Terminal Doom

Zoroaster ready to finish what it starts

Zoroaster bassist Will Fiore and drummer Dan Scanlan started Terminal Doom Records in the fall of 2007, not as a vanity project, but a business move.

“Me and Dan bankroll the band,” Fiore explains as he rattles off a laundry list of things they’ve paid for, including everything from recordings and equipment to a tour van. “Why spend all that money and energy on everything, and then just hand a finished record off to someone else? Why not see it all the way through?”

A vinyl reissue of Zoroaster’s self-titled EP, as well as the group’s full-length Dog Magic, are split releases with Sycamore, Ill.-based Battle Kommand, which gives Terminal Doom distribution through the iconic blackened-metal label Southern Lord.

It’s an ideal setup for Zoroaster. “The label has an automatic fan base,” Fiore says. “When I was a kid it was Earache or Sub Pop. I bought anything on those labels because I knew it would be halfway decent.”

Following tradition, Terminal Doom recently released a three-way split CD featuring Zoroaster, Athens’ sludge-metal act Music Hates You, and Nashville’s Christine. The label will also reissue Music Hates You’s Send More Paramedics CD, as well as a full-length from Athens’ Subrig Destroyer later this year.

Overseeing other band’s affairs, in addition to Zoroaster, is daunting, but it’s a labor of love that Fiore doesn’t mind tackling. “I could spend my money and energy figuring this stuff out or I could be getting drunk at a bar.” he adds. “I’m looking forward to putting my time and money into this.”

Zoroaster plays Smith’s Olde Bar at 8 p.m., Sat., April 5. $10. 404-875-1522. www.smithsoldebar.com.