The Jealous Sound |
With a new album, "Kill Them With Kindness," that debuted on June 3rd and a just-completed high-profile five-date tour opening for the Foo Fighters, The Jealous Sound is sitting on top of the world. But it hasn't always been that way for the Los Angeles-based band. Just two short years ago the band left its indie label to sign with a bigger one, only to have that label collapse and eventually get sold to a major that didn't necessarily care about having The Jealous Sound on its roster.
Now back with the indie Better Looking Records, The Jealous Sound -- vocalist/guitarist Blair Shehan, guitarist Pedro Benito, John McGinnis on bass and Adam Wade on drums -- is fully in control of its future, and about to embark on a West Coast headlining tour in support of the new album. Just prior to heading out on the Foo Fighters tour, bassist John McGinnis spoke to StarPolish editorial director James K. Willcox about the band's new record, touring with the Foos, and persevering through adversity.
NOTE: To purchase the new CD, check out upcoming tour dates or to get more information about the band, visit the Better Looking Records' website at: http://www.betterlookingrecords.com/.
SPECIAL CONTEST: In conjunction with Better Looking Records, StarPolish and The Jealous Sound will be giving away the several copies of the band's new CD and posters -- just send an email to editorial@starpolish.com to enter!
STARPOLISH: A good place to start with this band is looking at what's happened since 2000, when you signed with Better Looking Records. How did that relationship, and the release of your EP, happen?
MCGINNIS: Paul [Fischer], the owner of Better Looking Records, is a friend of ours and we had known him, I think, through Crank [Records]. And we had recorded this five-song demo, and Paul had gotten wind of it and offered to release it, and it seemed like the right thing to do so we did it. But we had recorded it as a demo, so it wasn't like we were, "Here we are, we're The Jealous Sound, this our debut release." It was more like, " Oh well, check this out, and we'll and see what happens."
STARPOLISH: All the members of The Jealous Sound were in bands -- Knapsack, Sunday's Best, etc. -- were previously in bands that had some notoriety.Was there an initial clash of egos? All those bands had some buzz in the community, so I was wondering if there were any issues with you guys coming together as The Jealous Sound? And are the roles within the group well defined?
MCGINNIS: I mean the roles are pretty well defined in the sense that we all work together for the greater good, and that's to write really good songs and make really good records, and I would say that's our mission. As far as a clash of egos, there really wasn't. It so was so low key in the beginning that it sort of turned itself into a band. It wasn't like, "Here we go, we're going to start this band and do it." I mean, I wasn't even involved until the last two songs -- I recorded the last two songs on the EP, actually the first and the last.
STARPOLISH: So it was a case of you guys knowing each other and just deciding to get together and play some music and it evolved?
MCGINNIS: Well, I think that Blair wanted to start something, and he wasn't sure exactly what that was. So he had written a couple of songs and wanted to demo them out, and maybe start a band. And then from there we became involved, and then it became The Jealous Sound, a full-on band.
STARPOLISH: Let's talk about your decision to leave Better Looking Records to sign the deal with Mojo Records -- was it a difficult decision to leave, particularly since Paul was a friend?
MCGINNIS: No... when you frame it like that it seems a bit malicious, but it wasn't like that. It was more like we had put out what was essentially a demo with Paul, always under the impression that it was a licensing type of thing. Then we moved on, always with the impression that if something happened from it, that we would move on, and that it would be good for us and Paul, because I think we were maybe his second release.
STARPOLISH: So it would help put him on the map...
MCGINNIS: Exactly. And it would help us all, and that's sort of how it is now, putting the record out with Paul again, with the impression that if something comes along that makes sense, it will work out in the end for all of us.
STARPOLISH: So was it in some ways easier because you had a friendship, so it wasn't like you'd never see him again?
MCGINNIS: Oh, yeah. Because the other thing is that we signed with a friend of ours at Mojo, so the whole thing is based on relationships with people, and whether or not you trust them. And one of the reasons that we're back with Better Looking is that we were in touch and in very close communication with Paul the whole time. I mean, he was basically still going on our tours with us and hanging out with us, and we're all friends.
STARPOLISH: Initially, what was the appeal of moving to Mojo? Did they have a roster you admired, or was it people there you felt comfortable with?
MCGINNIS: The people... we were comfortable with our friend who was our A&R guy at the time. We trusted him and unfortunately what happed to us was unbeknownst to him. He didn't know it was coming, and two weeks after we signed they lost distribution, and eventually he got fired.
STARPOLISH: The sad thing is that this isn't an uncommon story...
MCGINNIS: I know.
STARPOLISH: We talk to so many bands that have been through that situation, where they're signed to a label and then the person who loved and championed the band winds up leaving the label, and you're just another band on a label where no one is really behind your music or album ad push it forward, and they're stuck.
Anyway, moving forward chronologically, you sign to Mojo, the person behind you there gets laid off -- in fact, a lot of employees get laid off -- and Mojo loses its distribution deal. I think it would be interesting for our audience to hear how you as a band dealt with that situation and disappointment. Because you had to have gone from the euphoria of being signed to a bigger label and expectations that all these things were going to happen, and then all of a sudden you're in this weird place. How did that affect the people in the band? Did it ever shake your resolve as a band to keep going forward?
MCGINNIS: No, it made us stronger. We chalked it up to being a great learning experience. Unfortunately, like you said it's one of the most common stories in the music business -- or really, any business, for that matter. Shit happens and you just sort of have to deal with it. And it was a big learning experience for us, and I feel like now we're a lot smarter and a lot more ready. We speak that language a little better, and understand what's going on. And we have control now, which was the most important thing. We own our masters, every decision runs through us and you don't necessarily get that kind of control when you're with a major.
Photo by Heidi Brill |
STARPOLISH: To continue the story, Mojo's roster got picked up by Jive, so now you're on the label that's home to the Backstreet Boys. I was trying to figure out what happened -- did they drop you, did you leave? It didn't seem like a great mix in terms of artist and label.
MCGINNIS: It's a weird mix, but you have to remember that Jive was an umbrella company for, like, Volcano and a couple of other rock labels, so it wasn't like they hadn't ever put out rock albums -- or successful rock albums. For example, I think they have Tool, 311...But it seems really weird. And we were never happy on Jive because of our situation. Maybe if Jive had come to us in the beginning and said, "Hey, we really like your music and we really want to sign you and develop you," then [it would have been] different. Instead it was like, "Hey, we went to this auction and ended up with you in one of our lots, and what are we going to do with you?"
STARPOLISH: (laughing) We really wanted the ding room table, but we got the bookcases, too.
MCGINNIS: (laughing) Yeah, exactly. This could be good, I don't know. But you sort of get what you pay for -- if someone's really excited about you as an artist and they're willing to court you and to talk to you about it and to help develop you, then they're going to have a lot more time to spend with you and a lot more money to spend on you. And this was an inherited situation, but there's no animosity with Jive at all.
STARPOLISH: So the split was amicable?
MCGINNIS: Yeah, totally. It worked out fine.
STARPOLISH: Had you been recording material at this time? Did you have to buy back material?
MCGINNIS: No, they gave it to us. We weren't recording a record, but we were demoing songs.
STARPOLISH: So you wound up resigning with Better Looking Records...
MCGINNIS: Right.
STARPOLISH: Was it weird at all to come full circle?
MCGINNIS: It wasn't so much weird as it was, "Wow, what's happened in the last year and a half?" You can look at it like, "Here we are right back where we started -- this sucks," or you can look at it like, "Wow, I can't believe we got out of that situation still a band, and now we're so much stronger and so much smarter about the way we do things." So it's not really weird being back on Better Looking -- actually it's really nice.
STARPOLISH: Having gone through that experience, what do you now see as some of the real advantages of being on a smaller indie label? Owning your masters and having more control must be major benefits, but the flip side are usually issues related to marketing budgets and distribution.
MCGINNIS: Yeah, on a major you can get your record everywhere -- everywhere in the world -- with no problem. But what you give up is control of what's going on, knowledge of what's going on... and you give up more money. It's not a family atmosphere at a major label, at least in my experience. There are great things about indies and there are great things about majors, but the great thing about Better Looking is that we're friends with Paul, and we're very intimate about all of the decisions -- everything is made together. But with that comes this great responsibility of, "Yeah, this is my career, this is my band, every decision..." it's not like you can give it to the art department and they'll come up with a cool poster. It's like, "Come on over, we'll scan the images and make a poster."
STARPOLISH: So it's much more DIY... Is that something you enjoy?
MCGINNIS: It's definitely something we enjoy, we're creating every facet of the band, not just the music, but the graphic representation -- and that stuff is exciting, but it's tough. It's tough to do, and it turns into a real full-time job. But I think that's the only way to do it. I mean, there's nothing wrong with down the line signing with a major, but you have to establish yourself not only with your music but who you are and what it's about.
STARPOLISH: And it can be established internally, instead of it being created for you...
MCGINNIS: Yeah, We're just trying to grow into who we are right now, and it's good to do that with Better Looking.
STARPOLISH: You have a new album, "Kill Them With Kindness," dropping June 3rd -- that's pretty exciting! How do you feel about the album, as opposed to the EP?
MCGINNIS: I think one of the best things is that it's produced by Tim O'Heir, and Tim became a real good friend of ours and it was an incredible experience working with him, and having a fifth perspective, having someone to come in and say, "Hey, you could shorten this, you could do this here," and taking a new perspective on the sound -- I think it really helped us grow both as musicians and as a band. You know, to step back and say, "Wow, he really had some great points."
STARPOLISH: Were you a fan of the some of the bands he's worked with?
MCGINNIS: Yeah, that first Superdrag record that he did, and some other bands that he did that other guys in the band like a lot.
STARPOLISH: Was working with a producer who's fairly well known and who probably has more of an impact in terms of the suggestions he might make, was it tough to adjust to that?
MCGINNIS: I think that maybe going into it I was a little concerned about the fact that, "Wow this guy is popular and he's done a lot of things and he makes a lot of money and he's very successful," and you sort of wonder what it's going to be like. But at the end of the day when you're in a room with someone working on your music, it's really just all about your relationship with that person. And he's a very easy guy to get along with, he's very easygoing and has a lot of vision and a lot of direction. And that's just what it comes down to -- no matter how successful, or unsuccessful, someone is, if they have good ideas and can execute that's what it's all about.
STARPOLISH: So how satisfied are you with the results?
MCGINNIS: I couldn't be more satisfied. We're very excited. It was four of us in a room the whole time just banging it out, and now at the very end it's exactly what we wanted.
STARPOLISH: A lot of the drumming on that album was done by Tony Palermo. Did Adam Wade joining the band change how you approach the songs live? Is it close to what fans might expect if they've heard the album?
MCGINNIS: I think the essence of the songs have stayed the same, but obviously with new players some things change, and also, songs continue... songs are little beings on their own...
STARPOLISH: So they grow and evolve?
MCGINNIS: They evolve as we play them, and we recorded them a while ago, and now that we've really gotten into them and delved deep into them, especially with Adam on drums, he's made me a better bass player just working with him. When someone comes and sees the show, they'll definitely be the songs off the record -- they'll be a little different, with more of a live environment. And if you play the same thing every night it gets boring, so we like to mix it up.
Photo by Heidi Brill |
STARPOLISH: Some other great news is the upcoming tour with the Foo Fighters. Can you tell us a little about how that came about?
MCGINNIS: That came about -- we toured with the Fire Theft and we became close with Nate [Mendel], who plays bass in Fire Theft and the Foo Fighters, and it just sort of evolved from there. He asked if we'd be interested in touring with the Foo Fighters and we said of course. And then we got a call.
STARPOLISH: It sounds too easy (laughs).
MCGINNIS: (laughing) I mean, I think everything is based on relationships, like I said. You look at this -- or any industry -- and things seem intimidating and some people seem intimidating and some people don't, but it really comes down to when you're in a room with a person, it's just about that relationship you have with that person. If you get along with them and everything clicks, who knows? People like to work with people who are easy to work with.
STARPOLISH: You guys have played with some pretty established bands. When you go from smaller crowds who are totally there to see you guys, to playing on bigger tours where you're also playing in front of another band's fans, is that a tough adjustment? Is there a challenge to winning over another band's fans, or do you try to tour with bands that you think would share a common fan base?
MCGINNIS: We definitely want to share a common fan base, or at least have it make sense. For example, we went on tour with Death Cab for Cutie -- we were concerned that Death Cab's fans might not like us at all. And that was not to be the case. As it turned out, listeners today -- people that buy records -- are really sophisticated and can listen to a wide variety of stuff, which is great for us and great for the music business as a whole. So we try to make it make sense. And as far as it being a challenge, yeah, it's always a challene to open for a band that's a lot more popular than you and know that the fans are there to see that band. And if you do a bad job they're just waiting for you to get off stage, and if you do a good job, hopefully you'll win over some new fans and people will be excited about you and go home and buy your record, and talk to their friends about you, and hopefully come to your next show.
With the Foo Fighters, we're just really lucky that they're even interested in taking us out for these five dates, and we're just going to make the best of it. And we have no idea what to expect -- there are going to be 12,000 people -- it's 12,000-seat arena or theater, so I'm sure it's going to be another learning experience. It's going to be a trip.
STARPOLISH: Given everything you've been through, it seems like things have finally come around your way, with a new record, a great tour... So what are your expectation levels for the coming year?
MCGINNIS: We don't really have any, to tell the truth. We made the record we wanted to make, and now we're just going to tour and try and promote it. So there are no real expectations -- we're just going to try and do our best.
