MilwHC:Bands:ZED
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ZED
Line-up:
- Vocals/Guitar: Matt Kramer
- Vocals/Bass: Kayt Rutkowski
- Vocals/Drums: John Witte
- Noise/Ambiance: Nicolas Lampert
Band History
A band created by love, politics, acid and over-emphasizing the heavy. We drank Boone's, did drugs and played louder than anyone's business. Our 1st line-up was Matt Kramer on guitar, John Witte on drums and Kate Rutkowski on bass. We all "sang", or rather screamed. On special occasion, Nicolas Lampert also joined us to add brutal noise/ambiance and Laura(sorry, her last name escapes me)put her film "collages"/compositions behind us as we played our "hit" songs such as "Giant" and "Drown". I guess we weren't an early 90's band, but we did start in 1995 and ended our Milwuakee endeavor in early 1997. Matt and Kate moved to Philly and began anew with the great Delawarian Ken Williamson III on drums. Besides our crucial yet humble beginnings in Milwaukee, not a whole lot happened for Zed save a few very important events. We were the first band on side one of the fantastic 'EXISTENCE' compilation in 1996. We met Burn the Priest (now Lamb of God) at a basement show at the Earl House (the somewhat "replacement" of the Oakland House)in the summer of 1996. That meeting later sparked a split 7" with them once we relocated to Philly. We also met Stinking Lizaveta at the Earl House in January of 1997 just before our move. They became been our good friends who had welcomed us into the fellowship of Philadelphia's musical scene. They remain friends of mine and my latest band to this day. You see, Milwuakee is an invaluable place for musicians that can change a life, cause growth in profound ways and make one reach deep into themselves to find innovation and true originality. So many Milwaukee bands have lived this truth. Perhaps popularity escapes them, but fuck it! The bands I've done have made me proud and able to push on without worrying about crowd validation. It is my hope that the spirit of ZED can live on in this special place. -- Kate Vigil (former bassist of ZED and Downer) --Kate-n-destroy
