1994 To The Present
Foreword
After the success of the previous years, things took a turn for the worse in 1994. Mike wrote 12 songs but Food didn't like the new material that had been written and it's back to the drawing board. Gen and Al play in some other bands to pass the time away. Alan also gets married.
Live dates are few and far between. In 1994 they supported Japanese star, Tomoyasu Hotei on a tour of Japan. Mike and Iain embark on some Djing dates with the Jesus Jones Sound System and Iain enjoys himself as a radio presenter.
The new album continued to be worked on. Working titles have been, 'Hendrix 303', 'Strawberry' and 'Aluminium'. In 1996 work started on a new production of songs for the fourth album with Martyn Phillips. A small tour of small places took place in April and May of 1996. It was in 1997 that 'The Next Big Thing' finally hit the streets before the album 'Already' was released. Another single 'Chemical No1' came from the album but without any publicity the album was never likely to be a huge seller.
Gen left the band and came back and then left again permanantly. His place would eventually be taken up by Tony Arthy.
Then, in 2001, Jesus Jones signed to Mi5 Recordings and played a few dates in the UK and America. A new album was released titled 'London' and Jesus Jones were back. EMI released a greatest hits CD titled 'Never Enough' which includes what would have been their last release for the label, 'Come On Home'.
A support slot at The Wonder Stuff's christmas shows brings many fans out of the woodwork and a tour in May 2002, albeit a pretty low key affair, shows that the band can still put in the live performances. The new tracks from 'London' sound just as good alongside old faves like 'Move Mountains'.
A great gig in London in November 2002 saw the band at their brilliant best with a great mix of old and newer stuff, some of it chosen by fans via the official web site. The gig was recorded and is available on DVD. Currently Mike is dabbling in all types of music with various projects and hopefully some more tracks that may be graced with the Jesus Jones name one day in the not too distant future.
Pictures from Tomoyasu Hotei Vs Jesus Jones Tour (Budokan, Tokyo) - Music Life (Japanese Magazine) - September 1994
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Review of gig at Hull The Room - Source Unknown - 14th May 1997
Jesus Jones. Remember them? They did that one that went, "Reeeel, reeel, ree-ee-eel, do you feeeel reeel, cgurgle, wurgle, schlurgle." Yeah, that's them and, yeah, they're still around. And right at the start of tonight's gig, with a starry-souled, passion-flaringly optimistic 'International Bright Young Thing' (Yes! They open with it! Mad! MAD!) they confirm that still around they most definately are.
And will be for a long time yet, judging by the rest of the set.
With a supremely messianic 'Right Here Right Now' and 'Who? Where? Why?' ripped to the tits on angst and adrenalin, Jesus Jones return with their mix of hedonism and conscience, taking all those hankering hardcore fans back to, ooh, about five or six years ago. Three songs in and only the terminally trendy are left chin-jutting and head-nodding at the back.
Tonight, however, is no self-indulgent, back-to-the-old-days, greatest hits showcase for the leather-trousered, bleached-blond Mike Edwards. There are new songs splattered through the set, songs like 'Addiction, Obsession And Me', songs that are stompier than an entire continent of testosterone-addled rampaging wildebeest and cause even the coolest of the cool to lose it completely.
The new single's called 'The Next Big Thing', but going by the sheer ferocity and guts exhibited tonight, it seems that it doesn't really need to be said. Right here, right now, there's no other place you could imagine even vaguely wanting to be.
Review of The Next Big Thing - Possibly from Melody Maker - Circa June 1997
One can only surmise that the way Jesus Jones feel about bombastic techno-pop is similar to the way Karel Poborsky feels about that pissed-on mooring rope he calls hair: you know, people keep telling you it's awful, you're wasting your time, no one really likes it, you could do so much better, you're not living in Eastern Europe anymore/it's not the early Nineties anymore (delete where applicable)...on and on and on, until you're so f***ed off that sticking with what you know becomes almost a point of principle. This isn't half as bad as it might well be, for all the serious attention it's likely to get. And it's certainly not as bad as I was expecting. But, when Mike Edwards sings, I just know that somehow, in a way I can't even explain, there's his world and then there's my world, and they will never, ever make peace. Besides. Baseball caps.
Review of Already - Possibly from Select - Circa June 1997
Mike Edwards and company seemed to have the world, and particularly America, at their feet at the turn of the decade when Real Real Real and Right Here Right Now both went Top 5, and stadium after stadium craved their always energetic live performances. But since 1993's third album Perverse things have gone very wrong for the Joneses, with poor sales, record company friction, and band splinters coming thick and fast. Finally they've recorded an album that Food Records have accepted. Tired, tune-free and terribly compressed, Already is not a record likely to please very many others, though. The formula is instantly familiar, but the musical fizz and sparkle of old has evaporated and even the lyrics are devoid of the eager impatience once the group's hallmark. ** David Roberts.
Interview - Website Headcleaner - October 1997
This interview took place over email with Mike Edwards of Jesus Jones on Tuesday
October 14 1997.
Thanks to him and to all others involved for their generosity and time.
What have Jesus Jones been up to of late? Are the band in fact still together?
It's been a weird year for us, lots of hanging about and waiting for things
to happen...which never quite did. For most of the world, all of the promotion
and touring (what of it there was) for this album has been and gone and so there's
just about nothing going on now. However, we still haven't had a release in
the US (it's due early next year) and so until we get a crack at was our most
successful part of the world, we are most definitely still together.
Do you feel vindicated or do you feel a little bitter now that bands such as
The Chemical Brothers, Prodigy etc are being so successful with essentially
very similar stuff to what you were coming out with over 5 years ago? Do you
feel that Jesus Jones were a little before their time?
I don't feel bitter at all, I think there are major differences between Jesus
Jones and those bands. As for the Prodigy, what seems to be ignored is that
they were actually hugely successful before the mainstream press woke up to
them a couple of years ago - they were a big influence on us hence their '93
remix of Zeroes & Ones and so it's ridiculous to suggest they are following
in our footsteps. I don't think we were pioneers, ahead of our time : we were
just paying attention back then.
At the height of your success you were lumped in with the baggy scene, together
with the rest of the "indie/dance" mob. Did you feel any affinity with the other
bands of that era? Was there any animosity shown towards you by bands that saw
themselves as being more "serious", for want of a better word?
I hated being thought of as part of that scene and it used to really annoy me
when Americans automatically assumed we were from Manchester. I didn't feel
any affinity at all with the baggy scene, to me it was just '60s retro stuff
with a different beat whereas I felt we were embracing the technology and the
sounds of dance music as an integral part of the songwriting. I don't remember
any animosity from other bands, at least not face to face (although some twat
of an American radio DJ stirred it up a bit by inventing a conversation with
me describing the Happy Mondays as so drunk / drugged as to be incompetent -
we had a gig with them the same night). The notion of a band being more "serious"
is really a press one which unfortunately spreads to the readership. There are
always differences of opinion about the quality of other bands' music and success
and competition always distort the picture but given that all bands have to
go through the same process to get success, it's stupid to think of one band
as being more worthy than another.
What would you consider the highlight of your musical career? There are a few because of the different ways of looking at that. The simple ones are things like having a number 1 album (Doubt) or single (Right Here, Right Now) or playing to 72,000 people at Wembley Stadium. There are a few songs of mine that I still really like and am really glad someone else didn't write them ; Info Freako, Right Here, Right Now, Idiot Stare, Zeroes and Ones, Wishing It Away, Top Of The World, February. And for the albums, I'm really proud of the last two, Perverse and Already for being done properly and as I wanted them, not hurried and shoddy like the first two. Perverse I like also because of the strength of the vision, the experimentation and because I was consistently truthful to the aims I had for that. Already, I think of it as being the most consistent album, the one with the best songs.
Do you enjoy playing live or do you prefer the experimentation and gadget-twiddling
that the studio affords you?
Both and for the different types of satisfaction you get from them. A dubious
analogy is to ask someone if they prefer love or sex as there are similar parallels.
Any ambitions left unfulfilled? Mountain-biking round the world like some indie/techno
Michael Palin, perhaps?
Unfortunately for the sake of my happiness I always have greater ambitions than
are realisable in one lifetime. Yep, being an indie/techno Michael Palin (Mike
on a bike) definitely appeals, as does having more hit records, touring the
world again, designing web sites, writing, being a halfway decent dad, winning
more mountain bike races and...maybe I'll stop there for now.
What is your favourite song that you recorded. Me, I still have a soft spot
for Info Freako (and I still have the skateboard stickers too).
OK so I've really answered this one already but...it's a choice between Wishing
It Away from Already and Idiot Stare from Perverse. Or maybe it's...
What do you see the future having in store for Jesus Jones - and for yourself?
Very unsure right now. All I'm thinking about as far as the band's concerned
is the US release and tour. What's complicating things is that EMI in the UK
have offered me a solo deal but like I said, until we do things in the US, everything
else goes on hold.
Do you see the internet taking off as a means of band promotion?
At the moment, it's a pretty under-used medium with a lot of bands having a
grainy picture, a few words and not a lot more.
Do you think the future lies in bands releasing material over the net, or do
you think it's all hype?
The best promotion Already has had has been on the internet, either through
things like this or via our web site. Admittedly, the non-digital promotion
for this album has been crap but I'm certain the web is the way forward nonetheless.
However, it will still really only work for bands that have reached a level
of recognition that means people will have a name to search for, so mainstream
press, TV, radio will always be important. However, once a band gets that far
(and a small bit of press or airplay will do) then the internet has the ability
to outdo all the other media by being able to BE all the other media ; sound,
image and print.
Many thanks for your time and patience in answering these questions. Finally,
if you had to sum up the spirit and manifesto of Jesus Jones in one sentence,
what would that be?
Right here, right now.
Interview - Website Artistlaunch.com - circa January(?) 2002
JESUS JONES FRONTMAN, MIKE EDWARDS - by Shauna Skye
Jesus Jones is the band responsible for the huge hit "Right Here, Right Now" back in 1991. The video for this song was in heavy rotation on MTV, and it seemed whenever I watched the tube I saw Jesus Jones. This was not a bad thing. I loved their song! It was catchy, and made it to #2 on the American charts. One memory I have involving "Right Here, Right Now" is a radio playing and a number of my friends enjoying it along side me. One was a sixteen year old boy who usually blasted Slayer and not much else. I remember thinking it was funny that even he liked it! I only mention "Right Here, Right Now" because it's the song most people knowthis band for; and yet Jesus Jones and Mike Edwards have a decade's worth of history. If you'd like to catch up on what has (and is) happening with JesusJones and Mike's new band,Yoshi, I suggest you visit www.jesusjones.com whereyou can find their biography and also a free book available for download. The following is an interview I did with frontman, Mike Edwards. I hope you enjoy it.
SHAUNA: Mike, aside from music, what have you been up to lately?
MIKE: If I'm honest, a very large amount of cycling: mountain bike racing, road
racing, amateur stages of the Tour de France, a couple of bike legs of the Malibu
triathlon - all that kind of thing and more. This year I'll be running the London
marathon in April, walking / running the Grand Canyon rim to rim in a day (send
a search party after two, please), the usual summer of cycling and then the
full triathlon in Malibi in September. Preparing for all that kind of stuff
takes a lot of non-music time.
SHAUNA: I just downloaded your book, "Death Threats From an Eight Year Old
in the Seychelles." I read the title was inspired from a letter you received
after you made a negative comment about the New Kids on the Block. Could you
give more details on that; and what's it like to receive a death threat from
an eight year old?
MIKE: It was such an offhand aside that I really can't remember what I said,
although I'm sure it was something I wouldn't feel proud of now. It was definitely
something more by way of conversation than a sermon from the mount, and that's
largely why it seemed so strange to get such a strong response. I think for
me it was evidence that we'd achieved a status whereby even trivial small talk
could be blown out of proportion. By 8 year olds.
SHAUNA: In your book you say you enjoy interviews, with the exception of the
top40 stations who constantly asked how you got your name. I can see how that
would get annoying. What are some of the more interesting experiences you've
had with the press, be it positive or negative?
MIKE: Undoubtedly our stock rose with a Texas Top 40 station when an underwear-free
woman got backstage and repeatedly gave me (and the station manager beside me)
a very close inspection of the full extent of her nudity. I'd count that as
a positive. On the other side, our agent told us in '93 that the most important
Alternative music paper here had made their sponsorship of the UKs biggest festival
(Glastonbury) dependent on Jesus Jones not performing. There was the time when
an English journalist and I were given a not-quite-as-safe-as-planned tour of
a very anti-British part of Belfast, Northern Ireland by a woman currently serving
jail time for terrorist offenses.
SHAUNA: A large percentage of the people who read this interview are musicians.
Based on the experiences you've had with success as well as struggling, what
advice would you give us?
MIKE: When I try and analyze where it went right for us, I believe it was a
combination of perseverance, learning from our mistakes (the musical ones) and
making sure we believed in what we were playing totally.
SHAUNA: Which one of you is Jesus? (Just kidding.) Seriously, why don't you
tell us about the new album you'll be coming out with on Mi5 Records.
MIKE: This is a question I've always had difficulty with, in the same way that
whenever people say some other band "sound like Jesus Jones" and I just can't
hear it. I don't really know how to describe it but I know that this time out
there are no big principles involved, I'm just trying to add a twist to my record
collection, adding in the things that excite me currently, like UK Garage, Drum
'n' Bass and Nu Metal. That said, writing is like your signature, however you
approach it, it's still pretty typically yours. Iain, the JJ keyboard player
says: "It's the sound of us not trying too hard."
SHAUNA: Please tell us about your band Yoshi. How would you describe themusic
to someone who has never heard you?
MIKE: Ah, check the first sentence of the last paragraph! Yoshi is a lot more
mellow than JJ stuff, partly due to having a female singer, Arianne. There'sa
lot more of an R'n'B influence there, or at least there was starting to beuntil
we took a break while I concentrated on the new JJ stuff.
SHAUNA: Do you think you'll ever stop playing music?
MIKE: No, I really doubt it, I enjoy it and it costs me nothing so there's every
incentive to keep playing, none to stop. Besides, I've always had a plan to
be a 70 year old blues player, although if I get terminally ill or just impatient
I may reduce the age by 20 years.
SHAUNA: What are some of your interests and hobbies?
MIKE: I think the life I lead counts as both! I'd like to travel a lot more
despite the fact that I've done a fair amount of that already. South America
appeals, I have a strong interest in the Incan empire but as long as it's a
fairly arduous and remote trip I'm into it.
SHAUNA: Who is your favorite Beatle? ;)
MIKE: It was definitely Lennon (my all time favourite song is Dear Prudence)
but the more I discover about and listen to the both of them the more it swings
in Macca's favour.
SHAUNA: Out of all the musicians you've worked with, who are some of your favorites?
MIKE: I really liked working with Traci Lords: it was good music to work on
and Traci herself was fun, self-effacing, strong minded and very talented, a
pleasure to work with. I've also worked with a friend of mine, a very famous
Japanese star called Hotei and it's always a pleasure to be with him, working
or not. Tony James, of Generation X and Sigue Sigue Sputnik I think of as a
friend, a very interesting man.
SHAUNA: How do the American fans differ from those in other parts of the world?
MIKE: Not much, people tend to be the same pretty much all over, or at least
the ones into your music are. And there you were expecting me to say they're
the best in the world!
SHAUNA: What is your favorite Jesus Jones song?
MIKE: Hmmmm, that's tricky for me. Even before it was a single I felt very good
about "Right here...." "Idiot Stare" from Perverse I love and "Wishing it away"
from Already surprises me, pleasantly, that I wrote it. Most of Doubt and Liquidiser
I find hard to listen to now but I enjoy the later albums a lot more.
SHAUNA: Do you have any favorite bands that are currently on the radio?
MIKE: Having just turned 16 again I can't help liking Slipknot and Limp Bizkit,
also Methods of Mayhem. Albums I've bought in the last couple of weeks include
True Steppers, Stephen Malkmus, Wu Tang Clan and Daft Punk. Sigur Ros made a
big impact on me last year as did The Junket, Grandaddy and 6 X 7. I'm always
buying compilations of Drum 'n' Bass (usually the Ram Records ones) and UK Garage
- I doubt the latter is on the radio over there yet.
SHAUNA: If you had to choose an all-time favorite band, who would it be?
MIKE: AC/DC but only between 1976 and 1979. Close behind would be Sonic Youth,
the Beatles and the Aphex Twin.
SHAUNA: Do you know what happened to Satan Smith? :)
MIKE: Ha! I think the rumour of that tribute band died out before the band could
form.
SHAUNA: What is the one question you'd like an interviewer to ask you, but they
never do?
MIKE: In the last 12 years I don't think any avenue has been unexplored. Although
in a few cases "Would you beat me to death ?" would have gone down well.
SHAUNA: OK, here is your chance to plug anything you like. Where can we get
hold of your next releases, find news about you, etc.?
MIKE: Between www.jesusjones.com and www.MI5recordings.com you'll find all the
Jesus Jones news you can handle!
SHAUNA: Any parting words?
MIKE: Something about the Red Sea ?...Nah, based on that it's definitely time
I went.
SHAUNA: Thank you very much for the interview, Mike. It will appear on the
front page of ArtistLaunch.com. We have several cool radio shows going there.
I will be hosting my own show soon, and I would like to contact you again in
the near future if that is all right.
MIKE: Most definitely, thank you.
SHAUNA SKYE http://www.mp3.com/shaunaskye
Photos - Gig at Bristol Fleece & Firkin - 21st May 2002
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Poster for the current release, Never Enough The Best Of Jesus Jones
Poster for the Marquee Gig, London, 8th November 2002
Click here for pictures and my
review of the Marquee gig.
Article - The Guardian, 9th August 2003
At the age of 17, I couldn't imagine anything better than earning
a living through playing in a rock band. After a lengthy apprenticeship
I managed to get my band, Jesus Jones, into a position where
I could describe my occupation while form-filling as "musician"
without crossing my fingers behind my back and worrying about
the small print threatening prosecution for false or misleading
information.
With hits around the world we became famous for a few years.
At the start of 1990 I wrote a song called Right Here, Right
Now, a title I disliked but intended to change before the final
recording. Inevitably unaltered, the song became a No 1 in America,
popular enough that versions of it still appear on karaoke discs
in bars all over the US. These re-recorded versions make me
cringe but I don't begrudge the musicians involved. Everyone
has to make a living.
Thirteen years later, I'm still making a living from that title,
even if Fatboy Slim's identically titled song may have eaten
into my action. As well as continuing radio play, every so often
a drinks company or car dealership in Michigan or Maine or Montana
decides Right Here, Right Now set to that paticular tune perfectly
soundtracks their advertising campaign. The first I'll know
about it is a call from my manager that starts, "Right,
I've got another one for you..." And that's the council
tax bill settled for another year.
Last year a major corporation, the biggest privately owned comapny
in the US, decided they'd take it further and get the band itself
to play at a conference for their best achieving employees,
the strapline to which was... well, you get the idea by now.
Thankfully Fatboy Slim wasn't mentioned and so began my induction
into the murky world of corporate gigs.
It really is a murky world. Asking friends in the music industry
about other examples throws up a sonic cathedral of "You
absolutely cannot quote me" and "You can't name names".
These days, it seems you can pretty much buy anyone if you have
the money, but no one else must know. Rumours in the industry
and reports in the tabloids about everyone from the Rolling
Stones and Dylan to Robbie Williams abound. Rod Stewart earning
$750,000 to play a businessman' birthday party may or may not
be taken with a pinch of salt but it is clear that famous bands
can play private shows for far more than they'd get from a standard
one.
An aquaintance of mine, famous for a string of hits over the
last 25 years, was offered $75,000 by a phone company to be
part of a bill that included two more contemporary (and therefore
better paid) boy bands. The same artist was offered £50,000
to play a couple's wedding. That's 50 grand for an hour of songs
that probably don't even need any rehearsal, unlimited food
and booze and no obligation to listen to the speeches. "Everyone
has a price," one of the best known managers in the industry
tells me, and the figures go both way, way up (talk of the Sultan
of Brunei and Elton John and Sting bring us into "if you
have to ask..." territory) and down, which is where I come
in.
We were approached via our website to play the conference while
in the middle of an American tour. It was a spartan trip compared
with our old days; one roadie and the cheapest hotels (sharing
driving and rooms), selling merchandise to cover petrol and
cheap US-bought amplifiers to save on shipping our own gear.
Two weeks of preparation and a month of one hour-plus dates,
usually five in a row.
The offer was for three shows in under two weeks, any costs
we could dream up, accomodation (one person per room) in the
same five-star Florida hotel as the conference delegates and
a fee that was in multiples of the profit we'd make on the tour.
A "show" was one song, twice. That would have been
seven minutes a night but without the too-wild-for-commerce
guitar sole and an abbreviated last chorus I'd call it an even
360 seconds. Three groups of delegates on a three-day schedule
meant we played one night in three, with all 10 days to spend
as we pleased.
We didn't hesitate to accept the offer and I can't think why
we should have. I recall from my music-press-reading days that
accepting money from The Man is wrong but I can't remember why,
or how it differs from signing a recording contract or playing
a heavily sponsored festival. Like other teens, when I was younger
I formed a notion about purity of art versus payment for art
(this correlates inversely with the number of 15-year-olds paying
mortgages) that made it an Offence In Rock to accept an honest
month's pay for an honest three minutes' work. Even then there
seemed to be some contradiction between punk ideology and the
Great Rock 'n Roll Swindle. My cousin is a classical musician,
a French horn slinger for hire, for whom it would be unthinkable
to turn down employ in his chosen line of work. A school friend
of mine is an actor and voiceover artist. I have recorded her
in my home studio practising a tone of friendly sincerity on
behalf of a kitchen cabinet make in Guernsey. Her TV adverts
don't look very "method" either but she rejoices not
agonsies, when she gets one.
In Florida, literally thousands of delegates were already deep
in discussion in the hotel bars, restuarants and coffee shop
by the time we arrived, pushing the envelope to the cutting
edge of the max in today's highly competitive world of business
jargon.
I didn't, and still don't, really know what the company does,
although we'd established it wasn't arms, tobacco or Third World
human organs. Technically on holiday, all the men still wore
suits, even late on the Saturday night. Likewise we were meaningfully
advised, along with much talk of respect for our artistry, to
wear black turtleneck jumpers. It's an item of clothing I'm
not fond of but I have certainly worn worse things in photoshoots
and videos.
We opened and closed the show, starting after a film sequence
featuring a businessman searching sand dunes for a half-buried
laptop, and a gravelly-voiced man saying in a so-baritone-it-must-be-important,
film-trailer way, "There was a search for an internet business..."
The rest of the sequence was always lost to me as I was concentrating
on standing upright and not wetting myself with laughter: Gravel
Man was our signal that the revolving circular stage we were
on was about to turn us briskly to face the audience and, we
suspected, hurl our much ridiculed, old before his time guitarist
into the front row like a ball off a dodgy roulette wheel. The
spectre of Spinal Tap never leaves a rock band.
Each evening also featured the kind of entertainment designed
neither to offend nor largely appeal to anyone: Irish dancers,
South American drummers and a variety of speakers, some of whom
were important enough to have limos drive them right into the
backstage of the 10,000-capacity venue. I didn't recognise any
of them.
Listening politely, some of the audience figured out that
song was being played by that band and took a few surreptitious
photos. The vast majority sat with quiet fortitude until the
motivational speakers had them out of their seats, whooping
and punching the air to greatest hit phrases like "It's
what's inside that counts" and "Fear is your greatest
enemy". Now there are song titles for us, Fatboy.
At the close of the first night, realising that we heralded
the end of the show and that the trip to Sea World (reserved
in an exclusive buy-out by the company) was imminent, an ugly
scrum developed in the rush for the door. This didn't bother
me unduly. What band can honestly say they have never cleared
the floor? I'd been asked not to mention the band's name from
stage for fear the Jesus part would offend in this part of the
Bible belt. It made for an underwhelming end so subsequent nights
saw the chairman courting religious furore by introducing us.
Everyone sat patiently to the end, which must have been worth
it if just to see the fireworks set our guitarist's hair alight.
Unlike usual shows, no one bothered about coming to talk to
us afterwards. We were up against Sea World after all. It was
just us clearing up with the real prima donnas of the show,
the heavily unionised stage hands, types our US-resident bass
player has seen refuse to work until the right kind of sandwiches
arrive. And presumably the brown M&Ms are removed. As always
in America after a performance, people said, "Good job,
man". It used to rankle me back in the days when it wasn't
supposed to be a job; it was supposed to be art, it was supposed
to be fun. Now it occurs that when it is just a job it's a lot
more fun. How my 17-year-old self would have been pleased.
Where Are They Now? Article - Q Magazine, February 2004
Formed in 1988, Jesus Jones' noisy blend of punk guitars and pile-driving dance samples saw them achieve an impressive run of hit singles on both sides of the Atlantic, most notably 1991's Right Here, Right Now which reached the US Top 5. This proved to be their peak - successive releases failed to make the same dent on the chart. The band called it a day after 1997's Already album, before re-forming briefly for the London album in 2001.
Mike Edwards (vocals/guitar): After Already did nothing the band was dropped. I was retained by the label to work on a new project called Yoshi with a female singer, but that came to nothing. Since then I've just been working on a few things on my own. I'm doing some songwriting on a pop thing - I'm going for a Sugacubes vibe - and I also have an electronic solo project. Last year Jesus Jones reconvened for a corporate conference in Florida, which was brilliant - an all-expenses-paid weekend in the States! We'd play pretty much anything if asked. It's just nice to earn a living through music.
Iain Baker (keyboards): When the band fell apart, I didn't have any other plans. After two years of sitting around, my wife said, "All you ever do is talk about records - why don't you do that for a living?" I sent off a few demos and luckily [London alternative station] Xfm picked up on it. I do their afternoon request show. Would I play a Jesus Jones song? No, that would be a bit like masturbating in public.
Al Jaworski (aka Alan Doughty) (bass): I moved to Chicago after the band were dropped. I've been playing with the Waco Brothers. They were a traditional country outfit when I joined, but I contributed to their sound becoming a bit noisier. I also work in a wine warehouse, which means I get to drink and operate heavy machinery.
Jerry de Borg (guitar): I've been in a band called Sum Demeana for the last two years just playing all around London. It's very Jesus Jones-y, but we've got a girl singer and it's maturing nicely. I also wrote some music for an art documentary recently. That was something I hope to do more of.
Simon "Gen" Matthews (drums): I left Jesus Jones in 1996 and joined Baby Chaos. After we were dropped, we changed our name to Deckard and decided to do it all ourselves. I also sell second-hand motorbikes. It's good because it leaves me enough time for the music.
How the publicity was tracked by MI5 Recordings for Culture Vulture after its release.
| Magazine: Jesus Jones full page interview feature in the June issue of Bullit Magazine 18.06.04 Magazine: Culture Vulture review in Exposure magazine 06.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on Alternatives Show 37 and 38, on Radio 021, Radio Boom 93, Radio Kikinda, Radio Kojot, Radio OK, Radio Fast, Radio Kragujevac, Radio Prizma, Radio City, Radio Slon and Radio Planeta, Vojvodina, Serbia, Bosnia/Hercegovina, Croatia, 06.04 Web: Culture Vulture review on ThisnotTV website, 06.04 Web: Culture Vulture press release on main page of Tinfoil Music website, 06.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on The Show on UKsounds.com, 06.04 Web: Culture Vulture review on www.ukmusicsearch.co.uk, 06.04 Radio: Mike Edwards interviewed on 107.4 BCRfm, Bridgwater, Somerset 28.05.04 Radio: Mike Edwards interviewed on Q97.2 Causeway Radio, Co. Londonderry 27.05.04 Radio: Mike Edwards interviewed on Spirit FM 96.6 & 102.3FM, Sussex 26.05.04 Web: Jesus Jones 'Find the Dial' featured on Windows Media Player UK Guide front Page, 21.05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist All FM Radio, Manchester 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist ETC FM, Edinburgh Telford College, Scotland 'Great song!! A song that will be stick in your head' 05.04 Shop: Culture Vulture in stores now including HMV, Virgin and Sister Ray, 17.05.04 Web: Culture Vulture available to buy at theMusicIndex.com 17.05.04 Web: Culture Vulture EP Windows Media Player Downloads available to buy at www.UKsounds.com, www.USsounds.com and www.OZsounds.com 17.05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture played on BBC York Radio, 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture and Head in the Sand is now available on the new Radio station song delivery service by Musicpoint, 14.05.04 Magazine/Radio: Interview with Mike Edwards recorded for Q Sheet Radio Industry Magazine 4 page article Click Here and audio to be offered to Radio Stations 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture and Tom Robinson Remix played on Tom Robinson's Evening Sequence, BBC6 Radio 06.05.04 Web: Culture Vulture review on BlazinVibes.com, great review 9/10 look out for the interview coming soon, 11.05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist on Radio Middlesbrough, 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture being played on Lantern FM, Barnstaple, Exeter 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist on RNA RM, Arbroath, Scotland 05.04 Radio: Mike Edwards on Radio2 Jammin Thursday 6th May 2200-2230 And repeated on Saturday 8th May 1330-1400, also listen again available for 7days. Radio: Culture Vulture on B Playlist TotalRock Radio week commencing 26/04/04 Radio: Culture Vulture was played and reviewed on the Roundtable show with Andrew Collins BBC6 Radio 6/10, 7/10 and 1/10!, 23.04.04 & 24.04.04 Radio: Culture on daytime and specialist playlists on HeartlandFM, Perthshire, Scotland, 'remixes..a damn fine idea' 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on request list on University Radio York, 'Much more rocky this time round!' 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on the playlist Bay Radio, University of Wales, Aberystwyth 'pretty cool, didn't hear them 1st time around, but this is a cool tune. Great mix of rocking vox & wicked guitar play. Decent' 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on the playlist Air3, University of Sterling 'very impressive, an upbeat, Culture Vulture leads the way forward, making entry for equally impressive prog/rock which sounds similiar to Muse, Not a bad thing' 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on the playlist CFX Radio, Plymouth College of FE 'Like it, it's bangs along well. I've always liked his vocals. Hope it does well. I've got Doubt!' 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on the playlist Tube Radio, Thames Valley University, London 'This is really good, I like it, very rocky' 5.04 Radio: All the Culture Vulture EP on the playlist Blast 1386, Reading College 5.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist Isles FM, Isle of Lewis, Scotland 'A Brilliant, exciting, rocking track!' 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist Waves Radio 101.2FM, Peterhead, Scotland week commencing 3/05/04 Radio: Comment from BBC Wales Radio: 'Excellent Track. It's too crunchy for our airwaves' Radio: Culture Vulture on playlist 107.4 BCRfm, Bridgwater, Somerset 'the track will certainly get plays on our evening shows. Its also a great idea having the different files to enable people to remix their own version - I'd like to be able to do that to other peoples songs!!!!!!' 05.04 Magazine: Jesus Jones advert in the May issue of Logo Magazine 05.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on Evening Playlist on Spirit FM 96.6 & 102.3FM, Sussex 'Great to hear Jesus Jones back...Fresh new rocky sound, on Evening Playlist' 04.04 Radio: Culture Vulture on Shades of Rock playlist on Q97.2 Causeway Radio, Co. Londonderry 'Good to hear JJ back on the scene. Remix your own track eh? Good idea, like that.' 04.04 Radio: Quote from Chris Hawkins BBC6 Radio 'Such a distinctive vocal performance strong lyrics & driving guitar. Like it - reminiscant of old Jesus Jones, in a good way!' Magazine: SINGLE REVIEW by Logo Magazine Jesus Jones – ‘Culture Vulture’ Released 17th May on Mi5 Recordings UK Author: Suzie Q Rating 3_/5 2004 seems to be the year of the comeback; The Alarm confounded critics by hiding under their Poppy Fields pseudonym, Marillion (who never really went away) have new product out this month, even Tears For Fears are getting in on the act. What next? The long overdue return of Jesus Jones, best known for their era-defining pre Brit-Pop single ‘International Bright Young Thing’. ‘Culture Vulture’ doesn’t – indeed couldn’t – match that, but it’s far from a slight return. They always liked to align themselves with the likes of Pop Will Eat Itself, mashing up dance rhythms with the energy of cynical punks and the disdain of disillusioned rockers, and here, for perhaps the first time, it all works. Expectations were not, it must be said, very high; they’ve easily exceeded them though, by the simple expedient of employing that same formula and enlivening it with a dash of cyber-swirl and a barely suppressed seam of mania. It’s surprisingly enervating stuff, best played very loud. Radio: Mike Edwards (Jesus Jones) on BBC6 Radio Craig Charles Breakfast Show talking about the Culture Vulture release, 9.30am (UK). www.bbc.co.uk/6music 15.04.04 Web: Thoughts from Tom Robinson from BBC 6 Radio, The Evening Sequence on Culture Vulture Remix feature 04.04 Web: Culture Vulture news on Spanish site Canal Pop, 2.04 |
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