Thursday, September 17, 2009
Jagged Spiral Concert - Terminal Bar Thur 24 Sept 09
The Terminal of course did a great job, although they could not have forseen that with S.B.I. involved and the fact that our show was sponsored by Jagermeister, their supplies of that particular resource would be quickly depleted.
Thanks to Yusef, our good friend and guitarist for the massive band Nothing Gained. Thanks much for flying over from England just for this event, and kicking axe on some great guitar. Thanks also to S.B.I. for lending us their lead singer for a song. Borrowing members from other bands is kind of like letting someone borrow your wife or girlfriend (or both,) except everyone's watching which makes it even more awkward. But the show was, as they say, a smashing success.
Which is why we've been invited back to do it again!
Thursday 24 Sept 2009, Jagged Spiral takes the stage once more at The Terminal Bar in Minneapolis, MN. No additional band members this time (unless someone can play the bassline to Horrorcloud...) just pure, undiluted 3-piece Jagged Spiral.
Noise starts up at 9PM and Jagged Spiral plays first. Check the terminal bar's website for other bands. I think there's a cover, but even if there isn't you really should slip your favorite band a fiver, or a Jag Bomb, or an I-Phone, or something.
See you there,
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Jagged Spiral Concert - Terminal Bar on 12 Sept 2009
Saturday. No shit.
With our good friends from SBI.
Noise starts at 9.
Show sponsored by:
Hazelden Drug Rehabilitation Center

Jagermeister

See you there,
Colin, Josh, Zero - Jagged Spiral
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Monday, August 17, 2009
Jagged Spiral Concert at Target Center - CANCELLED
'Tellin ya, it woulda brought tears to your ears.
On behalf of Jagged Spiral, Inc. I regret to inform you that due to circumstances beyond our control, the concert originally scheduled for Wed August 19th at Target Center has been canceled. All tickets purchased for the show will be refunded.
Our legal department is working nonstop to declassify our music as a threat to National Security. Until such time, Josh, Colin and I will continue writing/practicing/drinking/recording until our music can be more properly classified as a threat to the security of the entire planet.
Then, we'll be able to play anywhere and anytime we want. Or else.
Yours,
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Jagged Spiral Concert - Station 4 on 4 June 2009
It's a full day at Station 4 on the 4th of June 2009! It all kicks off at 5PM with an all ages show featuring 'Drop Dead, Georgeous', 'He Is Legend', and 'And Then There Were None' After 10PM the show kicks into high gear with S.B.I., Riverbottom Suckerfish, Deathroned, and of course Jagged Spiral!
So come on out! Get strung out on Red Bull and Pop Rocks. And if you do a headfirst stage dive into the crowd you will get an all-expenses paid trip to the hospital. (Some restrictions may apply, medical insurance coverage required.)
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, April 9, 2009
Jagged Spiral Live at Big V's - Tue, 14 Apr 2009
We hope to see you there!
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, March 5, 2009
Battle of the Bands, or How to Scare the Children
I just found out the winner of the battle ended up being The Company Don't trust the songs on their myspace, they put a lot of Energy and Fun into their set.
I got to speak to them at the battle of the bands (as they were tearing down and we were setting up) .
"Thanks alot," I said wryly, "you guys coulda sucked!"
But Xtna put it into perspective for me. I said, "How can we compete with that? Those guys were great!"
She looked at me sternly and said, "Your job is not to beat them, your job right now is to go up there and Scare the Children."
So we did. I'd say we decimated all other bands that night on several levels. The Richter Scale would be one of them. A spiritual scale would be another one. I guarantee you some of the fans of The Company are still huddled under the stairs, shivering with fear. And Jagged Spiral drank more than the other bands and their fans combined. (...mostly because they weren't old enough to drink.)
But we couldn't beat them in ticket sales. Ah well, like Sun Tzu says; choose your battles.
Thanks to Mark, Tony and Justin from SBI for showing up and supporting the Spiral, and thanks to Kim, Nancy, James, Teresa, Dan, Boog, Fast Eddie, The Fox, Jess, Jenn, Xtna and anyone else who made it or bought a ticket for the show (Saveau reported that he was present at the show in spirit, and from the symptoms he described, no one would have wanted him physically present...)
Stay tuned for more Jagged Spiral nonsense coming your way this Spring...
Cheers,
-Zero
Labels: As the Jagged Spirals, Jagged Live
Monday, February 23, 2009
Jagged Spiral Concert - Sunday March 1 at the Dinkytowner
Sunday March 1 at the Dinkytowner Cafe, the show starts at 4PM, and continues till around 9-ish. The exact start time is to be determined by pre-show ticket sales. The band that sells the most tickets gets to pick their time slot first, and thereafter in descending order of tickets sold. We're hoping to get an early-to middling time slot, (in the 5-7PM range) but we won't know for sure until the doors open. The more of you who purchase tickets in advance the better our chances of getting a good time slot!
Ticket sales are counted at 3PM, so please make sure to purchase your tickets in advance, from Josh, Colin or myself, or e-mail booking@jaggedspiral.com
Tickets are $8. We hope to see you there!
Dinkytowner Cafe
412 1/2 14th Ave SE
Minneapolis, MN 55414
(612) 362-0437
Google Map
-Z
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Wednesday, December 3, 2008
Jagged Spiral is pulled from bill, but still rocks the house!
Not so much canceled as...well, let's be honest: we got fucking canceled. My understanding is that because of the (former) booking agent at the Terminal Bar, the show was double-booked (technically octuple-booked), and many bands had to be dropped. SBI and Pygar performed as scheduled, but Jagged Spiral and Gedwik were pulled off the bill to make room for a cover band.
No, I'm serious. Stop laughing.
No hard feelings towards SBI or the Terminal Bar, but we do hope that their former booking agent has a 140lb Ampeg 8x10 Bass Cabinet fall on her.
Meanwhile, the number of sound mixers for the show was strangely underbooked. In fact, there were none. Random members of the crowd were pulled out and forced to work the sound board at gunpoint. Josh bravely volunteered himself and myself to mix sound for SBI. (Colin did not make the show, choosing to stay at home instead and get laid.)
So while Jagged Spiral did not actually *play* at the Terminal Bar, we certainly did make the walls shake when Josh managed to turn SBI's kick drum up to 111.
Props go to my good friend James, who made it to the show because he didn't get the notice that the show was canceled. His diligence and dedication to the Spiral has awarded James the dubious honor of being at more Jagged Spiral shows than Colin.
We're trying to get SBI and/or the Terminal Bar to feel sorry enough for us that they offer up a sympathy gig, and we'll keep you posted on how that works out.
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Jagged Spiral Live - Terminal Bar 29 Nov 08
All,Hopefully you've realized The Tryptophan Is A Lie and your Thanksgiving Coma was all in your head...
Hopefully you were a kind and courteous consumer on "Black Friday" and let the other people merge on the roads, parking lots and shopping lines in front of you without giving them the finger...
Hopefully you'll be able to put all the sleepiness, consumerism and poor driving skills behind you and come to the Terminal Bar in Minneapolis on Nov 29th, where Jagged Spiral will perform mostly live, along with our good and sober friends S.B.I.
$5 Cover, Music starts at 9, Jagged Spiral is not the first band, nor the last. We hope to see you there!
Colin/Josh/Zero
Jagged Spiral
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Monday, July 14, 2008
Review From Evil
The party was great fun, and those who missed it...missed it. For the first time ever we had a merch table with real merch on it! (Thanks Xtna!) The hard copy of Days From Evil was there in all its long-awaited, hard-earned, shrink-wrapped glory. (Thanks Tim!) Band buttons too! (Thanks Karrie!)
Fortunately, Jagged Spiral was there too, somehow managing to mix loud music with theatre; both comic and tragic. Colin's brand-new guitar made it's first public appearance. Josh got into a fight with his own drum set, and I poured a half a pitcher of beer over myself and jumped into the boy's moshpit with my bass. (Yes, there was a girl's moshpit too.) Like I said, if you missed it, you missed it.
Josh, Colin and myself would like to publicly thank all the people who made the CD Release party a big success:
Uber-Thanks go to Josh at Club Underground (no relation to Josh from Jagged Spiral) for having us out and running the soundboard.
Thanks to SBI for taking the "sober slot" and playing first to warm up the room. Thanks for firing up the moshpit, and for the pitcher of beer, some of which I actually got in my mouth....
Thanks to Sick Machine for coming down from St Cloud to rock out with us! I picked up their new CD "Ready To Burn" and you should too, check out the single "Black Out Sunday" on their Myspace Page...
Thanks to Something To Fear for taking the fourth shift and closing out the night with some wicked, double-female-fronted metal! You did a fantastic job, and we look forward to seeing/playing with you again!
Special thanks to Xtna for putting together the merch table and sign, and to Jess for helping her keep it running through the event!
Thanks to Jeremy for acting as the human "meat shield" between the boys and girls mosh pits! Who knows what might have happened if they had mixed...? Combined with Jagged Spiral's music, it's probably better that we didn't find out, at least until we can look over our liability insurance contract...
Finally, thanks to all the people who came to the show: Nancy, Sarah, Jess, Xtna, Jim, Reid, Denise, Karrie, Teresa, Boog, Tara, Dan, Tim, Jeremy, Lisa, and many more who came out to support the Spiral! You people get the Jagged Spiral Seal of Approval!
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Days From Evil, Jagged Live
Tuesday, July 1, 2008
Days From Evil - CD Release Party

The CDs have been placed on order, and three years of hard work are about to pay off. We are excited to announce that Jagged Spiral's debut masterwork, "Days From Evil" will be available in CD form on 11 July 2008!
"Days From Evil" is a concept album which tells the story of a hero confronting monsters only he can see. The music covers a wide range of genres, including Gothic Hard Rock, Acoustic Ballads, and Majestic Epic Metal. Much of the music on "Days From Evil" was also used by Jagged Spiral in the movie score for the local vampire movie "Pray For Daylight" from Stone Soup Films.
Ha, and my guidance councilor said I'd never accomplish anything! Now he owes me five bucks! Not surprisingly, that's the same price as admission to the upcoming Days From Evil CD Release Party! For the price of 1.25 gallons of gas, (which won't even get you halfway up to the lake for the 4th of July,) you can experience an entire evening of devastating music, as Jagged Spiral takes the stage at Club Underground on Friday, July 11th, to celebrate the release of our new CD.
Our live show will contain some stripped-down selections from "Days From Evil", (Sorry, no acoustic guitars and no string orchestras!) and plenty of new material, all of it dark metallic rock fueled by adrenaline and Jag-Bombs. Bring earplugs.
Details:
Friday, 11 July 2008 - Doors at 9PM, - Music at 9:30
Club Underground - 355 Monroe St, Mpls MN
21+ (Bring ID!) - Cover $5
The Days From Evil CD will be available for purchase at the show for $8. All proceeds from the sale of the CD will go towards the following:
- Josh's Red Bull addiction
- Fines from the City of Minneapolis for 'disturbing the peace'
- The massive debt we ran up during the three years it took us to get this project finished
Also, we have some very special guests joining us for the event: S.B.I., Sick Machine and Something To Fear (who just got done kicking tail at the Flight of the Valkyries festival!) so come out and celebrate with us!
-Jagged Spiral
PS: If you know anyone who likes loud guitars, please pass the message along! Share the Spiral!
PS/PS: You are receiving this message because you've been identified as a decent human being with impeccable taste in music. If that isn't the case, and you want to be taken off the Jagged Spiral mailing list, just say so! Simply reply to this message with "Your Music is an Abomination! I Demand by all that is Good and Right in the World that you Remove Me From This Accursed Jagged Spiral Mailing List!" in the subject line, or something like that...
Labels: Concert, Days From Evil, Jagged Live
Wednesday, June 18, 2008
'Days From Evil' Press Release has been...Released.
Promotional copies of the disk are finished, (sans the insert booklet). Just seeing the physical CD with printing on it has made me quite happy. Now, I'm just working on the insert artwork, which should be done this weekend, and the order can be placed next week.
As I mentioned previously, the "Days From Evil" CD Release party has been booked at Club Underground for 11 July 2008. Three other bands will be there to help us celebrate: S.B.I., Sick Machine, and Something To Fear. Jagged Spiral has gone through a significant upgrade in gear since our last live set, and we're focusing on pulling together a nice, tight, and loud show. Bring earplugs.
I've completed the press release, about the event, which you can check out here:
http://www.jaggedspiral.com/forms/dfe1.pdf and I've distributed it (with a copy of the CD) to all the usual suspects. With any luck, we can expect some honest and objective reviews of "Days From Evil". If we're really lucky, we might even get an interview offer, or other press coverage.
Even if we don't move a single copy of the CD, even if the critics slaughter it, even if no one comes to the release party, we will finally have payback for three years of hard work.
-Z
Labels: Concert, Days From Evil, Jagged Live, Press Release
Thursday, June 5, 2008
Jagged Spiral Rides Again - Club Underground 11 July 2008
Minneapolis 'Northern Rock' band Jagged Spiral celebrate the release of their debut album, "Days From Evil" (Miku Darkly Productions).
The "Days From Evil" CD Release Party will be held at Club Underground on Friday, July 11th, 2008. Joining them will be local bands S.B.I., Sick Machine, and Something to Fear.
Music starts at 9PM, the show is 21+, cover is $5.
More details as we get them...
-Z
Labels: Concert, Days From Evil, Jagged Live, Press Release
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
No, I Never Slept With Diablo Cody - Live!
Secondly, this will not be the final version of the song. The lyrics (which were derived from this blog post) will change, and the subject of Diablo Cody will most likely be changed as well. The song has become cursed, and all kinds of bad things have started happening in the studio when her name gets mentioned. Bad mojo, baby. So we will smudge the studio, and change the song.
Thirdly, we truly do love Diablo Cody, and we truly did not sleep with her, and we hope she enjoys the song. No offense intended.
L8R,
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Battle of the Bands Winner Is...
The win was handed to a band called Ill-Gotten
I can't say I'm surprised or disappointed. Although I don't care for Ill-Gotten's genre of music, they were as professional, tight, talented and energetic as any other band at the event...
...but they had more fans.
Nothing against the production company, but when all other factors are balanced out, the Battle of the Bands turns from a Talent Contest into a Popularity Contest, and that's something Jagged Spiral simply can't win. At least, not at this early stage of our musical career. Let's be honest, the people who came to see us play were friends and family, not fans.
Looking on the bright side, we got one more live show notch in our bullet-belt, and we got to play out to a crowded house of people on a weekend, and Colin was in bed by a reasonable hour. Jam Solid Productions has us on their list to contact for future promotions. We got some video that we can review and use to critique our live performance. (Unfortunately, nothing useful enough to post to the web due to technical difficulties...) We also met up with a local band called S.B.I. who enjoyed hearing us and want to set up another show with us in the near future.
I'll post pix of the event, as soon as I can find the USB cable for my camera...
-Zero
Labels: As the Jagged Spirals, Jagged Live
Monday, February 11, 2008
Jagged Show Review - Battle of the Bands 10 Feb 08
Once again, my fret markers completely disappeared in the dim stage lighting, and several songs suffered because of it. This will need to be addressed before the next live show.
The stage at the Dinkytowner was pretty small, but aparently not small enough, so someone thoughtfully hung a giant stage monitor about 4 feet off the ground, so inattentive bass players would hit their heads on it. It doubled as protective cover from gunfire and audience line-of-sight. The stage also had notches in the front for what looked like monitors, but were actually cleverly disguised traps, so that if inattentive lead singers tried to look cool and put their foot up on the monitor, they would certainly tumble to an un-cool pile on the dance floor. Since we only had three people, there was plenty of room for us to move around, oh, about five or six inches in any direction. The other bands with more people (all of them except The Blood Shot, in fact) had band members performing on the dance floor, because there wasn't room on the stage for all of them.
I announced that this was our third live public performance, more as bragging rights than anything else. Initially, I thought the contest wasn't very fair because there were other bands that had been playing out for some time now, and already had a fan base. But after watching some other bands that had been together for a while and still weren't very polished, I decided we at least have a shot at winning.
Few bands did "Thank You"s to the Dinkytowner and Jam Solid Produtions, and I was told after the show that doing so made us sound very professional. To be honest, I scripted the thank-yous into the set list so I wouldn't forget them.
What really made the show was the audience response. One thing we certainly aren't used to is having the entire house explode in applause at the end of every song. (Especially "God Hates Emo" which historically has gotten more quizzical looks than applause.)
Thanks to everyone who bought their tix in advance (Extra-Special thanks to those who bought tickets to support us even though they couldn't make the show!) Thanks to James for taking some killer pix, (which will be posted here soon...) and to Tyler for videotaping the event. Thanks to all of you who came out in the bitter cold to support us and local music!
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Tuesday, February 5, 2008
Jagged Spiral Live - Sunday 10 Feb 2008
In an astonishing and completely unexpected career move, local "Northern Rock" band, Jagged Spiral (www.jaggedspiral.com) will be competing in Jam Productions 'Battle of the Bands' Competition at the Dinkytowner Cafe. This Sunday Feb 10th, between 4 and 10PM. Eight bands are on the ballot, and a panel of experts will vote on the winner. Factors affecting the voting include:
- professionalism
- pre-concert ticket sales
- vocal and instrumental performance
- audience response
- the ability to appear to answer questions without really answering them
The winning band will move on to the finals, to compete for a grand prize promotional package including studio recording time, CD duplication, T-Shirts, Posters, etc...
The Minneapolis music scene is in shock, many of them outraged at this underdog joining the race so late in the game. While the other candidates scramble to defend their platforms, Jagged Spiral...doesn't seem to have one. Guitarist Colin Mallon and Percussionist Josh Kattelman could not be reached for comment. Bass Player and Vocalist, Conrad Zero, only responded using sign language indicating disapproval.
The only significant communication from the band has come from Jagged Spiral's manager, a mysterious female voice on the phone going by the name 'Sugar'. We were able to get this statement from her:
"The People have had enough. Enough of Emo. Enough of DJs. Enough Gangsa Rap. Enough Bad Music. Jagged Spiral aren't here to upset the apple cart of the Minneapolis music scene, they're here to burn it, and use the ashes as warpaint when they go onstage."
Jagged Spiral has already caused waves in 2007 when they released the first chapter of their manifesto: a concept album called "Days From Evil". All the songs from the album are free to download from their website, with a link for accepting donations, basically allowing fans to set the price for themselves. Other bands, notably Radiohead and Atmosphere have since followed suit, much to the chagrin of the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
A member of one competing band (who wished to remain anonymous) said, "Jagged Spiral? They can't possibly win, so why are they even on the ballot? They're no threat to us."
Concerned citizens who wish to influence the course of Minneapolis Music History should plan to attend the event and make their opinions heard. Tickets are $8 and can be purchased by contacting conradzero@gmail.com or calling 612-216-8602.
[END OF MESSAGE]
-Z
Labels: As the Jagged Spirals, Concert, Jagged Live
Friday, February 1, 2008
Jagged Show Review - Club Underground 31 Jan 08
The show started around 9:30. "The Blood Shot" opened up, and the crowd was still a little scarce. My experience is that the first act of the show is like that. Play and they will come. People filtered in as the night progressed, dropping a $5-er to get a look.
32nd Day was in the middle slot, starting around 10:30, and pulled off a great show. They've been playing out a lot more than Jagged Spiral, and it showed. A large group of fans came down to hear them play...
...and a handful left around 11:30, as soon as Jagged Spiral started up. Not surprising, since we are quite different than 32nd day. I like to think we're quite different from everyone, and I don't take offense to anyone leaving. I give bands a '3-song rule' myslef, because I think it takes that long for a band to warm up. By the middle of the third song, you know if you like them or not.
My one-word review of Jagged Spiral's performance is "Ruff". Not Rough, but Ruff like a dog barking.
For those who want to have the audio experience of the event: the bootleg of the show is here, courtesy of Reid Rejsa.
The visual experience is here:
The emotional experience would be like getting your hand caught in a blender, then realizing it wasn't as bad as you imagined it would be. I could feel every screwup echoing out across Minneapolis, and making even people in Golden Valley shudder.
Listening to the audio, it sounds Nowhere Near as bad as it sounded on stage.
We got off to a bad start when I hit the wrong note starting into Black Sabbath's "Children of the Grave". Ick. My only excuse was that I really couldn't see my fret markers onstage. Once the song got going, it pulled together nicely.
During "Horrorcloud" Colin and I both got lost and stopped at the exact same point in the song. Had either one of us known which way to go, we could have recovered fine, but we both completely stopped. Then we both tried to recover at the same time, each of us playing something different. Not good. I decided to wait and let Colin get the car back on the road, and I caught up with him eventually, although I was completely lost for a while afterward, and stopped singing because I wasn't sure what part to sing.
Although there's been a few explanations/excuses for that micro-disaster, the root cause was that the song was changed too many times in the past month, and wasn't practiced enough to be played out of habit. I don't know if it's this way for other people, but if my hands 'know' the song, then my mind is free to focus on other things; the upcoming change, moving around on stage, the lesbians making out on the dance floor, did I leave the hair-straightener on at home... But for Horrorcloud, I still have to focus 100% on the playing, my hands simply don't know it yet. The song is WICKED hard to play; strange, stuttering timing shifts that defy the laws of Physics, yet Colin makes them look quite simple, and if *he* got it mixed up, I didn't stand a chance.
What kept the boat from sinking was Josh. He kept playing throughout, like an oarman on a viking longship, he kept rowing right through the chaos, and pulled us through to the other side. My philosophy is that screwing up the song isn't quite as bad as stopping altogether, so kudos to J-Man for pulling us out of the maelstrom.
The rest of the set was better. Even through I couldn't really hear my vocals during the Sisters of Mercy cover, "Temple of Love" it sounded OK on the recording.
Thanks to Reid for coming out and shooting some pix, and getting the bootleg of the show. The guys in The Blood Shot got some video of the event, and if they send some my way, I'll be sure to post it.
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, January 31, 2008
Jagged Spiral Live Tonight!
Come see Jagged Spiral perform LIVE tonight at Club Underground! Doors open at 9PM and music starts at 9:30. Opening acts are The Blood Shot and 32nd Day. We also have an important announcement to make regarding the upcoming presidental election that you certainly won't want to miss!
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Jagged Spiral Concert - 31 Jan 2008 at Club Underground

There's plenty of other press about this event swirling about the interwebs:
Vita.mn
darktwincities.com
conradzero.com
garageband.com
myspace.com
Hope to see you there! Pix and blog posts are sure to follow, so even if you can't make it to the show, check back for the scoop!
-Zero
Labels: Concert, Jagged Live
Monday, January 21, 2008
Jagged Spiral - The Day the Music Stopped
You might have heard this story before. Well, here is the proof:
-Zero
Labels: As the Jagged Spirals, Jagged Live, Video
Monday, October 29, 2007
Jagged Spiral Debut Performance
It was fun.
It was loud.
It was fast.
No, it was Really Loud and Fast.
I think the performance was as good as one of our best practices, which is to say that it was pretty damn good. There were mistakes, but we never stopped. A couple fumbles, but we quickly recovered. No technical glitches. We forgot to turn on the strobe light, but I think our music gave people siezures without any help.
The best feedback was from Saveau who said Jagged Spiral sounded like a child of Pantera and The Dead Kennedys. And my mom e-mailed me today to tell me that she still cannot hear anything. Xtina said that of all the songs to stick in her head, "God Hates Emo" topped them all.
My stomach still hurts, but my voice is coming back. Never did find my tonsils.
Pix to come....
-Z
Labels: Jagged Live




