DoubleView of Jet West
at Rocklahoma 2014
Jet West…Where to even start? Reggae rock, maybe? Well, regardless of what genre they classify as, the music is unique and catchy. With roots in bands like the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Sublime, Jet West branches off into a beachy and relaxed sound that nobody can resist dancing to.
The only important thing we talked about during this interview was that Chris Warner’s (lead guitar & vocals) favourite ice cream is rocky road. Just kidding!
At Jet Wests’ concert at Rocklahoma, they were missing Jack Taylor, their trumpeter and percussionist. Although it did take away some of the reggae element, Jet West said that they were able to learn a lot from the experience. “We didn’t even play a lot of the songs he’s in,” says Deren Schneider (bass & vocals). Scott Floquet (lead vocals & guitar) adds in with, “Yeah, we busted out some stuff from the vault.” “He’s a big, integral part of our sound and if he’s hearing his…WE LOVE YOU JACK!” Derek Potter (drums) exclaims. And then, almost as if rehearsed, Schneider, Warner, Floquet, Potter, and Warner all yell in unison, “WE LOVE YOU JACK!” Sobering up the conversation (if only slightly), Floquet explains while laughing, “If anything, this inspired us to practice without him and really pull our rock vibe.” “No brass really allowed us to push the envelope on our rock side and kind of just bring it,” Warner adds. With incredible wit, Schneider remarks, “We had no brass but we still brought the class.”
The only important thing we talked about during this interview was that Chris Warner’s (lead guitar & vocals) favourite ice cream is rocky road. Just kidding!
At Jet Wests’ concert at Rocklahoma, they were missing Jack Taylor, their trumpeter and percussionist. Although it did take away some of the reggae element, Jet West said that they were able to learn a lot from the experience. “We didn’t even play a lot of the songs he’s in,” says Deren Schneider (bass & vocals). Scott Floquet (lead vocals & guitar) adds in with, “Yeah, we busted out some stuff from the vault.” “He’s a big, integral part of our sound and if he’s hearing his…WE LOVE YOU JACK!” Derek Potter (drums) exclaims. And then, almost as if rehearsed, Schneider, Warner, Floquet, Potter, and Warner all yell in unison, “WE LOVE YOU JACK!” Sobering up the conversation (if only slightly), Floquet explains while laughing, “If anything, this inspired us to practice without him and really pull our rock vibe.” “No brass really allowed us to push the envelope on our rock side and kind of just bring it,” Warner adds. With incredible wit, Schneider remarks, “We had no brass but we still brought the class.”
After this incredibly thoughtful conversation, my brain decided to completely fail me and my exhaustion kicked in (in my defense, it was two in the morning). Coming to the rescue, Warner says, “How about that question you just asked about how we formed?” I decide to go along with the idea, and jokingly answer, “Oh, yeah, that one! How did you guys form?” Clearly thinking he was a genius, Warner responds: “A couple of us were working together and we started jamming out and one of…Scott’s friends [joined] and it kind of just formed like that… We had a party together and we just started playing music.” Potter adds in with, “We were a garage band and we played just for our own amusement, not for others.” Eventually, that must have changed because here they were.
I hope that some of you have listened to Jet West before. If you have you understand that there really is nothing quite like it. How exactly did they come up with a sound like that? Warner explains, and honestly, it only makes everything sound stranger: “So, our lead singer Scott was playing in a psychedelic, reggae-rock band…when I first met him and I was stoked on it. So he’s got this indie rock, pop, alternative background. Our bass player came from a punk background and he was in a band before called the Tiger Sharks. Combining those two alone really fuses two completely different genres. I came from a reggae, jazz kind of vibe, and the drummer just likes everything.” Once Warner finishes, Potter elaborates on his drum background, “I have a more hardcore background. I’m from Jersey and in Jersey, there’s a huge hardcore music scene.”
“Okay, it came about like this,” Schneider begins, “ We love to surf. We love to relax. I love adrenaline and I love racing dirt bikes, jet skiing. So we all like adrenaline side and we all have a sit-on-the-beach side.” Floquet augments with, “We jet ski, rock climb, free dive.” “And we attempt to be our own sound,” Potter announces. “We don’t wanna emulate anyone else. We wanna be unique.”
“Okay, it came about like this,” Schneider begins, “ We love to surf. We love to relax. I love adrenaline and I love racing dirt bikes, jet skiing. So we all like adrenaline side and we all have a sit-on-the-beach side.” Floquet augments with, “We jet ski, rock climb, free dive.” “And we attempt to be our own sound,” Potter announces. “We don’t wanna emulate anyone else. We wanna be unique.”
Warner decided that enough was said on that topic and says, “Oh, that question you asked about how we started.” Schneider seemed fine with his band mate interviewing him, and answers. “We started off not really knowing which direction we wanted to go in and I think we all agreed on slight reggae just because it got people dancing.”
“So that question you just asked us,” Warner begins. Again. “about what we classify our genre of sound. It’s a great question. So, we say that we’re rock, heavy reggae rock, and that we like to step outside of the norm for the regular beach-rock, reggae scene and try to emulate rock beats with reggae but with a little bit more energy. Maybe a little Chevelle of Deftones.” “We have influences from all over the place,” adds Floquet. “We have a lot of influence from hard rock.”
“Oh so that’s a great question to our drummer, he’s gonna answer this one,” says Warner. (Can he just let me do the interview? Apparently not.) “What is the favourite show you’ve ever played?” Potter happily answers, “my favourite show ever was the Seattle Hem Fest, that was my favourite show.” “Really?” Floquet questions. “They were all zombies out there ‘cause they were high!” “That’s a funny answer, Scott,” says Warner, angrily, “I thought this question was for Derek.” “One of our most recent shows, we played at the House of Blues in San Diego…and I think it’s one of the better House of Blues’ of the ones in the country. [There was a] huge crowd, one of the best nights of our lives as a band. I mean…it was epic.”
Warner continues interviewing, saying, “Here’s another great question. FOR DEREN. Deren, if you could open for any band next year, what band would you want to go on tour with?” “Wow. That is deep,” remarks Schneider. “I’m gonna go with Jimmy Buffet.”
“So that question you just asked us,” Warner begins. Again. “about what we classify our genre of sound. It’s a great question. So, we say that we’re rock, heavy reggae rock, and that we like to step outside of the norm for the regular beach-rock, reggae scene and try to emulate rock beats with reggae but with a little bit more energy. Maybe a little Chevelle of Deftones.” “We have influences from all over the place,” adds Floquet. “We have a lot of influence from hard rock.”
“Oh so that’s a great question to our drummer, he’s gonna answer this one,” says Warner. (Can he just let me do the interview? Apparently not.) “What is the favourite show you’ve ever played?” Potter happily answers, “my favourite show ever was the Seattle Hem Fest, that was my favourite show.” “Really?” Floquet questions. “They were all zombies out there ‘cause they were high!” “That’s a funny answer, Scott,” says Warner, angrily, “I thought this question was for Derek.” “One of our most recent shows, we played at the House of Blues in San Diego…and I think it’s one of the better House of Blues’ of the ones in the country. [There was a] huge crowd, one of the best nights of our lives as a band. I mean…it was epic.”
Warner continues interviewing, saying, “Here’s another great question. FOR DEREN. Deren, if you could open for any band next year, what band would you want to go on tour with?” “Wow. That is deep,” remarks Schneider. “I’m gonna go with Jimmy Buffet.”
Jet West rocks out in a groovy and “chillaxed” way, and is totally worth checking out. Their performance at Rocklahoma managed to get all the intoxicated, middle-aged men dancing. They played crowd-pleasers like “T.D.s” and “Mexico” while also showing off their musicianship and unique sound. Jet West rocked and reggaed Rocklahoma through the night.
 | Zoe Adler is a music journalist from Long Beach, California. Besides her website, which is her pride and joy, she works with the GRAMMY Foundation and the Long Beach Independent. Additionally, Ms. Adler is a musician, spending half of her time playing the flute, piccolo, trombone, and marching baritone. She has been with TeenView Music since the very start and hopes to make something of it in the future. |
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