Post by PsyCro on Mar 4, 2004 14:45:54 GMT -5
Blood feud
Danko Jones has a bone to pick with the music industry
By ROB WILLIAMS
Winnipeg Sun
Canada, meet Danko Jones.
Again.
The Toronto musician and his band haven't been around much lately, spending most of the past 12 months touring other parts of the world -- especially Europe, where they get radio and video play and sell out venues of 1,000 or more.
"Over here it's like night and day. We've been playing for eight years -- man, this is where we live -- and every year we're having to reintroduce ourselves," Jones says over the phone during a rare stopover at his Toronto home.
Jones and his bandmates -- bassist John Calabrese and drummer Damon Richardson -- now spend most of their time overseas, where their brand of amped-up, down-and-dirty fuzz-rock is revered by audiences who care more about music than what's trendy.
They have played most of Europe's major rock festivals with bands such as Moby and Metallica and have toured with groups such as Turbonegro and Sepultura. Their albums are released by Sweden's Bad Taste Records, who were the first label to take a chance on the trio and are responsible for introducing Jones to a larger audience after years of sweating it out in Canadian clubs.
"I think there's a lot of rock that is really pop here in Canada. I think it's a lot of folk-based music -- acoustic guitar campfire music -- and we just never fit that mould. We always felt like an alien from another planet living in this country," Jones says.
Jones doesn't blame fans for his lower profile in Canada -- the group has always attracted crowds to their shows -- but takes issue with radio and video programmers that play it safe by spinning the same bands over and over again.
"If you were from another planet, you would think only 50 people are making music here," he says.
Case in point: Jones latest CD We Sweat Blood was released in October, but you would be hard-pressed to hear the single or see the video since Canadian programmers won't give them a chance, he believes.
"Over here, I think rock is dead. There's some really great Canadian bands -- I'll be the first to say that -- but are they getting any sort of recognition? People used to ask, 'What advice you would give bands starting out?' and I used to say, 'Buy records.' Now I say, 'Download albums and move somewhere else.' "
That's not all he has to say. While We Sweat Blood is full of the riffariffic blues-rawk Jones is known for -- and songs about the women he loves to love -- he also takes a shot at the industry on The Cross.
"It's about the Canadian music industry and how I want to nail 50 people to a cross. There is a list. There's a lot of people who are real slimeballs. It's such a cliche, but there are people in the industry who don't know anything about music and just want to drink beer and look cool," he says.
Besides music, Jones has started doing spoken-word shows, discussing his experiences in the industry and hosts a weekly radio show in his second home, Sweden.
The Magical World of Rock on Rocket FM (www.rocket.fm) is a one-hour show with different topics each week, from vocal clinics with Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson to interviews with Jones' musical heroes.
But music will always be Jones' first love, so the trio will spend much of this year -- just like last year and the year before -- on the road, spreading the gospel to the masses.
Jones will play the newly renovated Cowboys, at the Canad Inns Windsor Park, Monday
Danko Jones has a bone to pick with the music industry
By ROB WILLIAMS
Winnipeg Sun
Canada, meet Danko Jones.
Again.
The Toronto musician and his band haven't been around much lately, spending most of the past 12 months touring other parts of the world -- especially Europe, where they get radio and video play and sell out venues of 1,000 or more.
"Over here it's like night and day. We've been playing for eight years -- man, this is where we live -- and every year we're having to reintroduce ourselves," Jones says over the phone during a rare stopover at his Toronto home.
Jones and his bandmates -- bassist John Calabrese and drummer Damon Richardson -- now spend most of their time overseas, where their brand of amped-up, down-and-dirty fuzz-rock is revered by audiences who care more about music than what's trendy.
They have played most of Europe's major rock festivals with bands such as Moby and Metallica and have toured with groups such as Turbonegro and Sepultura. Their albums are released by Sweden's Bad Taste Records, who were the first label to take a chance on the trio and are responsible for introducing Jones to a larger audience after years of sweating it out in Canadian clubs.
"I think there's a lot of rock that is really pop here in Canada. I think it's a lot of folk-based music -- acoustic guitar campfire music -- and we just never fit that mould. We always felt like an alien from another planet living in this country," Jones says.
Jones doesn't blame fans for his lower profile in Canada -- the group has always attracted crowds to their shows -- but takes issue with radio and video programmers that play it safe by spinning the same bands over and over again.
"If you were from another planet, you would think only 50 people are making music here," he says.
Case in point: Jones latest CD We Sweat Blood was released in October, but you would be hard-pressed to hear the single or see the video since Canadian programmers won't give them a chance, he believes.
"Over here, I think rock is dead. There's some really great Canadian bands -- I'll be the first to say that -- but are they getting any sort of recognition? People used to ask, 'What advice you would give bands starting out?' and I used to say, 'Buy records.' Now I say, 'Download albums and move somewhere else.' "
That's not all he has to say. While We Sweat Blood is full of the riffariffic blues-rawk Jones is known for -- and songs about the women he loves to love -- he also takes a shot at the industry on The Cross.
"It's about the Canadian music industry and how I want to nail 50 people to a cross. There is a list. There's a lot of people who are real slimeballs. It's such a cliche, but there are people in the industry who don't know anything about music and just want to drink beer and look cool," he says.
Besides music, Jones has started doing spoken-word shows, discussing his experiences in the industry and hosts a weekly radio show in his second home, Sweden.
The Magical World of Rock on Rocket FM (www.rocket.fm) is a one-hour show with different topics each week, from vocal clinics with Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson to interviews with Jones' musical heroes.
But music will always be Jones' first love, so the trio will spend much of this year -- just like last year and the year before -- on the road, spreading the gospel to the masses.
Jones will play the newly renovated Cowboys, at the Canad Inns Windsor Park, Monday
danko jones, danko jones...friendly neighbourhood danko jones.