Zao in the Studio with As I Lay Dying’s Tim Lambesis

Legendary metalcore act Zao have been through so many line-up changes that they don’t officially contain any original members (to be fair, the current line-up have been together for a while). Regardless, they somehow manage to keep putting out amazing, heavy music. Following the release of 2006’s Steve Albini-produced The Fear Is What Keeps Us Here, Zao are currently in the studio at work on their tenth full-length album.

Joining them are As I Lay Dying vocalist Tim Lambesis and producer Daniel Castleman. With help from Zao’s Scott Mellinger, all accounts of the process suggest it’s going well. "We simply can not wait for everyone to hear these new songs," Mellinger says. "We have not been on the road since the Demon Hunter and Throwdown tours in 2006, which has given us plenty of time to get our wits about us and to really concentrate on creating the best batch of material we possibly can.

"Zao are a band that has influenced all types of bands in the heavy music genre, from the Deftones to my band," Lambesis added. "I'm very excited be a part of bringing them the production their band has always deserved. This record will be the Zao sound that fans and musicians like myself have been waiting to hear for a long time."

There is no release date set but the album will be out sometime in 2009 via Ferret Records.

Zao "Physician Heal Thyself”