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The vile vibes
of THE NEW JACOBIN CLUB have been oozing out from under the doors
of Western Canadian rock clubs since the fall of 1996, when drummer-turned
demonic singer/songwriter XerXes Praetorius Horde first brought together
the 3-piece tribute to classic "death rock" that has since expanded
to include lead axeman/vocalist Vlad the Inhaler, bass thumper Swarm,
keyboard mistress Lady Arkham and a vile creature called the Eclipse
on drums. In the vein of early 80's subversives such as THE MISFITS,
45 GRAVE, SAMHAIN and THE DAMNED, the NJC's startling look and sound
commanded attention in their musically reserved hometown of Saskatoon.
Within two years, the NJC began to fill club-size all-ages venues.
Since the bands violent birth nearly 8 years ago, the New Jacobin
Club has continued to press onwards regardless of the many obstacles
facing such a bizarre musical venture and are looking to claim their
status as Western Canada's ruling lords of over-the-top shock rock/horror.
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When &
how did the New Jacobin Club become a full fledge rock & roll band,
and please let us know the line-up?
The NJC first met in the fall of 1995 as a trio. Our common interests
were old UK punk, horror rock, Nick Cave and some surf. For 2 years
we played very few local shows and recorded demo tapes. We did not
meet with a very warm welcome the first few times on stage. It was
great. In 1998 the band had morphed from the original 3 to the group
that would record our first official release, the Lesson in Mortality
ep. This really marked the beginning of the NJC as a serious outfit
that grabbed attention. It was at this time that we had really established
our sound and stage persona. The current NJC is a quintet, a necessary
expansion to accommodate the material recorded for our 2001 full-length
album. The NJC is: XerXes Praetorius Horde (rhythm guitar/lead vocals),
Vlad the Inhaler (lead guitar/lead vocals), the Swarm (bass/backing
vocals), Eclipse (drums), and Lady Arkham (synth/organ/piano).
In your own words how would you describe The New Jacobin Club sound
& give us the low-down of some of your band's influences?
The New Jacobin Club plays our own version of the classic death rock
of the early 80's...the genre that was caught somewhere between metal,
goth and punk. As our self-titled album can testify to, we play garage
rock, metal, surf, and even some bluesy rockabilly all alongside each
other. I really hate bands that brag about how diverse their songwriting
is, so I'll have to qualify this statement with the point that all
our stylistic references still occur within our own sound. This makes
the surf riff sound perfectly at home next to the gothic organ intro
or the anthematic metal chorus. Collectively there is no common influence
to our music. Despite our visual and conceptual reputation, none of
us are really into death/black metal. I listen to a lot of late 80's
prog thrash and power metal (Voivod, Rage, Kreator ...) as well as
the early LA death rock (45 Grave, T.S.O.L....) while my guitar counterpart
Vlad listens to mostly garage rock (Hellacopters, TurboNegro,.) and
classic metal (Judas Priest,...). The Swarm is really into what he
calls "crusty old man". This is a reference to the likes of Leonard
Cohen, Nick Cave, Johnny Cash & Tom Waits. Eclipse & Arkham dig some
of the newer metal acts like Deadsy, Deftones, and Tool as well as
some electronica and (gasp!) hip-hop. But at the end of the day, we
can all still listen to G'NR 's Appetite for Destruction and be pals.
Conceptually speaking, the band's lyrical and topical influences stem
from loads of Vincent Price horror flicks and a personal fascination
with medieval class war and ancient Empires - the Ottoman Empire,
the mass slaughter of nobility (ie - French revolution, Russian revolution),
the crushing of Europe's pagan religions by the invading Holy Roman
Empire,... and how we can cleverly write the history of the NJC into
these major world events.
We have your 2001 full-length & it kicks major ass! However I understand
NJC released a 7" ep in 99 & wanted to know more on that & how it
led up to the full-length.
When the NJC re-vamped itself in 1998 after 2 years of frustration,
I had already set up a deal with Transparent Records (Michigan) based
on some old demo tapes. Transparent catered to the hardcore/splatter
rock crowd - bands that bled on stage and wore masks. I guess that
meant we fit in? The label owner/administrator was a huge Misfits
fan and really thought we could appeal to that type of audience. The
4 song ep was actually recorded summer 1998 but delayed until spring
1999. It was released on black vinyl w/black & white cover and on
limited edition blood red vinyl w/full color cover. Vinyl can be a
hard sell to some music fans, and I really wanted to get our music
on a more consumer friendly format. Although we appeared on 2 more
Transparent releases, they were not interested in a full length (I
recall at the time they were only releasing vinyl anyway). After more
frustrations with labels saying things like "wow, cool,...we want
to do something with you but just wait a few months..." we just went
ahead and funded our own full-length. Having learned from past experience
with other indie bands, we used our own label as a promotion front
and went through all the motions - zines, college radio, distributors,
etc. Let me tell you - the U.S. and Europe has much more receptive
and hospitable to our efforts than our own stuck up artsy nation.
Who are some of the major acts NJC have supported & which one do you
feel made the strongest impact on the band?
We have shared with the stage with the Groovie Ghoulies, Nashville
Pussy and various Canadian punk acts like D.O.A., Ripcordz, etc. We
really get more attention when lumped in with the "punk" crowd because
of our resemblance to bands like the Misfits and the Damned. Problem
is, we're a great deal heavier than some of those acts. We have some
bigger connections for this summer, so we'll just have to see what
happens. Interesting thing about Nashville Pussy - the guitarist (Ruyter)
is from our home town. In fact, I played at the show years ago (with
a different group) where she first hooked up with the singer from
Nine Pound Hammer here in Saskatoon - to later form Nashville Pussy.
I can't really say any major acts we've played with have made an impression
on us, we seldom get to play on fitting bills except when we headline
with our favourite local acts. Joe Keithley from D.O.A. is a really
great guy, though. I was definitely a very big fan when I was younger.
Where & what studio did the production take place of your current
release?
Our "current" release - the self-titled album - was recorded at our
ex-drummer Elvis Hellfire's studio. Recording began in December 2000
and was drawn out over several locations as the studio was moved twice!
We finally finished around March 2001. He engineered and mastered
as well. He is currently one of the more sought after engineers for
live sound in our home town and got very busy shortly after the release
of the cd. He left the band summer of 2001 but remained our close
friend and has also engineered our new album at his new re-vamped
studio - "Sixpack Studios". He's the guy every heavy act in town looking
for demos goes to. Our lead guitarist/vocalist Vlad recently finished
work on an album with him as well - watch for Savage Henry & the Infamous
One Pounders! Manticore Music Group will be promoting his album alongside
ours this summer.
Has NJC been on any compilation cd's?
Yes, several. In early 2000 we began to record an ep that was junked.
It featured songs later re-recorded for the self-titled album. Some
of these have appeared on very short run indie label compilations.
We also appeared on the first Transparent Records cd collection with
a track from our vinyl-only release. We also appeared on the Transparent
Accused tribute double record set. We recorded "Judgement Day" from
the album More Fun than an Open Casket Funeral. It was the closest
thing to our sound and I think it worked out well. We don't play it
live, though. Previous to that we were asked to record for the Dwarves
tribute album, but due to disorganization and lack of time we had
to decline.
What is the current scene like in your area and how does your band
fit in?
The scene in our home base of Saskatoon, Canada is finally showing
signs of supporting heavier rock & metal. It's been years since heavy
rock/metal has come out on top in our town. There have always been
the hardcore-punk and grind fanatics, but that little corner of the
scene never amounts to much. 5 years ago we had a really hard time
from everyone, bands and audiences alike. But we outlasted most of
our peers from our first couple years and now have a really strong
younger fanbase. Some of the better known bands from our area (Into
Eternity, Breach of Trust,..) have really helped dig us out of the
rotting cesspool of boring college rock and half-assed poppy fm radio
punk. There are now lots of bands that we can play alongside and support.
What's the bands long & short term goals as far as touring, recording,
writing, etc?
We just finished a winter of writing, rehearsing and recording. Prior
to that we spent time testing some new material live and promoting
our cd on the road. It's damn hard to tour from where we live. It's
600 km in every direction to the next big city. Travelling in western
Canada is tiring and boring. Our usual plan is to string 2-3 shows
back to back that can stay within that 12 hour drive there-and-back.
We will be doing more major road trips in 2004 after our forthcoming
"Retake the Throne" album has had the chance to seep into the cracks
of other urban communities. We want to spend the rest of 2003 promoting
and supporting our new release through the media and local/provincial
live appearances. As far as writing goes, we just finished our biggest
songwriting session ever, and have no immediate plans to work on new
material.
What would you say is your biggest gripe about the music industry?
The Canadian music industry - especially at our level - is incredibly
messed up. Labels are far too regionally biased for one. There ARE
NO indie labels catering to hard rock/metal/punk based out of our
home province (unless you count our own venture which realy only supports
us). Our experience with Canadian press and distributors has been
VERY frustrating. We have one really annoying distribution company
that wants to deal with us, but there terms are absolutely ridiculous
and offer no advertising or push. Canadian music industry is set up
like this: 1) there is NO money to be made because of lack of interest
in specific genres and lack of population , therefore 2) any help
you receive from and organized business partner (be it label/distributor
etc) means they MUST make more money from you than you can off your
own product. 3) the music press is full of a lot of college journalism
drop outs who write and report with a really sad "jaded" kind of writing
style. It's been tough for us to just get reviews in Canadian press
never mind articles. Lots of magazines are gutless in the face of
a musical entity that sticks out too much, but has no legitimate industry
support. This has been somewhat of a plague for us. The U.S. music
industry and Europe have shown far more support and interest in the
New Jacobin Club, and for that we salute you.
Has there been any label interest?
We have not yet seriously shopped our new album around yet. This is
something yet to be discussed and planned. We have had small labels
interested, but never really ably to work with as WHEN we need them.
Timing is everything. I refuse to let a great album sit on the shelf
and watch our release get put on the backburner indefinitely.
Anything you wish to ad?
Yes - just want to point out to any Canadian artists who may read
this - THIS sort of industry support is what we lack. Companies like
Sinbad Prods and zine/mail order like Ballbuster. It's brilliant but
conceptually straight forward and simple. The economics of it make
sense, and it's obviously working out well judging from the sheer
size and depth of the zines & catalogues. RoTT'n RoLL!
www.newjacobinclub.vze.com
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