Zon - Astral Projector!

Toronto’s Zon has had their share of bad luck over the years. These misfortunes were just plain shit luck that was absolutely no fault of their own.

First off, after headlining Maple Leaf Gardens in front of 18,000 people, they received a horrible review in the Globe and Mail… by accident… See the critic only saw the opening band mistaking them for Zon, but mistake or not, the damage was done.

Next, at another hometown gig at the CNE Stadium, Zon had the horrible task of telling a full stadium that concert headliner Alice Cooper was unable to play due to sickness. Of course, everybody used Zon as a scape goat in this incident and long story short, Zon again gets the worst of it and the angry crowd rioted.

It’s a shame that these errors seemed to play a part in their demise, but their albums speak for themselves. They were a hell of a Canadian progressive rock band that sure made an impact in the late 70’s. Comprised of Denton Young on lead vocals, Kim Hunt on drums, Jim Samson on bass, Howard Helm on keyboards and Brian Miller on guitar, Zon were well known for their live performances throughout North America.

The first of three albums, Astral Projector was released in 1978. This initial album was pressed on some slick blue transparent vinyl. The band quickly made an impact, receiving heavy airplay on FM radio. The album also landed them a Juno nomination for Best New Act and rightfully so, there’s not a weak song on this LP.

While Zon had a three album deal with their label CBS, they were dropped after their second LP due to some overhauling in their Artists & Repertoire department. This followed with a legal battle which sucked much energy out of the band. While they did get one last album released under the record label Falcon Records, they broke up soon after.

While the band had the songwriting, talent, and showmanship to become a huge band, fate seemed to have other ideas for Zon. At least they had their 15 minutes of fame in the late 70’s and a few solid albums proving that their initial success was no mistake, but rather well earned.