Zatopeks

Zatopeks are a London-based pop punk band formed in spring 2001. They are a five-piece group active since 2001.

Style and influences

The band’s sound draws on punk rock and pop punk, with influences from the Ramones and the Clash. Their wider reference points include 1950s and 1960s acts such as Buddy Holly, the Beach Boys and the Shangri-Las, as well as folk artists including Bob Dylan and Tom Waits.

Releases

Their first release appears in 2003 on New York label Whoa Oh Records as a split CD featuring four songs from each of four European bands. In 2004 they issue a split 7-inch with the 20belows from Denmark on Sebby’s All-Nite Records. This limited white-vinyl release includes artwork by Dutch graphic designer Stefan Tijs, who also runs Stardumb Records.

The band’s first full-length album arrives in March 2005 on Stardumb Records. It is recorded at Excess Studios in Rotterdam by Dennis Leidelmeyer and mastered by V. Koremans of the Travoltas. Their recordings also appear on compilations released by Stardumb Records in the Netherlands, Punktastic Recordings in the UK and AMP Magazine in the US, and they are included on a compilation organised by Interpunk.

Live activity and connections

Zatopeks tour widely across Europe, including the UK, Belgium, Holland, Germany, Denmark, Switzerland and Italy. They also play with a range of punk and related bands, including the Groovie Ghoulies, Tuuli, the Spazzys, the Turbo AC’s, The Apers, Roger Miret and The Disasters, The Real McKenzies, the Backwood Creatures, the Sonic Dolls, the Peawees and the Foamers.

Their 2005 album is supported by a European tour, followed by a Dutch tour in May 2006 and their first UK tour. Two 7-inch releases are planned on It’s Alive Records in the United States.