Interview With Vermont’s From Jupiter
January 23rd, 2009 by Stephanie Stevens
FROM JUPITER is the new thing in the pop/punk genre of 2009. Based out of Vermont the band has come together pretty smoothly and have finished a debut album NO, SERIOUSLY which has a great diversity and a little bit of pizzazz for every age group.
I had a chance to get to know this band a bit more thanks to front man JJ. He took the time to answer some questions I had for him via email so sit back and learn more about FROM JUPITER.
YOU’RE BASED OUT OF VERMONT (AS YOUR MYSPACE SAYS). LISTENING TO YOUR MUSIC I WOULD NEVER GUESS THAT IS WHERE THIS BAND WAS FORMED. WAS THE MUSIC YOU MADE A WAY TO KIND OF ESCAPE THE VERMONT ATMOSPHERE?
I don’t think the music we play was ever a way to escape the Vermont atmosphere, it was more of a way to embrace it. Pop/punk/rock bands are commonly associated with So-Cal, but after living there for 18 months I learned that young adults universally deal with the same obstacles growing up, and pop is a really positive outlet for that.
YOU AND CHRIS HAVE BEEN A PART OF THIS BAND FOR A BIT NOW. HOW DID THE OTHER MEMBERS ACTUALLY MEET EACH OTHER AND WHAT DISTINCT STRENGTHS DID EACH MEMBER BRING?
Chris and I met when he was a freshman in college and I was the 15 year old sneaking out to party there. We were introduced by my band mates Bill and Tim Wright, who at the time were in a band with me called, Class Clown. Tom had been in a previous band with Chris and was introduced to me during the recording of, No, Seriously. Chris is really the mastermind behind all the music on the record. Not only did he record almost all the instruments but he added a lot to the production of the record. Timmy was the drummer in Class Clown, but now plays rhythm guitar. He is a very talented songwriter and has a great knack for production as well. Billy is Timmy’s older brother who handles the bass duties, he is infamous for going nuts onstage. And finally Tom is our lead guitarist. He never ceases to leave industry people with their jaws hanging open. He is by far the most talented guitarist I’ve ever had the pleasure playing with.
YOUR DEBUT DISC WAS PRODUCED BY MUDROCK WHO DOES A LOT OF MAINSTREAM ROCK STUFF. YOUR MUSIC DEF. DOESN’T FALL UNDER THAT. WHY DID YOU CHOOSE HIM? AND WHAT IF ANY DID MUDROCK TEACH YOU THAT TOOK YOUR MUSIC TO THE NEXT LEVEL?
At the time we had been looking into working with Matt Squire and David Bendeth. We had contacted their manager and tried to set something up, but Matt Squire was just getting into the studio with Cute is what we Aim for and David Bendeth wanted a huge chunk of change. We later got a call from their manager who also represented Mudrock. He said, “Hey Mudrock really digs your sound, you have a cool voice, he really wants a chance at this project, would you be willing to meet with him?” So we agreed unknowing that the guy who did Godsmack and Avenged Sevenfold would help us make a pop record. Mud is a very talented engineer. We learned a lot about getting the right tones for the right songs and expanding our sound, not being afraid to try different things. We were still discovering our sound and originally thought there would be more synth work, but between Chris and my rock background and Mud’s metal background we ended up with a diverse pop rock album.
WHEN YOU START WRITING A SONG SINCE IT’S A TWO MAIN WRITING MACHINE HOW DO YOU GUYS GO INTO BRINGING IDEAS TO THE TABLE?
It will usually start with Chris or myself having some type of musical hook. From there we determine the feel of the song, what emotion are we trying to convey. Than chord progressions are added and lyrics are written to the music. Sometimes Chris will come to me with a simple idea and he will develop the song in a matter of minutes, he’s pretty amazing.
THE ALBUM BRINGS A LOT OF DIFFERENT SPARKS OF INTEREST TO THE EAR AS YOU PRECEDE THROUGH EACH SONG. DO YOU BELIEVE IN A BIG PART OF TAKING CHANCES IN MAKING MUSIC AND DO YOU HOPE YOUR BAND IS KNOWN FOR THAT IN THE FUTURE YEARS?
No, Seriously was basically a big science experiment. Chris and myself had a little under two months to write the album, so we didn’t hold back on any ideas that came to us. It was our first time writing together and thankfully we have great creative chemistry. Our album is all over the place in terms of sound. Tracks “Oxygen” and “No, Seriously” are driving power pop songs whereas “Karamward” and “Blueprint” are a little edgier. The record is very inconsistent intentionally to see what songs get the best responses, this way for the next record we can really fine tune the direction the next album goes.
ROCKET BOY, SLOW MOTION AND BLUEPRINT TO A LIE HAD TO BE MY TOP 3 SONGS OF THE ALBUM. WHAT DO YOU HOPE FANS, CRITIC AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC WILL GET OUT OF THESE SONGS?
Over everything, we want to be respected in a genre that isn’t taken too seriously. It’s very easy to write off a band in our genre and say “oh, this is just another Blink”, but the truth is, I think we made a very diverse record that can appeal to a mass group of people. Pre-teens will find something they like, as well as their parents and their college aged siblings.
MOST MEMORABLE RECORDING MOMENT?
The most entertaining part of this record was watching Chris and Mudrock fight. They are both two very talented people, creative and stubborn. Chris would have one idea and Mud would counter that. Usually there would be some screaming and one of them would come around and be like, “You know what dude you’re right, that part works a lot better that way.” But specifically the single most memorable moment was when Mud blew up on Chris. Mud used to have a recording studio across from Fenway Park in Boston. After games drunk fans used to piss on his door. Clip ahead to this past summer while we were recording and Chris, clueless to Mud’s pee trauma, pees in the studio backyard. Mud freaks out and they get into a heated fight and Mud leaves to calm down. It was like Real World meets Jackass. Chris later apologized for disrespecting Mud’s stuff. The best part was everyone would make up and I really respect both of them for that.
BEST LIVE SHOW YOU HAVE EVER HAD?
|We’ve had a few really awesome ones. The most memorable ones would be at the Santa Paula, CA Air Field. We played a festival and we set up right of f of the run way so that while we were playing planes were landing. The other would be a showcase we played at the Key Club. Typically showcases are filled with dudes in suits who stand there waiting for you to impress them, but the vibe that we played at this one was more like a show atmosphere. The suits were still there but at least they had a drink in their hand and had their heads bobbing.
ARE U GOING TO ASK SENSES FAIL TO BE IN YOUR NEW VIDEO? SINCE YOU WERE IN THEIRS?
Haha, we’ll see. That whole thing was very random. Chris was on MySpace late one evening and they posted a bulletin that they needed extras for their new video. He emailed our pics to the director and they called back and said you guys are in. It was surreal hanging out with a band I grew up listening too than to suddenly be in their music video.
ONE BAND YOU WOULD LOVE TO TRADE PLACES WITH FOR A DAY AND WHAT WOULD YOU LOOK FORWARD TO DOING IF IT HAPPENS?
I would trade places with Eminem, era ‘99. I think that being in Em’s shoes during his rise to the top of pop culture would be my first pick. Think about it, his job was to play sold out shows and say messed up stuff in interviews. If that’s not enough he was taken under his wing by Dr. Dre. I’m jealous!
THIRD EYE RECORDS IS AN INDIE LABEL BUT LOOKS LIKE THEY ARE PUSHING THE BAND TO THE LIMIT. WHAT IS IN THE WORKS FROM THEM THAT YOU ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO IN 2009?
Currently there are two other artists on the label. A So-Cal pop punk band, Army of Freshmen and a folky solo artist, Aishah. We love that they keep the roster small so that we all get a lot of attention. What label do you know that you can call the president in the middle of the night and talk to about any little issue? Not many, that’s for sure. It will however be exciting to see who they snatch up next as our new label mates.
ONE THING YOU WANNA STRESS TO BANDS IN LITTLE TOWNS WHO WANNA MAKE THE MOVE TO THE MECCAS OF THE MUSIC WORLD? (THE DO’S AND DON’T'S BY FROM JUPITER??
I would encourage anyone who is serious about their music careers to make the move to a bigger city like Los Angeles, New York or Nashville. It’s a waste of time playing shows as most venues now days where they make you buy tickets in advance, which makes it very difficult to be a transplant and develop a fan base. The good news is that almost everyone out there is in your boat and networking provides lots of opened doors. You scratch their backs, they might just scratch yours. Never forget that even the biggest bands all started out with terrible gigs at dive bars. Enjoy those times because it makes, the 50 kids that end up at your current shows look like a thousand.
www.myspace.com/musicfromjupiter
they went to our school today and rocked!
you guy did great at the atrisco dance you relly rocked the dance