Zero Nine is a hard rock sextet formed in Kuusamo, Finland in 1978. The band first achieved mainstream exposure in 1980, when their debut single Down The Line won the poll in an episode of finnish TV show "Levyraati". Their debut album Visions, Scenes And Dreams was released in 1982. It earned them to a support slot in Gillan's finnish shows, after which Ian Gillan expressed interest in producing them, leading the band to record the follow-up album Blank Verse under Gillan's helm in London, England.