The North Country's Zen Masters

When you fuse equal parts funk, punk, rock, metal and jazz into one sound, you create a uniqe balance that isn't just Zen, it's Capital Zen

Story and photo by Nick Chowske

The Glens Falls based power-fusion quartet, Capital Zen, has been rockin’ the North Country since the summer 2004, when guitar player, Terry Scoville, and his buddy, Jon McDowell, got an invitation to jam at a friend’s house. “I used to play with a conga player out in the street in Lake George,” said Scoville, “one day we ran into a piano player that drummer, Rye Wylie, and bassist, Tommy Ryzuk, were playing with and they invited us over for a jam.” It so happened that Wylie and Ryzuk were looking for a guitar player and they all hit it off instantly. “I used to go watch Rye play when he was in the Liquid Fusion Project and I remember thinking ‘Damn, they’re good! All they need is a singer and they’re gonna make it,’” said Scoville, “Now I’m the singer, so maybe it’s not that easy,” he added with a laugh.

Capital Zen became known across the North Country for their ambient psychedelic jams. McDowell left the band in 2006 and the remaining trio, Scoville, Wylie and Ryzuk, stepped up Zen’s sound to a funkier and more danceable style. The band toured as a trio until early 2009 when they added keyboard player Scott Hannay. “Scott’s the rookie,” said Wylie, “but he brought a lot of ambience and ideas.” Hannay, who had played with Zen as a guest, as well as the likes of Umphrey’s McGee, completed the band’s chemistry. “Scott helped out dramatically,” said Scoville, “he thickened out the trio sound into a more finite quartet.”

"I remember thinking, 'Damn, they’re good! All they need is a singer and they’re gonna make it.' Now I’m the singer, so maybe it’s not that easy."

Each member brings his own style to the band which provides a balance to the music they all write. “We all add a lot of different genres into the mix,” said Scoville, whose favorite bands, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Mr. Bungle and Conehead Buddha, as well as classic rock legends like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath and Jimi Hendrix, clearly influence his style of writing and playing. Wylie, whose roots are in metal, compliments Scoville’s playing with fast, aggressive, highly technical, Tool-like drumming. Ryzuk’s super funky bass lines are reminiscent of Primus and add a groovy edge to the rock, and Hannay’s electronic keyboard ambience fills in the gaps. “We snap back and forth between styles and sometimes it gets kind of weird, but it’s all good,” said Ryzuk. They never argue creatively when writing or playing. “We all pan out the same,” said Wylie, “if someone throws something out on the table, we’re not like ‘oh, that sucks.’ We’re pretty honest with each other.”

Seeing Capital Zen live is an experience all its own. If they’re rockin’ at the local bar or at a music festival like the Backwoods Pond Fest in Peru, NY, they want to make you dance. “We like to play anyplace where the people are getting down,” said Ryzuk. Whether there’s one or 100 people in the bar, the energy is high, the groove is funky, and their not happy until everyone is shakin’ it. “We’ve got music running through our veins,” said Hannay, “and we try to keep it flowing at all times.” A passion for music is not the only thing the band has in common; they also can’t stand lugging around their equipment. “It sucks and we hate it,” they say. “Doing our own sound when we play bars sucks too. Other than that everything is great,” said Scoville.

"We’ve got music running through our veins, and we try to keep it flowing at all times.”

The band definitely prefers playing live, but they just cut their debut self-titled album in early September. Their first from the studio, the album shows the broad range of styles that the band excels in. “The studio is very tedious,” said Hannay, who prefers playing improv jams to the perfection demanded by the studio. “And we drink way more beer when we’re in the studio,” added Scoville. “It’s fun though,” said Ryzuk, “you’re really focusing on making it precise so the songs will be solid on the album.”

It isn’t all fun and games for the band, though; someone has to pay the bills. The band teaches lessons at a music store in Queensbury, and Wylie is a pool boy. “I teach drums there too,” said Wylie, “pool boy doesn’t pay a lot of money.” Wylie and Ryzuk are both married with children, adding to the complications of being professional musicians. “We’ve got cool wives and girlfriends,” said Wylie, “And they’re definitely down with the music,” adds Hannay. “So much respect goes out to our girlfriends and wives,” said Scoville, “it’s hard for them to be home alone or even out with us because we’re so busy when we play.”

Capital Zen plans to keep playing despite the challenges. “I think we all see that nothing is going to be easy,” said Scoville, “but we’re sticking with it because we really love the music.” Their plans for the future are to continue what they’re doing on a larger scale so they can “make it” in the music business. Capital Zen has received some radio play, hitting the airwaves with their funky jams on Manchester Vermont’s 102.7 EqExposure, with their songs “the Ocean,” and “Ten-Lines.” “We just want to sell CDs and tour and make money doing that,” said Wylie, “we love to have fun and entertain.”

Would you have what it takes to commit to a dream like Capital Zen?