Zeus to Keep 'Studio Door Revolving' in 2011

While the old saying 'quality over quantity' is usually a good thing to keep in mind, however clichéd, if you can muster both then why not commit yourself to an assembly-line pace? That's just what Toronto's Zeus is planning for in 2011 and beyond.

"When we come back from Australia we're definitely going to hunker down and record another full-length," multi-instrumentalist and singer Carlin Nicholson tells Spinner on the eve of their Aussie tour with Jason Collett, which wraps mid-January. "The idea of releasing a record every two years just doesn't really appeal to us. Instead, we want to do a record a year, plus a couple of seven-inches in between, to keep it happening."

Judging from the band's track record, this shouldn't be a problem. While much of 2010 was spent touring in support of their debut long-player, 'Say Us,' the outfit still managed to log some studio time, releasing 'Hot Under the Collar/Aeroplane' last month, the first in a series of seven-inch double A-side singles. Another seven-inch is expected to be released before Zeus' sophomore album drops in the fall.

Songs from the seven-inches won't be featured on the yet-to-be-titled full-length, but Nicholson notes the series "alleviates a lot of pressure of getting more material out."

"If we can just keep it coming and give people a reason to stay interested that would be great," he says. "There's a lot of music being released every day, and it's hard to stay on top of it."

The band owning their own studio (where friends like the Golden Dogs have also recorded) has to help with that. "It's cool because we can record at our own pace."

Nicholson and his bandmates Neil Quin, Mike O'Brien and Rob Drake don't have any concrete plans about how the new record will sound, but Nicholson predicts a stronger, more cohesive vibe. "I think there's going to be a similar pop sensibility," he says. "But I think, vocally, we're going to be a lot more [exploring]."

Watch Zeus' Video for 'Marching Through Your Head'
Zeus has been listening to, and plans to draw more influence from, the Beach Boys and Queen with Nicholson saying the new songs will put an emphasis on "exploring the harmonies."

"We're utilizing the fact that we have three lead singers in our band a lot more this time around. The first record was recorded with a lot of spontaneity, and we didn't even really know that we were recording at first. This time, we definitely know there's a band so I think it'll be more cohesive in the people who are going to be recording on it."

Guest appearances by the Golden Dogs and Zeus' Arts & Crafts labelmate Afie Jurvanen, aka Bahamas, are still in the works, according to Nicholson, but the majority of the recording will be done by the quartet as opposed to a mishmash of different musicians. And the guys are confident that everyone should work out just fine as long as they stick to their band motto: "Keep the studio door revolving, keep the gas in the van, and keep moving forward."