ex-GLOOM guitarist Taki in 1997, acquiring the drumming services of Takayama from FRAMTID four years later. Z.O.E. issued The Beginning as a CD-R demo in 2002, attracting attention from fans of Japan’s “crasher crust” scene for its painstaking attention to detail—these four songs sound dead on like AMEBIX outtakes if not for Taki’s howling vocals. “Be Celled & Be Chain of Master” steals the riff from “Drink & Be Merry” outright while the other songs are only somewhat less offensive in their thievery. Z.O.E. followed up with the instrumental “Spere Alive” on The Darkest 4, a compilation tape also featuring fellow Japanese crustys EFFIGY, ACROSTIX, and the amusingly named DISTURD.

Crust War originally intended to release 2003’s From Hell EP as a split with the like-

minded EFFIGY. Both bands even recorded title tracks for the concept, with Z.O.E. writing “From Hell (Ice Devil)” as a companion piece to EFFIGY’s “From Hell (Summer Devil).” Crust War simply released both as separate records instead. From Hell is the band’s best example of their “darkest heavy” sound; the long title track builds to a particularly nice crusty crescendo. “Destroyer” gets more to the point while “Spider” fades out after about a minute as something of a teaser track.

The Last Axe Beat re-records all four tracks from The Beginning and adds two new songs plus “Spider” in full. Z.O.E. relentlessly references AMEBIX and ZYGOTE throughout; it is almost more than one can handle by the album’s end.

Although the songs are appropriately loud and heavy, The Last Axe Beat misses the dynamics that Z.O.E.’s favorite band established with both their songwriting and presentation. Z.O.E. would then cover “The Power Remains” and “Winter” on MCR Company’s Amebix Japan: A Tribute to Amebix compilation (a dream come true, I’m sure) and also re-recorded “New World” and “Zygospore” for the Konton Damaging Ear Massacre compilation released by Crust War in 2005.

How did Z.O.E. manage to get away with such a flagrantly imitative approach? I do not know myself; I am still trying to figure it out over fifteen years later as I still enjoy these recordings on some level.

SEE ALSO: Defector, Ferocious X, Framtid, Gloom, War Cry.

Jushin Liger

Happy 56th birthday to Jushin Liger! I was thinking about how Japanese wrestling filtered its way into my fandom—first via photos of Antonio Inoki and Jumbo Tsuruta, then by seeing Jushin Liger and the Great Muta tear up the ring in WCW. They helped me form an impression of how New Japan and All Japan Pro Wrestling represented the True Sport of Kings long before I was able to see it for myself. Liger also changed the business for good in 1994 when he set up New Japan's Super J Cup tournament featuring many of the world's best junior heavyweight wrestlers at the time. Eddy Guerrero (as Black Tiger), Dean Malenko, Chris Benoit (as Wild Pegasus), Hayabusa, the Great Sasuke, and Taka Michinoku were just some of the talents introduced to the greater wrestling world on the Super J Cup's grand stage. Jushin Liger deserves a Hall of Fame induction for that alone.

25 Years Ago at 924 Gilman Street

CANCER ALLEY didn't play and were replaced by LA grind freaks BAD ACID TRIP. I seem to recall that MAN IS THE BASTARD didn't play either and I definitely did not see ASSUCK this evening. They might have been a bit too death metal for my taste at the time anyway. However, this was my first time seeing CAPITALIST CASUALTIES live after listening to whatever records of theirs my bandmates and I could find all year long. Expectations were met, but this show belonged to Japanese hardcore thrashers ASSFORT. ASSFORT was amazing! They set the live standard for every other Japanese hardcore band to follow as I've seen them over the years. Check out Matt Average's cover photo for their 亞吸不汚吐 EP on

That's me in the Misfits shirt under Yoshio's leg.

Prank; that is me in the MISFITS shirt narrowly avoiding a collision with vocalist Yoshio as he breaks Gilman Street's no-stagediving rule. There was also a huge fight right after that photo was taken when a couple burly jock dudes materialized and started laying people out. Seemed like every punk rocker in the club suddenly pounced on them and sent them packing. I was told that they both had lost their shoes in the fracas and had to run in their socks through a mess of broken bottles to escape!

I had a difficult time leaving this show. This was one of those nights where I didn't want to go home ever again. Home was a small, boring house in the suburbs with my unemployed single mom. How could I think about living under her roof or starting my senior year of high school in a few weeks after the things I saw tonight? This was where I belonged. Getting back here and staying here was my only focus now. Nothing else mattered anymore.