This band has been going strong since 1989, what still influences you to
put out music?
Jason - Honestly, people still keep showing up to the shows.
I think we're very fortunate to have so many people believe in us. That’s a
rare thing in today’s climate. It’s very wonderful to be able to make music
with another human being, but when its supported and anticipated - well that’s
a rare rare privilege that should never be taken for granted.
Jake - To me, it's the people that come out to the shows and
all the fans with tattoos that keep us inspired. Of course, we love to play
this stuff but without them who knows if we'd still be doing it. I'm very glad
and thankful we have them. It's something the five of us need in our lives!
What did you learn about each other in the process of crafting this
record?
JC - Nothing. We know everything there is to know about each
other. I know who’s going to walk through the door by the way they grab the
handle on the other end. I know who is going to say what before it leaves their
mouth. All that being said, this is what makes Strung Out such a reliable
machine. Bypassing all the politeness and formalities enabling each member to
get to work on what they do best.
JK - That we are all still very much into this band and have
a lot left to give! I feel we're more focused now than we've been in years. I'm
blown away by the guys' performances on this one. If nobody else even likes it,
I'd still be satisfied with it.
The record still sounds like Strung Out, but there seems to be different
feel and musical style to this album. What did you do differently on
‘Transmission Alpha Delta’ that you had not done before?
JC - Me personally - I started another band to purge any
unfrequented, un addressed musical
desires. This helped me to accept what Strung Out was and was not. What the
band was capable of and my place in the whole process.
JK - I think it was good that we gave ourselves a bit more
time in between albums, which gave us some time to reflect and appreciate what
we need to be doing. I feel we harnessed the intensity and energy of our early
albums while paying more attention to detail and overall just pushing ourselves
to the limit.
What does the title of the record signify?
JK - That the human brain is an antenna that’s constantly
picking up these signals. Even though, intuition or unexplainable coincidence
might actually be the result of our minds receiving these subconscious signals.
Jason can explain it better.
JC - The title of the record signifies a call sign over a
congested frequency. A faint signal in a sea of white noise. This is all we get
to decipher some sort of purpose or meaning in this short absurd existence
You were in this band when you were teenagers, now you are dads and
husbands. Does growing up and being an adult alter what the objective in being
in this band means to you?
JC - Being a father, I no longer put myself first
(obviously). My needs are secondary to a higher calling. This I have applied to
music. I see it as a privilege and a calling. Once you learn to nurture
something bigger than yourself, then you can truly grow as an artist and a
person, then you can really connect with the people and world around you. We
all do this for different reasons and aside from just having fun and creating a
release. Music should bring people together despite their petty differences.
JK - No, not to me… This shit keeps you young. It's still a
very cathartic thing to write and perform live, and I look forward to
everything that comes with it. It's a great way to be creative and also
therapeutic to get anything out through music. But shit, I still feel 20 most
the time. Ha Ha!
Doing
this for as long as you have, what do you think of the state of punk at the
moment?
JC - I don't know what any of that means. Punk to me was
exactly how Ian MacKaye described it - a porthole to a subculture. I have left
the porthole behind and I am solely interested in the subculture. The door of
the house is irrelevant once you have made your way to the fridge, bubba.
JK - It's back underground where it belongs. That is good,
and it keeps it exciting and relevant. Personally, there was nothing worse to
me than seeing and hearing the melodic West Coast-style punk sound get so
watered and dumbed down, sold and commercialized by those whores in the early
2000s. There were bands that major labels could buy when all of our bands
turned them down. They sold what was a special thing to the masses and have now
gone onto their reality shows. But they’re gone now and that’s what matters.
After all these years, what is your fondest memory in being apart of
Strung Out?
JC - My fondest memory is whenever Rob Ramos tells me I done
good.
JK - Oh man, there are too many!! It probably happened on a
night I forget!
So many new bands are forming with the punk ethos that you and so many
bands brought to the forefront in the genre’s early days. What advice do you
give to someone starting a band today?
JC - You better have nothing to lose and become a straight
huslta' or keep your day job. Don't expect anything from this other than the
simple joy of making music with your friends. Just because you’re talented
doesn't mean shit. Maintain healthy long-lasting relationships with the people
around you and those you work with. I got lucky and I work hard, but mostly I
got lucky.
JK - To always do it for yourself first and that you have to
be 100% into what you are doing. It's not easy to make this happen. You have to
put it all on the line and sacrifice many of the things we are brought up
thinking are so important. You have to give up everything else and even then
you may only get so far. You might get to a place you are content with, only to
have critics regard your success as modest. You might put out albums you bled
and fought and almost killed each other over in making, just to have people go
"Ehh..'' or "They were good, but should have gave it up…” Fuck that
and fuck them! If you can create something you are proud of and can stand by
wherever it ends up, that is all you need.
The band formed in the late 80’s but didn’t release your first record
until the mid-90’s. What happened that it took so long to get that initial
debut out?
JC - We actually started around 1990. I was pretty much a
street kid bouncing around from couch to couch and I don't really think any one
of us ever really considered this would take us where it did. As a result, we
needed to become a real band in order to commit to the game and that took some
time.
JK - To set it straight, we actually formed in Mid 1991. Not
sure where that late '80s rumor came from. Ha Ha! I joined the band in July
1992 and we recorded our first album in Dec '93. It came out in May '94, so our
progress was actually quite swift in the beginning. We're just really lucky
that we met Fat Mike when we did.
Your live shows are known for their chaos and intense
performances from both you and the fans, what happens as soon as you step off
stage and the show is done? How do you unwind from those gigs?
JC - Chess and hard illegal drugs, strange cinema, and fruit
smoothies.
JK - HaHa. Some nights you just barely have the energy to
walk off stage! It depends a lot on the heat of the show, but I'd say you get
conditioned to it a bit as the tour goes on. After a show, we like to come down
and meet fans, shake hands, do some photos and then just chill. I like to go on
the bus and put on some KJAZZ and smoke a big ol bowl of green, haha!
After the release of the album and tour, what is next
for Strung Out?
JC - Your guess
is as good as mine, Bubba Ho Tep.
**Photo Credit: Rick Kosick**
