Zero 7 is a downtempo styled musical duo comprising of Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker from the United Kingdom. The band's songs feature vocals from Mozez, Sia Furler, Tina Dico and Sophie Barker.
After studying Sound engineering, Binns and Hardaker began their careers in the music industry in the 1990s at a Mickie Most's RAK recording studio in London, engineering music for British musicians including Pet Shop Boys, Young Disciples and Robert Plant.
They contacted their friend and former college-mate, Nigel Godrich who was the producer for the band Radiohead, asking if he could give them some of the band's music to hone their skills with. The result was the remix of "Climbing Up the Walls" that appeared as a B-side of Radiohead’s single Karma Police.
The remix was played on Gilles Peterson’s show on Radio 1, which led to further remixing duties, beginning with Terry Callier’s "Love Theme From Spartacus", followed by mixes for other artists including Lenny Kravitz, Sneaker Pimps and Lambchop.
In 1999, they went on to release an EP of original material called "EP1", under the name "Zero 7" (named after a Honduras nightclub).
In 2001, they released their debut album, Simple Things to wide acclaim. The album featured collaborations with vocalists Mozez, Sia Furler, and Sophie Barker. The album was nominated for several awards including the Technics Mercury Award and the Mercury's "Album of the Year" prize. They won the "Best newcomer" award from the Muzik Awards. The album sold sufficient copies to become a Gold record. When they toured the album, including appearances at a number of music festivals, the live band consisted of Binns and Hardaker, their three vocalists and a host of other musicians (many of whom appeared on the album), sometimes numbering up to 20 performers on stage at once.