The history of ZENO began to take shape in the early seventies when Zeno Roth and Ule W. Ritgen formed their first band (BLACK ANGEL) in Hannover. Strongly influenced by classic rock bands like Cream, Yes and Jimi Hendrix, both musicians played together for some years while attending university.
When this band had broken up in 1977, Ule Ritgen played bass in the band of Zeno's brother, Uli Jon Roth, appearing on three ELECTRIC SUN albums.
By 1980, Zeno Roth and Ule Ritgen were again working together, heading in a new direction. Zeno recalls: " The music became more melodic, with stronger vocal parts than anything we had done before. Instead of just two guitars, we added keyboard parts and background harmonies. It started to sound like what we were striving for."
The complete line-up of ZENO was formed when Michael Flexig joined as a lead singer.
On the basis of superb demo tracks, ZENO were awarded one of the largest recording contracts for a new band in rock history.
The origin of the name "Zeno" stems from a Greek philosopher, " Zeno Of Citium (Cyprus)" who founded the philosophy called Stoicism. Zeno (Zenon)'s philosophical system included logic and theory of knowledge, physics, and ethics--the latter being central. He held that happiness lays in living in accordance with the laws of Nature and Divine Reason, which governs the universe.
A deep thinker, Zeno Roth, as a successor of such a Greek philosophical mind, is gifted with writing as well as making music.
After the first album 'Zeno' had been released in 1986 he went more into the writing field, as the music business at that time was not very advantageous to melodious rock.
However, the door to his music was knocked open anew by the Japanese listeners who loved "Eastern Sun" from the re-released album 'Zeno' in 1993.
It is fitting that the East, the country of the "Rising Sun" should be directly responsible for rekindling Zeno's desire to continue creating his music.
As a next step, 'Zenology' was delivered in 1995, with songs that had been composed in the non-active period of the band ZENO.
Although those songs were not newly composed, some of them hit many people with the everlasting touch of ZENO's powerful melody. (Like "TOGETHER")
In 1998, the third album 'Listen To The Light' was released. It gained a high reputation with its melodious lyricism, containing many positive messages, spiritual, social and political, concepts for the future and his amazing guitar playing.
In April 1999. the deal was taken over by Toshiba EMI, Japan (EMI Music) as Zero corporation was liquidated.
In the annual reader's pop poll of 1998 by BURRN! Magazine, "Listen To The Light" was voted No.2 as an album, and Zeno Roth got the position No.2 (guitarist) and No.3 (songwriter). "Meet Me At The Rainbow" got No.9 as a tune.
In August 2000, Zeno moved to the United Kingdom and continued recordings for the new album.
In October 2003, he decided to release the past three albums (ZENO, ZENOLOGY, LISTEN TO THE LIGHT), fully re-mastered and enhanced, also with bonus tracks, "The Making of ZENO" which includes the legendary demo takes, leading up to the first deal with EMI UK.
In 2004 Zeno finalized the digital remaster of the past albums and Zenology II, a new compilation of previously unreleased material. In November, the first album "Zeno" was re-released in Europe as well.
In September 2006, the new studio album "Runway To The Gods" is released. No. 19 of the Oricon album Chart in Japan on the very first day.
+++Germany calling+++ Hallo Zeno! Feine Gitarrenarbeit - keep it up! Grüße vom Delta Rock Trio JANCREE! P.S.: Ab sofort sind alle JANCREE-Alben auch auf musicload.de, mp3.de, iTunes & Co erhältlich ...
Thank you for your support and for your friendship!
The CRASH THE SYSTEM debut album "The Crowning" out on July 3rd in Europe and on August 11th in the USA, Japan to follow...
featuring top hard rock vocalists Göran Edman (Ex-Yngwie Malmsteen, John Norum, Brazen Abbot, etc), Mats Levén (Ex-Yngwie Malmsteen, Infinite Mass, etc), Thomas Vikström (Ex-Talk Of The Town, Candlemass, etc) and Björn Jansson (Ex-Ride The Sky, Tears Of Anger, etc). The album also features the members of "The Murder Of My Sweet" and on additional guitars: Manuel Lewys (Machinery, Elwood, etc).
