Z-Matrix sees the future in singles

For each successive rockin’ out generation, the search for a band name grows tougher, as scourers claim all the common nouns. Hometown fellows Z Matrix were no exception. “It’s very difficult to come up with a band name that hasn’t already been thought of,” says guitarist Kevin Monroe. “You’ll think of something cool and original, only to do a Google search and find there’s some cover band in Nebraska that’s already thought of it. At any rate, my girlfriend at the band’s inception was a chemist. Z matrix is a scientific term. If you think of the x plane as horizontal and the y plane as vertical, the z is the third dimension coming out at you. Or something like that.”

The band recently finished their latest tune, “Blood, Bright Red.” But don’t expect an album anytime soon. “Personally, I think albums are pretty much an artifact of a bygone era. We’ve been focused on putting out the best individual singles we can. We’ve released six singles to date: ‘The Angle,’ ‘Learn to Drive,’ ‘Far (And Farther Still),’ ‘Tokyo Rock,’ ‘Cups and Balls,’ and ‘Big Life.’ They can be found on our website, as well as on your favorite music service.”

They’ll spend most of the summer getting new drummer Frank Rivera up to speed. Once that’s accomplished, they look forward to live shows. “Deano’s is one of our favorite venues,” says Monroe (who was once fourth runner-up in a featherweight arm wrestling world championship). “We also like playing Navajo Live and the 1st Street Bar up in Encinitas. I see the Salty Frog has reopened; that’d be fun. We also had the chance to play the OC Fair last summer. We’d like to do that again, as well as the San Diego County Fair.”