The band was formed in 1996 by guitarists Justin Mauriello (formerly of Once There), Greg Bergdorf (who was formerly of 409), bassist Ben Osmundson (formerly of 3-Ply), and drummer Ed Udhus (formerly of 409). All four
... The band was formed in 1996 by guitarists Justin Mauriello (formerly of Once There), Greg Bergdorf (who was formerly of 409), bassist Ben Osmundson (formerly of 3-Ply), and drummer Ed Udhus (formerly of 409). All four musicians, whose bands at the time shared the same practice space, found themselves experimenting with different sounds together and soon became friends. After deciding that they wanted to explore their musical options further, Greg, Justin, Ben and Ed quit their previous bands and Zebrahead was formed.
The group who were inspired by acts including Fugazi and The Descendents, found themselves uninspired by the local trend towards ska-punk and instead began incorporating elements of hip-hop into their sound, eventually recruiting rapper Ali Tabatabaee to join their ranks.
