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Ferine Rod Interview
(Jet Boy)
Word on the street is Jet Boy - the "hottest" band to come out of the West Coast in some lime. The group is currently in pre-production before entering the studio to record their debut album for Elektra/Asylum Records.
Lead guitarist Ferine Rod talked with us about "Jet Boy."
Q. When is this album of yours going to be recorded?
A. We're in basically what we call pre-production. We're not working on the album yet. We're in the process of looking for the right producer right now. There's about 5 or 6 of them interested in working with the band. We're working on some more new material, and practicing every day. We're very happy with what we've got right now, but at the same time, we also want to see if we can come up with that one big smash that's really going to take us over.
Q. Elektra/Asylum has signed "Jet Boy" to an eight album deal. Do you guys have eight albums worth of material in you?
A. Well, I guess they feel very confident. It's an optional deal. You're guaranteed one to two albums without a doubt. Every album after that is optional, if everything is successful. After eight records the contract is completely over, and you can either re sign or go with somebody else. You're contracted to the company for eight records, and it's up to them if they want to continue to work with the band. But that's really good, 'cause it's kind of like a security blanket for the band.
Q. How did you land your record deal? Did you go the route of the L.A. club circuit?
A. We came out here from San Francisco and started playing the L.A. club circuit. We didn't have a manager when we first came out here. We put up a lot of flyers to promote our shows. Word of mouth is really, really heavy down here, and it's really helpful. That's how it started. One of the A and R guys from Elektra/Asylum happened to come to one of our shows when we first started. He basically kept a watchful eye on the band, and watched us progress. So did other companies, but he was very interested in the band from the beginning. So we kept in contact with him the most. When he felt we were ready to be signed, he was the first one to make the offer. And there were a few other offers, but they were the
ones to offer us the best deal.
Q. Some bands are leveling criticism against bands like "Jet Boy" because of the glam image. Why do nick musicians today have to wear makeup and all the accessories that go along with that image?
A. Right now the glam scene is really heavy, and every band and their mother is really into the makeup, 'he lipstick, the eye liner and the scarves. We stopped that about a year ago. We realized we didn't want to do that. I was really tired of seeing myself and the other guys were too, in makeup. As tar as we go, we wear a little bit of eye liner. We're very cowboy oriented right now.
Q. Cowboy?
A. We wear cowboy boots, fringe, jeans, and vests. Sometimes we go onstage with a little growth on our faces. We still have the long hair. We're much more into our music now. We're a very young band. We've only been around 2½ years. For us, before anything else, comes the music.
Q. Is it possible for a "metal" group to progress with their music?
A. See, that's the thing with heavy metal; it's very hard to grow and be innovative. That type of music is limited. The changes are subtle. The changes can be in vocals. The stuff is so high energy, to play that kind of heavy metal, you have to have a certain type of sound. It's very hard to sound different.
Q. How'd you get so smart, so young?
A. That's an interesting question. I think by watching other bands make mistakes, and by keeping in touch. We don't consider ourselves as having big rock 'n roll egos. We're not a bunch of party people. Sure, we like to have fun on the weekends. We like to go to shows and clubs. When it comes time to play your music, play shows, and take care of business, we really try and bear down and do that. I used to work for an up-and-coming band a few years ago, before I was in Jet Boy. I learned a lot of the what-to-do and what-not-to-do with the band. I was like the head 'roadie.' By watching them I learned a lot. I used to manage the band, before we had managers. Plus, I came into a lot of contacts with club owners, so initially it got us started.
Official Website: jetboyrocks.com
© Gary James All Rights Reserved
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