Many have said that bands are like marriages. As both, a participant and an observer of the Brevard Music Scene, I’ve seen bands come and I’ve seen bands go. Some bands have exploded onto the scene only to burn out in the first year or two. There are other bands that have had a steady rise, good material and an evenhanded approach. They never over saturated the scene by playing too many shows (and not killing each other in the process). Even then, there’s no guarantee that those bands will survive. Well, this month’s story is about survival and reinvention. The four members of Zeddemore - vocalist Brad Burton, guitarist John Robert Bridges III, drummer Alex Petrosky and bassist Brian Roberts - have paid their dues in other bands and have now come to find each other.
“We didn’t even have a name yet and we were already being called a super group,” guitarist Bridges tells me one afternoon last month. “I had no expectations of what this project would or could be. I just wanted to get something exciting going with some of the best musicians in this area.” These “musicians” each had a certain local pedigree to bring to the table. Burton, a founding member of both, The Heart Ring and Bay City Lights, was contemplating launching a solo career. Bassist Roberts had played with Burton in the before mentioned Bay City Lights project. Drummer Petrosky’s resume lists a who’s who of Brevard including The Friction and Local 518 featuring David Pastorius. “We overlap musically in the simple fact that we were all 90’s kids,” says Roberts (who was also in Dub321 with Petrosky and briefly in the critically acclaimed The MCs). “We love Foo Fighters, Incubus and just about anything good or obscure that came out of that era along with a healthy sprinkling of the classics like Led Zepplin and others.”
Zeddemore wears their combined influences, both musical and pop culture, on their collective sleeves; their name is a nod to Ghostbusters member Winston Zeddemore (played by Ernie Hudson). The band released a self-titled 5 song EP last month. Fans and peers alike had been eagerly awaiting recorded versions of the band’s songs. As the owner of a local music venue that features a lot of original music, Mike Della Cioppa, explained: “The Heart Ring, The Knick Knacks (John Bridges’ last band), The MC‘s, The Friction. These bands were fantastic and super original but unfortunately are no longer around. When I heard that they formed a group, I knew that it was going to be something special. They write stellar songs and have one of the tightest rhythm sections in central Florida. Definitely check them out.”
The band’s start can be traced back to 2016 when Burton commented on a Facebook post from Bridges. “At the time I felt like I was in a musical rut,” he recalls. “I wanted to write but I wanted to write with a group. When I saw John still wanted to be in a music project after the Knick Knacks went on an indefinite hiatus, we started chatting. He recommended Alex, and I suggested Brian.” Bridges had always been involved in remarkable local bands; from Grindstone to scene darlings Jacie & The Knick Knacks (now known as Tank Top). This new project paid dividends from the start. “At the very first jam we wrote four songs,” Bridges remembers. “Two of them are on this recording and the other two will be on our next one. I wanted to keep the band low key and surprise people, but word somehow got out after the first rehearsal.”
Rehearsals and writing quickly turned to shows and performing. Last year the band entered local radio stations 95 ROCK (now known as The Rocket) Next2Rock Battle Of The Bands competition. “Zeddemore is a great local band on the Space Coast,” says Mark Moses, radio station program director and host of the Mark Moses Show. “95.9 The Rocket crowned them as our 2017 Local Next2Rock Champions because of their great passion, energy and fun sound. The guys are hungry and ready to go to the next level. Bradley also did a great job as one of our local judges for our 2018 Next2Rock Live Showcase. He loves the local music scene in Central Florida and has a good eye for finding talent.”
All the while Zeddemore’s buzz increased, the band entered the recording studio to work on their first release with Stuart Richardson. He co-owns Rocky Water Studios in Eau Gallie and is himself a multi platinum recording artist with English band LostProphets. “Working with Zeddemore was a no-brainer,” he said. “They are a super creative, insanely talented bunch of musicians. The recording process was a ton of fun. All I had to do is not fuck it up.”
The recording rocks. Combining their influences without sounding dated, Zeddemore are definitely on to something. I dare you not to have “I Do” on repeat throughout your work day. When that subsides, “Don’t Fear My Love” will gladly take its place. That song, as Petrosky describes as “a funky and poppy groove” (think Maroon 5), quickly describes the multi layers of the band’s songwriting abilities. It’s no wonder that those two songs start out the EP. The remaining three tracks don’t disappoint either.
While interviewing each member separately, one constant theme kept coming up: family. Bridges recently married his Some Pretty Flowers band mate April and the rest of Zeddemore are proud parents. “Our kids are all close friends and we spend so much time together,” Petrosky confides. “Zeddemore is as much of a family as it is a band.” Commitments outside of the band have not deterred them either. Roberts recently moved to Sarasota and “the last few months have been a little busy for my family to say the least. Drummer-in-demand Petrosky was tapped to fill in for Pat Travers Band member Tommy Craig after he broke his arm. “David (Pastorius) was instrumental in providing the opportunity to play with Pat,” he explained. “David and I have been playing together for 15 plus years, so the chemistry is right. Plus Pat is a monster guitarist. The music is challenging and the venues are amazing, and I’m helping Tommy out. It’s a win-win situation.”
Seeing the band perform live is a must. They held a CD release show early last month at The Monkey Bar to rave reviews. “It was a lot of fun,” Burton tells me the day after the show. “I’m so thankful for all the people coming out and supporting us and to everyone who said kind words about the EP. It is really a great feeling to be surrounded by your friends, family doing what you love. We have fans! People were coming up to us saying how they’ve seen our shows and mentions online and looked us up and love the music. A lady messaged us while we were setting up and said she heard us on NPR (WFIT) and was hooked. The opening bands- PagingMrHerman and Bubble Boys - were awesome, they played great. The sound was amazing. When you have a good sound guy running the show everyone definitely benefits from it, on stage and the listeners, Chris did an amazing job. Gary Dread (from the band The Movement) came up and sang a verse on our song “Believe” which was a lot of fun. He DJ’d after the show and kept the good vibes flowing. Overall it was a great experience.”
Just like blended families pick up and start anew, Zeddemore has come together. Part rock stars, part adulting (sometimes rare in a local music scene). The future is theirs to take.