JJ72 - Interviewed

19 September 2002

JJ72 - Interview:
Contactmusic.com spoke JJ72

So how's the day going?

I just have interviews to be honest with you, they have me locked away!


How did JJ72 get together?

Well the boys went to school together and we have all been friends since we were 15, basically we formed more on the basis of all being friends and having more things and ideas in common as opposed to it being built on technical. The boys have played in bands before and previously I didn't play Bass, I used to play the piano for ages I never really ventured from that. I was really in to music but I never really aspired to be in a band but then the boys approached me and I said yes definitely! Now I love playing Bass. It was all based on our own instincts.

JJ72 - Interview: @ www.contactmusic.com

Are you all the same age?

Yeah we are all 22

Tell us the truth now is it a nightmare being in a band with two guys?

No not at all, I do get this question asked to me quite a lot but seriously they are fine, we are all very different and we all do are own different things but its all great, we are all on our own wave lengths and we have played together for so long now that I have adjusted to being surrounded by men all day. I've never been very girly and I'm cool with working with guys all the time.

I To Sky is the new album, How would you say the sound differs from this album and your last?

I think it doesn't sound like anything else around at the moment, its quite dark and sounds more excessive, definitely a bigger & braver sound, on the first record we went into it knowing exactly what sounds we were going to come out with and it came out the way we thought it would, but with this record we all went in with very open minds and we were all looking forward to getting back together and playing all the new material because we had been playing the old stuff for over 3 years and we just enjoyed the studio a lot more this time. Everything was very natural really, all the tracks were basically put down live and I think it has really captured the way we play together as a band, I also think there is a lot more depth to it lyrically musically there is a lot more to it. I think it's a lot better!

Have you grown as a band?

Most definitely, I mean we have grown as people our tastes have changed, more than anything thought its just been so natural we have played for so long together that we have had to grow within our selves. We are very proud of the first album and it was great for the time that we were at but the second album is a big step forward from the first album. It has also captured a lot more energy that we have live, with the first album everyone always said after gigs that they weren't expecting what they got in a sense; the first album didn't really represent what we are like live, I To Sky is more fitting. The New album takes some listening too so you can get into it if you know what I mean.

Where did the name I To Sky come from?

Hahaha well we just all liked it really and it sounds good, Mark was set on calling it I To Sky and I thought it sounded like a rock title. But there are a lot of references to it in the album, I think lyrically it touches on a lot of Ideals and I think he wanted to keep that as an interest through out

What are your favorite tracks on the album?

Mine are Serpent Sky & Sinking, Sinking I think is just so intimate when I listen back to it I can totally feel my self in the room, as a listener I think you can almost feel your self in the room with us playing and I just love the song I think it is very powerful But its not bombastic in anyway its quite mellow.


As a band how do you go about writing your material?

Mark usually comes in with the melody and lyrics and basically the three of us then evolve it into a JJ72 song.


What bands are you listening to at the moment?

Well I usually revert back to old stuff, But I like System Of A Down, I love their new album, they are just class and a bit of drama, Mercury Rev was the last album that I sat down and listened to though. But this morning I was listening to Stevie Wonder.


Who was the last band that you thought were amazing?

I suppose it was U2, simply because we played then I watched them after, it was pretty legendary and that it the one that sticks in my memory the most. Mercury Rev were the last band I watched and they were really good, I like them because they are so epic


What can people expect from JJ72 live shows?

Umm well I keep on reverting back to the last time we played live and that was with the old material, we have only played 2 shows with the new stuff and it has just felt so good, I think it will take us along time to realize how good or not we are playing the new material, because at the moment its very much between us and how we feel about it, very personal. It's definitely heavy but with plenty of melody. basically we will be on the road from November until Christmas and hopefully we will be touring a lot more after Christmas as well, we are all looking forward to it.


Contactmusic.com has an area on the website dedicated to unsigned musicians, what advice would you give to them?

Well I still don't really feel in the place to give anyone advise, but we just went on our own instincts. I guess just stick with your own instincts would be my advice, Obviously at some point everyone has to make compromises to get to the place where you want to be, but listen to your self and what you are saying and stick to that.

OCT

Fri 18 GLASGOW Barrowlands
Sat 19 MANCHESTER Academy
Mon 21 BRISTOL Academy
Tue 22 PORTSMOUTH Pyramids
Thu 24 LONDON Forum
Fri 25 LONDON Forum
Sun 27 LANCASTER Sugarhouse
Mon 28 BELFAST Ulster Hall
Tue 29 GALWAY Leisure Land
Thu 31 CORK Savoy

NOV

Fri 01 DUBLIN Olympia
Sat 02 DUBLIN Olympia
Mon 04 LIVERPOOL University
Tue 05 NEWCASTLE University
Wed 06 NORWICH UEA
Fri 08 LEICESTER De Montford University
Sat 09 SHEFFIELD University
Mon 11 CARDIFF University
Tue 12 LEEDS Metropolitan University
Wed 13 WOLVERHAMPTON Wulfrun Hall

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