The Zero Boys are an American

hardcore punk Hardcore punk (also known as simply hardcore) is a punk rock music genre and subculture that originated in the late 1970s. It is generally faster, harder, and more aggressive than other forms of punk rock. Its roots can be traced to earlier punk ...

quartet from

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

fronted by

Paul Mahern Paul Mahern (born September 11, 1963) is an American rock and pop record producer, mixing and mastering engineer, singer, songwriter, professor, and yoga teacher. Mahern has worked with acts such as John Mellencamp, Lily & Madeleine, The Fray, Ig ...

that debuted in 1980. Other members include bassist Scott Kellogg, drummer Mark Cutsinger and guitarist Dave Lawson. The band was known as one of the few popular hardcore bands from the

Midwest The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

, as the scene was mostly dominated by bands from the coasts.

History

The band formed in June 1980 and three months later released their first EP. Entitled ''Livin' in the '80s'', it was a 7" EP released by the band on their home-brew Z-Disc label. Their debut full-length album, ''Vicious Circle'', was released in 1982 with its distinctive bright yellow cover on the local label Nimrod Records. The band embarked on a 1982 "Hell Tour" with one notable appearance at The Barn in Torrance, CA, on a bill with

Dead Kennedys Dead Kennedys are an American punk rock band that formed in San Francisco, California, in 1978. The band was one of the defining punk rock, punk bands during its initial eight-year run. Dead Kennedys' lyrics were usually political in nature, sa ...

, MDC, and

Minor Threat Minor Threat was an American hardcore punk band, formed in 1980 in Washington, D.C. by vocalist Ian MacKaye and drummer Jeff Nelson. MacKaye and Nelson had played in several other bands together, and recruited bassist Brian Baker and guitaris ...

. ''Vicious Circle'' was reissued on

Toxic Shock Toxic shock syndrome (TSS) is a condition caused by bacterial toxins. Symptoms may include fever, rash, skin peeling, and low blood pressure. There may also be symptoms related to the specific underlying infection such as mastitis, osteomy ...

later in the 1980s, with added bonus tracks taken from the Affirmation Records compilations LPs ''The Master Tape'' and ''The Master Tapes 2''. It was reissued again in 2000 by

Lookout! Records Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California and later in Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having released Operation ...

, without the ''Master Tape'' tracks, but with two additional songs from the original album sessions, "She Said Goodbye" and "Slam and Worm", which had been given limited release on a 7" single. The Zero Boys managed to record a handful of tracks intended for a second LP, but broke up before the album could be finished. These tracks were released on the ''History of the Zero Boys'' cassette on Affirmation, along with the above-mentioned compilation tracks and other demo tracks and outtakes. In 2009,

Secretly Canadian Secretly Canadian is an American independent record label based in Bloomington, Indiana, with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Chicago, Austin, London, Paris, Amsterdam, and Berlin. Secretly Canadian is a label included in Secretly Group, which ...

reissued both "Vicious Circle" and "History Of", making the latter available on CD for the first time. Since their breakup, the band has reunited for the occasional gig, including a series of shows at CBGB's designed to raise money to help keep the club open, and a series of shows in 2006 – 2012 where they performed the entire ''Vicious Circle'' album. The new lineup consisted of Paul Mahern, Tufty, Mark Cutsinger, and Vess Ruhtenberg of

The Lemonheads The Lemonheads are an American alternative rock band formed in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1986 by Evan Dando, Ben Deily, and Jesse Peretz. Dando has remained the band's only constant member. After their initial punk-influenced releases and tour ...

on guitar as original guitarist Terry "Hollywood" Howe died in 2001. Paul Mahern went on to form the power pop band the Datura Seeds and has since become a producer in Bloomington, Indiana, where he also teaches yoga and owns the Affirmation Records label. In 2012, Vess Ruhtenberg and Tufty left the band just before a European tour. Scott Kellogg (bass) and Dave Lawson (guitar) are their replacements. In February 2013 the new band released an EP titled "Pro Dirt." This was their first release in 20 years. The Zero Boys' new LP, Monkey, was released on May 20, 2014.

Band members

Timeline

Discography

Studio albums

* ''Vicious Circle'' (

Panic Button A panic alarm is an electronic device that can easily be activated to request help during an emergency situation where danger to persons or property exists. It is designed to minimize time until assistance can arrive. A panic alarm is freque ...

Lookout! Lookout Records (stylized as Lookout! Records) was an independent record label, initially based in Laytonville, California and later in Berkeley, focusing on punk rock. Established in 1987, the label is best known for having released Operatio ...

/Fundamenta]/Rifleman/Nimrod/P-Vine) (1981) * '' Make It Stop'' (Bitzcore) (1991) * ''The Heimlich Maneuver'' (Skyclad) (1993) * ''Monkey'' (Z-Disk) (2014)

Singles and EPs

* ''Livin' In The 80's'' 7" EP (Z-Disk) (1980) * Split 7" EP with

Toxic Reasons Toxic Reasons were an American punk rock band, formed in 1979. The band released nine full-length studio albums between 1982 and 1995. History Toxic Reasons formed in Dayton, Ohio, in 1979. The founding members were Bruce Stuckey (bass guitar ...

( Selfless) (1992) - "Black Network News", "Blood's Good" * "We're Gonna Love" / "U.S.A." (Skyclad) (1993) * ''Pro Dirt'' 7" EP ( 1-2-3-4 Go!) (2013) * ''Hollywood'' 10"/CD EP (Z-Disk) (2014)

Compilations

* ''History Of'' (Affirmation) (1984)

Compilation Appearances

* ''Red Snerts-The Sound Of Gulcher'' (

Gulcher Gulcher Records is an independent record label founded in Bloomington, Indiana by Bob Richert in the mid-1970s, as one of the earliest small independent labels and fanzines in the area. They have released music for acts such as John Cougar Melle ...

) (1981) - "New Generation' * ''The Master Tape'' (Nimrod/ Affirmation) (1982) - "High Places", "Human Body", Mom's Wallet) * ''A Drink For Sue Ellen'' (Schrott) (1983) - "Outta Style", "High Times" * ''The Master Tape Vol. 2'' 2XLP (Affirmation) (1983) - "Black Network News", "I Need Energy" * ''Killed By Death #4'' (Redrum) (1989) - "Stoned To Death", "Stick To Your Guns", "I'm Bored", "A Piece Of Me" * ''Live Treatment'' cass. (Shotgunning Tape SXXXXX Inc./Discraceland) (1989) - "I'm Bored" * ''Parkhof Live Nr. 2'' cass. (I Hate Billie Tapes) (1991) - "01-05-88" * ''Life Is Too Short For Boring Music Vol. 11'' (To Be Continued) (EPA) (1992) - "Indianapolis" * ''Faster & Louder - Hardcore Punk Vol. 2'' (Rhino Records, Rhino) (1993) - "Civilization's Dying" * ''For A Fistful of Yeng!'' (Bitzcore/Indigo) (1994) - "Indianapolis", "Positive Change" * ''Decade Of Disasters'' (

Westworld ''Westworld'' is an American science fiction-thriller media franchise that began with the 1973 film ''Westworld'', written and directed by Michael Crichton. The film depicts a technologically advanced Wild-West-themed amusement park populate ...

) (1994) - "Living In The 80's" * ''Strange Notes! A Germs Cover Compilation'' (Bitzcore) (1994) - "What We Do Is Secret" * ''So You Wanna Be A Rock'N'Roll Compilation?'' (Bitzcore) (1995) - "Down The Drain", "Civilization's Dying", "Outta Style" * ''Splitter Kompilaischn'' ( Art Beat) (1997)- "Civilization's Dying" * ''Dangerously Unstable'' (

Suburban Voice ''Suburban Voice'' is a punk zine published by Al Quint.''Maximumrocknroll'' (June 30, 2010)"Blog of the Week: Suburban Voice and Sonic Overload" ''Maximumrocknroll ''Maximumrocknroll'', often written as ''Maximum Rocknroll'' and usually abbr ...

) (1999) - "Positive Change" * ''American Revolution Vol. 1-Rare Hardcore Punk From The United States 1978-1984'' CDr ( Killer Boot) (2000) - "Black Network News" * ''Bank Robber Music Compilation Vol. 17-Winter 2008'' (Bank Robber Music) (2008) - "Hightime" * ''Collectors #2'' (

Volume Volume is a measure of occupied three-dimensional space. It is often quantified numerically using SI derived units (such as the cubic metre and litre) or by various imperial or US customary units (such as the gallon, quart, cubic inch). The de ...

) (2009) - "Livin' In The 80's" * ''Survive + Music'' CDr (not on label) (2011) - "New Generation" * ''Early Indiana Punk And New Wave (The Crazy Al's Year(s) 1976-1983'' (

Time Change Daylight saving time (DST), also referred to as daylight savings time or simply daylight time (United States, Canada, and Australia), and summer time (United Kingdom, European Union, and others), is the practice of advancing clocks (typicall ...

) - "Commies", "I'm Absent" * ''Ox Compilation #114'' (Oz Fanzine) (2014) - "Someone To Blame" * ''Memorable But Not Honorable Mix Tape Vol. 10'' cass. (Memorable But Not Honorable) (2021) - "Livin' In The 80's"

Videos

* ''Live At Cosmo's 1984'' DVD (Rifleman) (2006) * ''Live At The Pizza Castle-1981'' DVD (Gnome Park Productions) (2009)

References

External links

*
KBD Records blog entry on History of cassette

Live performance of entire Vicious Circle album from 2005 can be heard at MusicalFamilyTree.net
{{Authority control Hardcore punk groups from Indiana Punk rock groups from Indiana Musical groups from Indianapolis Musical quartets 1979 establishments in Indiana 1985 disestablishments in Indiana Musical groups established in 1979 Musical groups disestablished in 1985 Musical groups reestablished in 1988 Musical groups disestablished in 1993 Musical groups reestablished in 2006 Secretly Canadian artists