Z.S.L.O.

Z.S.L.O. (Zero & Sound Liberation Organization) is one of the first Taiwanese noise bands, founded in 1992 by the Fu Jen University students Lin Chiwei (Eric Lin), Steve Chan and Liu Shin-Yi. After Steve Chan had left the next year, Liu Bo-Li joined Z.S.L.O. The Organization members are often considered to be pioneers of DIY-music in Taiwan: they actively used found objects and materials and musique concrete techniques to produce music. The early style of Z.S.L.O. may be described as the unique kind of aboriginal/Taoist music with elements of acid folk and industrial. After Liu Bo-Li had joined the Organization, their music became more experimental, with a computer used for effects processing.

Z.S.L.O played many concerts in Taipei around 1993-1998 and gained popularity for their violent, sometimes perverse noise actions and performances. According to the band's philosophy, no musical instruments were ever played during live shows – they were only "used". The Organization participated in one of the first large Taiwanese post-industrial arts events – Broken Life Festival in 1995. Eventually Z.S.L.O. started performing more experimental electronic music and creating interactive performances and installations. They organized an Electronische Muzik Praxis show in 1997, where Z.S.L.O. used a video projector and Brion Gysin's infamous Dream Machine to create a light environment with eight tracks of electronic sounds. At EMP98 next year, they presented two installations: "Generator Interfere 2" (function generators were used to blend video with FM radio sounds in real time), and "Horizontal Bar Balance" (a balancing performer triggering sounds through distance sensors in real time under Max/MSP environment).

Z.S.L.O. invented a philosophical concept of Noise, defined in four different types. Original Noise (A) covers nature sounds, such as wind, thunderstorm, snow, rocks, animals, plants. Cold Noise (B) attributes all things industrial, agricultural, household production, consumption, use and disposal of sound. Warm Noise (C) is for language, music, laughter, crying, etc. The fourth category (D) include any combination of ABC, imitations, parody or self-innovative, entirely original sounds.