{"id":1904,"date":"2018-11-11T05:00:14","date_gmt":"2018-11-11T05:00:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=1904"},"modified":"2018-11-10T15:29:33","modified_gmt":"2018-11-10T15:29:33","slug":"rich-jones-interview-michael-monroe-band-black-halos-etc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/?p=1904","title":{"rendered":"Rich Jones Interview (Michael Monroe Band, Black Halos etc)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>You’re currently on tour with Michael Monroe and are about to hit the UK with MC50.\u00a0 Must be cool gig to get playing in a band with Michael, Sami, Steve and Karl and then getting\u00a0to play as guests with the likes of Wayne Kramer must be a dream job?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Oh yeah, I mean I grew up with the Hanoi Rocks stuff and I loved it, and these guys are some of my best friends in the world. It\u2019s a rare situation being in a band where there isn\u2019t one arsehole who makes it a nightmare being on the bus, haha. We all get along so great and I think you can see that onstage as well. And those guys are total badasses at what they do so it makes it so easy every night onstage when you know you can rely on everyone else to be killing it.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

The MC50 thing is great for us as well, hopefully, it\u2019ll get us out in front of some people who might not know us and may be surprised by what this band is all about. I think it\u2019s a great fit. Hopefully, we don\u2019t get bottled off!\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>You’ve also just finished recording the new album.\u00a0 When can we all get to hear the new songs?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Hopefully soon, but I\u2019d guess sometime in the spring. We\u2019ve taken our time with it, making sure the mix is right and that that the record is the best it can possibly be. So we\u2019re just going into mastering now, we haven\u2019t really even thought about release dates yet.<\/span><\/p>\n

How does the writing work within the band?\u00a0 What with you guys spread out all over the globe?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

It really depends. For ‘Blackout States’ I went to NYC with Steve and Karl and we spent a week working out ideas and then finished them up at home. This time we couldn\u2019t really manage to find the time when we could do something like that so everyone did a lot of work at home and then sent demos around. Steve and I will find hotel time when we can and bash around ideas – we wrote one of the new ones in Tokyo last year – but mostly it\u2019s been a case of sending finished songs to each other.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>You’ve also gotten together with a few Black Halos to record a new record with those guys as well? Do you get bored easily?\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Ha! I just try to keep busy, I don\u2019t like having a lot of down time. The Black Halos thing has just been rolling along slowly, I try to work on stuff when I have gaps in my schedule. We\u2019ve got enough songs for a record now but we don\u2019t really have a complete band line-up. Jay Millette from the original Halos lineup just played on some stuff but I don\u2019t think he really wants to tour these days. John Kerns has been playing bass and I\u2019d love it if he\u2019d come along for the live shows as well. We\u2019ll see. Karl Rockfist played drums on some stuff and so did TV from Radio Dead Ones. There\u2019s not a lot of pressure on this stuff yet, we\u2019ll probably make some real plans once we\u2019ve recorded a full album. Right now it\u2019s just a bunch of demos and a few finished-sounding songs.\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Do you have to get into a different mindset when writing for The Monroes perspective compared to the Black Halos or with Rags?\u00a0 is there a different pressure involved?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

I wouldn\u2019t call it pressure, although I suppose it was at first with Monroe. There\u2019s such a high standard of writing with that band that I was worried that my songs weren\u2019t going to be up to scratch. But now it\u2019s pretty relaxed for me, I kind of know what works and what doesn\u2019t which makes things a lot easier. So I wrote a lot more for this new record than I did for Blackout States. As with anything though, you need to get into a certain mindset for what suits the band and the people that you\u2019re working with. So I know what\u2019ll work for the Halos, and what\u2019ll work for Michael.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

With Rags it\u2019s usually just me and him having a bunch of drinks and a laugh and if something comes out of it, cool. He\u2019s such a great, prolific writer that my involvement in his stuff is usually pretty minimal – I\u2019ll maybe say \u2018change a chord here\u2019 or \u2018try this bridge\u2019 etc. The bulk of the work is always coming from him.\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

I don’t suppose you’re going to give away any of the titles of the songs or give us any idea as to what to expect?\u00a0\u00a0<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

For the Monroe record? Well, I don\u2019t want to give too much away right now. It\u2019s a much more broad record than Blackout States. There\u2019s still some raging punk rock but there\u2019s a lot more diversity in the stuff. I mean we\u2019re not going funk or anything but I think it sounds like a band that\u2019s getting comfortable enough to stretch out more than in the past. We\u2019ve got some great guests on it as well – Nasty Suicide plays some guitar and it\u2019s the first time he\u2019s recorded with Michael and Sami in something like 25 years. So that was cool to be a part of. There\u2019s a couple of other people on there as well. Some surprises \ud83d\ude09\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>The artwork and merch also involve yourself and you’ve certainly been responsible for some amazing pieces.\u00a0 Do you have a particular favourite sleeve you’ve come up with? does it get inspired by the music or are you always coming up with new ideas?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

No, I tend to look for inspiration once I get a job. Normally I ask if someone\u2019s looking for a certain vibe and then work from there. It depends on how much free reign I get as well – some bands that I\u2019ve worked with in the past want to let every member have their say in things and it ends up as a sort of \u2018design by committee\u2019 situation and that pretty much always turns out awful. As far as favourite stuff that I\u2019ve done\u2026 it\u2019s hard to pick one. Feel free to go check \u2018em out at my website though *cough*\u00a0turningrebellion.com<\/a>. haha<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>It must be inspiring working with such talented and creative people. You’ve always surrounded yourself with people who work really hard at their passion.\u00a0 Are there some projects that really stand out that you’ve been involved in?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Honestly, it\u2019s this band. Everyone\u2019s got such a great work ethic and we all complement each other really well. Making records with these guys is such a blast – it\u2019s an amazing feeling hearing my home demos get taken to the next level and turned into these fully-realised songs. I love working with Ginger and Jon Poole as well – two absolutely insanely talented guys who push me to work harder and be better at what I do when I\u2019m around them. When we\u2019re not in the \"\"<\/a>pub, that is.<\/span><\/p>\n

Taking a look at what you’ve done so far take us back to where it all began.\u00a0 what or who were the main reason you got into playing the guitar and wanted to be in a band?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Oh that\u2019s an easy one. My parents took me to see Queen when I was 8 and that was it. Brian May ripping into the Bohemian Rhapsody guitar solo COMPLETELY sold me on playing music! So by the time I was 12 or 13 I had bands with my school friends playing Black Sabbath and Judas Priest covers (because that\u2019s all I could really manage to learn how to play – Paranoid and Breaking The Law!) and then I never really stopped. Early records I loved were things like Adam & The Ants and The Pretenders. David Bowie. Then I took a little turn into metal for a while – I\u2019ve seen Iron Maiden so many times dude, hahaha! But funnily it was those Hanoi records that made me look back to stuff like the New York Dolls and Johnny Thunders. Seeing the Ramones when I was 18 or 19. Discovering Stiv Bators catalogue of stuff. You know, you keep looking and finding new music and it leads you down these little paths of discovery. I still love it to this day. There\u2019s so much great new music out there that makes me want to keep playing and writing.\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

You’ve played on plenty of records over the years are there any that people might be surprised\u00a0to find you had a hand in?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Probably the weirdest one is a single that I recorded a few years ago for Andy Cairns\u2019 birthday. It\u2019s me, Michael McKeegan & Neil Cooper from Therapy?, Tim Wheeler from Ash, Ricky Warwick, Diamond Dave (beloved radio host) and we were called The Gemils. We covered Another Girl, Another Planet and also did one original song called Purveyor Of Quackery. Only 10 vinyl copies of the single were pressed and they were given out to the band members and Andy for his 50th birthday. Possibly the rarest single ever!\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

When you’re writing songs how do you go about it?\u00a0 Is it a guitar part like a riff or a melody that comes first and do you come up with lyrics as well and hows your drumming?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

It can be anything. Sometimes it\u2019s a riff or a melody but usually I get a spark for a lyric and start working it into a chorus. I often get ideas while I\u2019m out walking my dogs so I end up quietly singing them into my phone while pretending I\u2019m on a phone call so people don\u2019t think I\u2019m an absolute lunatic. From there it\u2019s a case of working out melodies and writing lyrics that fit. So generally speaking when I\u2019m writing for Michael I\u2019ll try to inhabit his headspace a bit and then write the lyrics from that point of view. Then I\u2019ll demo it all up at home and send the guys a complete song. As for my drumming, well that\u2019s what drum machines are for my friend!<\/span><\/p>\n

What’s the best thing about your job? Live?\u00a0Studio?\u00a0 the creative aspect of writing?\u00a0 and on the flip side what do (if anything) you least look forward to.\u00a0 (Travel) (hanging around) making a video or waiting for the records to come out once they’ve been finished?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Touring is fun for sure. Being on the bus, playing the shows – I love those parts of it. I like making records and designing merch, doing the album artwork. That\u2019s all a lot of fun. The airports and soundchecks, missing my family and the endless hours of waiting around I could live without. I\u2019m not a fan of photoshoots and making videos either but they\u2019re a necessary evil, haha. Honestly though, I really can\u2019t complain about anything – this is my day job and it\u2019s the best job in the world.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n

A few quick questions.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Do you have a favourite song to play with Michael?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

You know, it\u2019s a blast playing pretty much everything in the set. It\u2019s nice to be able to change things up and play some new stuff but I\u2019m not sure I have a favourite. Right now we\u2019re doing an acoustic set in the middle of the show and that\u2019s a lot of fun because it\u2019s something different and refreshing. But then I also like bashing people over the head with the punk rock hammer as well\"\"<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

How does it work when picking a set list?\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s just some stuff that we have to play. It\u2019s expected that we\u2019ll play some Hanoi and we\u2019ll play some of the bigger solo songs. So there\u2019s stuff that\u2019s just always there and then we try to mix up the rest of the set as much as we can. I try to stay out of it for the most part because having 5 guys try to pick 20 songs over email is an endless and frustrating experience, haha!<\/span><\/p>\n

Are all the Hanoi songs fair game and what would you like to play that hasn’t been in the set list yet?<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Yeah I guess so. I haven\u2019t really thought about it too much. We\u2019re not gonna play any of the Hanoi \u2018reunion\u2019 stuff but we\u2019ll dig into the original band\u2019s material a lot. Right now we\u2019re playing \u2018Lost In The City\u2019 and \u2018Lightnin\u2019 Bar Blues\u2019 which we\u2019ve never done before. As for stuff I\u2019d like to play – I just want this new record out so we can play some new songs!<\/span><\/p>\n

When the Monroe album comes out can we in the UK expect a headline tour?\u00a0 what about some summer dates\u00a0and a return to Rebellion after this years\u00a0show-stealing\u00a0performance easily the best set played at the festival by anyone.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

I\u2019m sure we\u2019ll be back to the UK sometime next year. We\u2019d love to do Rebellion again if they\u2019ll have us – it was a blast! I really wasn\u2019t sure how we\u2019d go over but the crowd was fantastic. So we\u2019re looking at summer festival offers now and we\u2019ll see what happens. We\u2019ve got a few in Spain already and hopefully, we\u2019ll get back over to see you guys as well. I think things will become a little more clear once we\u2019ve got the album ready to go!<\/span><\/p>\n

Thanks for your time Rich hopefully I’ll catch you on a show somewhere sometime in the near future and I look forward to hearing all this new music you’ve\u00a0been recording.\u00a0 Exciting times.<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Thank you, Dom, always a pleasure! Hope to see you soon<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

You’re currently on tour with Michael Monroe and are about to hit the UK with MC50.\u00a0 Must be cool gig to get playing in a band with Michael, Sami, Steve and Karl and then getting\u00a0to play as guests with the likes of Wayne Kramer must be a dream job? Oh yeah, I mean I grew […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2080,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"image","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[40],"tags":[266,190,267,165,265,269,268],"class_list":["post-1904","post","type-post","status-publish","format-image","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","tag-black-halos","tag-ginger","tag-john-ford","tag-michael-monroe","tag-rich-jones","tag-role-models","tag-therapy","post_format-post-format-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1904","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1904"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1904\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2075,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1904\/revisions\/2075"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2080"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1904"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1904"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rpmonline.co.uk\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1904"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}