The Metal Voice recently spoke live with Drummer Mark Zonder on Youtube. Zonder talked about the new A-Z that will be coming out June 6, 2025 via Metal Blade.
Also to commemorate the 15 year passing of Ronnie James Dio Zonder also told the story on how Warlord tried to get Ronnie James Dio to sing for the band.
When asked about trying to recruit Ronnie James Dio for Warlord
“Warlord was always looking for a singer and you know that we lived in the same town (as Ronnie James Dio) and we had a friend of ours, who was a road guy who lived at Warlord Manor with us who worked for David Lee Roth but in Van Halen and or Dio. We figured out where he (Ronnie James Dio) lived and we showed up at the door. Ronnie was very nice and we left him a tape (of Warlord) and that was that. We apologized profusely (To Ronnie) he wasn’t expecting (us to be at door) and his reaction was basically one of those things like “Oh god someone else at my door.” You know one of those kind. He wasn’t rude, he wasn’t nasty, he wasn’t mean, he didn’t say “Come on in dude let’s have a beer.” We just tried to do as much as we could do and it’s like “Hey why not the worst that can happen is what happened.”
The band known as A-Z began when Zonder started working on material in early 2020 with a clear vision for the band he wanted to put together: “I was thinking beer commercials, car commercials and Cobra Kai. I wanted a very accessible band that would appeal to the masses,” he says. The band’s name—standing for Alder thru Zonder—was an easy choice that would never pigeonhole the lineup’s sound. “What I liked is that it did not limit what someone would think of the band,” says Zonder. “If we named the band Scary Serpent it would give a certain direction and didn’t want people to prejudge us.”
The band members are legendarily prolific, which allows for an amazing dynamic where, as Zonder explains, “when you find the right guys, you just let them do whatever they want. Everybody’s a seasoned pro and all the different ingredients come together, make it what it is.” That live and recording experience allows A-Z’s to instinctively how not to step on each other musically.”
The band known as A-Z began when Zonder started working on material in early 2020 with a clear vision for the band he wanted to put together: “I was thinking beer commercials, car commercials and Cobra Kai. I wanted a very accessible band that would appeal to the masses,” he says. The band’s name—standing for Alder thru Zonder—was an easy choice that would never pigeonhole the lineup’s sound. “What I liked is that it did not limit what someone would think of the band,” says Zonder. “If we named the band Scary Serpent it would give a certain direction and didn’t want people to prejudge us.”
The band members are legendarily prolific, which allows for an amazing dynamic where, as Zonder explains, “when you find the right guys, you just let them do whatever they want. Everybody’s a seasoned pro and all the different ingredients come together, make it what it is.” That live and recording experience allows A-Z’s to instinctively how not to step on each other musically.”
A-Z lineup:
Ray Alder – Lead and Backing Vocals
Philip Bynoe – Bass Guitar
Nick Van Dyk – Guitars
Simone Mularoni – Lead Guitars
Jimmy Waldo – Keyboards
Mark Zonder – Drums
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