INTERVIEW WITH BE YOUR OWN PET GUITARIST JONAS STEIN
BE YOUR OWN PET is a four-piece self-described 'post-punk' group
from Nashville, Tennessee. The band formed in 2002 at the Nashville
School of the Arts, and is known for its garage rock sound similar to
the YEAH YEAH YEAHs. They made Rolling Stone Magazine's list of '10
Artists To Watch', have opened for KINGS OF LEON, and scored a hit in
the UK... all before graduating high school. We caught up with
guitarist Jonas Stein, whose father happens to be Vince Neil's manager,
Burt Stein...and fired off a couple of softballs in the general
direction of his teenage skull:
FoundryMusicRob: It’s not often you
hear about a band where some of the members doubled up classes in High
School to finish early. Was that specifically to focus on music, or
were you just tired of dealing with teachers?
Jonas Stein: Yeah, Jamin [Orrall
(drums)] and I did the doubling up. We did it primarily to focus on
music but I think I might have tried to figure out how to get out of
school even if it was not for music. I don't think I would have lasted
much longer in school.
FoundryMusicRob: You guys are young to
be touring the way you are, do you ever get a bad case of stage fright
right before you go on in a new town?
Jonas Stein:No not at all... New
towns are the best. It’s when you get to make your first impression on
the people of that town. So usually if it's a new town we go balls to
the wall crazy.
FoundryMusicRob: This is no secret:
gas prices are insane lately. You guys travel to all of your gigs in a
van, how bad are you guys getting hit from the rise in fuel costs? Is
it hard to recoup the money spent each day after a show?
Jonas Stein:I don't know man. We
don't really pay attention to that shit.. All that recouping stuff is
not for us to worry about. That’s why we have tour managers. But I make
sure to stay away from Exxon and Mobil. They are the two biggest gas
companies right now so if everyone avoids those to gas stations then
they will have to bring their prices down so they can draw people back
in. Which will then make every other gas station bring their prices
down. Then everyone is happy.
(oof, teenage logic at its best. I
have to keep remembering that, or the urge to give this kid a good slap
is going to be overwhelming - SC)
FoundryMusicRob: Punk music has always
been known as “rebellious.” What issues get you guys most angry, what
exactly are you rebelling against, if anything?
Jonas Stein:Well our government is
run by some fucking idiots. I'm just trying to help everyone realize
this. Who the fuck makes the rules anyways? Some old guys who don't
know how to party anymore? I mean come on. We should be able to light
up a joint every once in a while without being hassled by the fuzz.
FoundryMusicRob: All four of you have
asthma. Ever have an attack on stage? If so, explain. If not, do you
think you'd ever fake a nasty one to try and get some press?
Jonas Stein:No way dude. Not me.
FoundryMusicRob: Bands on the road
generally don't have a lot of money to throw around, so when you guys
are starving and you need to throw something in your gullets, what's
the cheapest way you guys can chow down?
Jonas Stein:We get a little money every day and it's enough to eat and pocket some more after.
FoundryMusicRob: The music industry is
hard for even seasoned pros to “make it” in. There are guys from
popular bands that trek out on a solo project and flop, even though
they’re already well known. How hard are you guys finding it right now,
being a group of young hopefuls playing music that is still not
completely on the mainstream radar?
Jonas Stein:We don't give a shit about the radar. We just play what we want and whatever happens, happens.
FoundryMusicRob: Tell me about your
goals, I know some of you have more than one band, are you guys all in
it for the long haul or is BYOP something you’re doing just to see
where it goes?
Jonas Stein:We all have other projects but BYOP is main focus. We’re gonna ride this tsunami ‘til it crashes man.
FoundryMusicRob: Your press release
openly states that you don’t always tell the truth in interviews. Isn’t
that kind of a risky move with the band being so new? Aren’t you afraid
that lying about certain things might come back to bite you in the ass
years down the road? Music is very competitive after all.
Jonas Stein:Nah man it's not lying.
It’s just having fun with the interview man. Not all interviews are
great. Sometimes you hear some of the most bland and boring questions.
So in order to make those boring bland questions fun, I might give a
little fib, or stretch the truth occasionally. And it's not just me;
everyone does that in the band.
Visit BE YOUR OWN PET online:
BeYourOwnPet.net
MySpace: Be Your Own Pet
Check out BYOP's debut U.S. release (available June 6th, 2006)
