Outside the Mainstream

December 13, 2000

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Bluebeard: With the mass signing of underground bands in 1994 (Jawbox, Shudder to Think, The Jesus Lizard) and their subsequent failure, do you believe that there is room for truly interesting music on major labels. And if so, why are the labels afraid to pick up on it?

Dave Jerden: The labels are always behind the trend that is going on in the street at any given time. For people who are genuinely into rock and roll music, on a street level--meaning going to clubs, and following imports from other countries, etc., etc., this means instead of following just the local radio stations, it is always going to seem that record companies just do not know, or just do not have a clue, and it's because of many reasons. But it all always boils down to money. It's either because the artist and their managers are greedy or the record labels are too tight with the money. When I was working at Atlantic, I tried to set up what I called a "farm league", such as in baseball. Where major labels could develop new acts, as indie labels would do. But they were not interested at all, they said that was the work for someone else lower down the ladder, and we just want to get, again, there's that word, heat seekers, that have proven themselves at an indie label level, or have some kind of scene, as in club scene or a press scene in a small town. The magic number, I've found, was 40,000, for some reason. If they could sell 40,000 records that was phenomenal, and everyone was interested. If they could sell 10,000 records, they were still interested.

Supastar: Since you work with a lot of established multi-platinum selling artists, do you still ever work with any up-and-coming or unsigned bands and what advice could you offer an unsigned band entering the studio to make a demo to shop to the majors?

Dave Jerden: Well first of all, unfortunately, not everything that I do is known. I'm working all the time, and most of the bands I work with are new bands. Unfortunately, very few make it. The only band that I've worked with on a production level that had already sold in the platinum range was The Offspring. The advice I have for a new band is always the same thing. Learn the business, learn to work within the business, don't be arrogant; if you are new, it stands to reason that you don't know everything. So as Perry used to do, in Jane's Addiction, he would work with not only the art department, but the business department, producers, such as myself, engineers, and really tried to learn, so that he could make the kind of music he'd want to make, as opposed to the kind of people that I see over and over again, who take the attitude that they are geniuses, and they don't mind stepping on everybody's toes. I'm not saying that you have to be a pushover--and believe me, nobody in the business likes pushovers, but on the other hand, nobody likes a know-it-all, and you can hurt yourself by continually alienating the people around you, who you need the most. That's all if you get a record deal. To get that record deal, you have to be original, and have something to say to an audience that's large enough to make the signing by a major label fiscally responsible. In other words, you've got to make them money. And remember, they call it the music business, because it is a business. You can go and play out on the street for anybody for free and nobody is stopping you. But, if you want to make money at it, unfortunately, you've got to play the game. Once you're inside, then, you can expand and change the rules.

Drum Composer: How does a musician get involved in doing session work full time?

Dave Jerden: By knowing a producer. That's the easiest way. But at a very beginner's level, getting to know engineers in the town that you're in that are doing demo work is a good place to start. My father was a session musician. I grew up going to studios with him. That's when I became interested in wanting to be an engineer. He never made a lot of money; and it was brutal work, long hours, and short money, but he loved it. He used to say it was like joining the circus. You never want to leave, once you are in. That goes to say, that's not for everybody.

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