Zank – Without A Bridge
A) Have we learnt nothing from bands like Nickleback? B) Does ballady-pop rock not belong firmly back in the eighties? C) And what sort of name is Zank anyway? These are some of the initial questions that popped into my head when I first listened to Without a Bridge.
A) Obviously not. B) Yes. C) I have no fucking idea, maybe his parents were hippies. These are the answers I came up with. A brief bio on the website posits the slim possibility that this is his real name “Zank is no stranger to the music industry. Early in his professional musical career he had the opportunity to record two records for Polygram”. Hmmm, and if as I suspect, he writes his own website, Mr Zank also likes to speak about himself in the third person…
From the Zankmusic.com website I, the interested listener, get the distinct impression that travel is supposed to have played a big part in the creation of this album. Influences have come from sources across the globe, apparently. Well, strike me down with a big stick with dumbass written on it if I can’t hear any of those influences. I don’t wish to sound entirely like a curmudgeonly old bastard but an album like this will bring it out in me. With this review done, I’m off to go tell some good-for-nothing kids that things aren’t like they used to be.
By Mark Williams
Mark,
Thank you for taking the time to listen, and to write your thoughts.
My name, indeed, is Zank. It's my given first name. Hippies, yep. Dead on. I didn't write my bio, and I agree with your distaste of third-person pinings and Nickleback.
I did write the majority of the songs while traveling around the world with a travel-guitar, singing into an MP3 recorder. It was an amazing adventure. It's too bad that didn't come through to you.
Again, I really appreciate that you took the time, Mark.
Best,
-Zank