What is iT? A Brand New Band of Course!
Once in a while you have a chance to see the beginning of something you know will be great. That is the case with iT?, a new Los Angeles, CA band that is preparing for their debut show on Thursday, September 25 at The Down and Out. Formed by veteran rockers Jason Shapiro, Greg Millan and Jazz Limbo, the trio known as iT? welcomed By the Barricade into their rehearsal space and sat down for an interview to share what is up with this new group and why you should definitely check them out. The full transcripts follow, but since words only scratch the surface of what this band is about, be sure to get yourself to this show!
Jason Shapiro: Lead Vocals, Guitar
Greg Millan: Drums, Vocals
Jazz Limbo: Bass, Vocals
By the Barricade: What or who was the inspiration for you to play music and when did you start?
Jazz Limbo: We don’t even know this about each other.
Greg Millan: For me, it was because of my uncles. I come from a musical family 5 of my uncles are musicians and I grew up seeing them play these Mexican harmonies really loud. It was pretty heavy impact and for me it was my first peek at music.
By the Barricade: When did you start playing music?
Greg Millan: I was like 7 and I was sold. It was drums, piano, bass, guitar, whatever I could find, even accordion.
Jason Shapiro: Same for me, I came from a musical family. My father played guitar my brother played bass. It was unavoidable, it was in the blood. I probably started when I was around 11. I bought a guitar at Sears, started doing a band right away and I haven’t stopped.
By the Barricade: For you, has it always been guitar?
Jason Shapiro: Yes, I can play bass and stuff. I can’t play drums or piano.
Greg Millan: That’s a lie. I’ve heard him play drums. He is adequate at drums.
Jason Shapiro: I can play in a really bad punk band, but that is about it.
All: *laughing
Jazz Limbo: I didn’t have too many musicians in my family actually. My grandmother played piano and my dad might have played a little guitar. I started on the piano and from there went to Clarinet. When I heard Green Day in 1994, I was 12 and that is when I picked up the bass. I was always influenced by my parent’s style of music. There was a lot of cool stuff like Steely Dan and Bob Marley and all the stuff had a really heavy bass. I think it was only natural that I became a bass player. I put all of my other instruments down after that. It was bass forever after the Green Day album. Dookie came out and I was sold. I wanted to be a rock star.
By the Barricade: How did iT? come about?
Jason Shapiro: It just happened. I’ve been playing in Redd Kross and we are on a break. I have always had a band and was kind of going crazy. I heard Greg had wanted to play with me through a friend of a friend and Facebook connections. I put it off for a second and then I saw him at a club and said to myself, “Ok, do it now!” I walked up to him and it just happened. We set up a practice with just the two of us a couple of times and then we needed a bass player.
Greg Millan: Matt Hutchison suggested that we get her (Jazz). Matt is a friend of mine and he plays various music projects.
Jazz Limbo: He is one of the Turbojugend.
Greg Millan: He mentioned her and she is the first person that came down. It was to me a big shock that the first person was a good fit.
Jazz Limbo: It was Turbojugend that hooked me up with Des and The Cendents as well. I didn’t know Des before that. One of the guys saw me come through the town with Wild Roses in Colorado and told Des through Facebook here in LA that she should pick me up as a bass player. Des is another Turbojugend member who let me know about this gig.
Jason Shapiro: They were looking out for us.
Greg Millan: They have always taken care of me. I love those guys. Every tour that I have been on in the past 3 years, they have always had somebody somewhere in the weirdest, farthest corner of the world and they just come and take care of you. It is amazing I love those guys a little bit.
Jazz Limbo: They really help maintain the scene. When I first heard about the jugend, I thought that was super cool. We owe a lot to them.
Greg Millan: Even as much of an embryo as this band is.
Jazz Limbo: Once you learn about the punk rock community you see this jugend is right up in there.
Greg Millan: they are everywhere.
Jason Shapiro: The band Turbonegro has all of these followers called the Turbojugend (youth in German). It is like a gang. They all wear matching jackets and follow a band around and it like a community.
Jazz Limbo: They have chapters.
Greg Millan: They are very, very involved in helping touring bands. Making sure everybody gets fed, gets to the next place, gets good gigs, it’s pretty awesome.
Jason Shapiro: It (Turbonegro) is also a great band as well.
By the Barricade: What is the origin of your band name?
Jason Shapiro: I was going through names with a friend of mine who is really good at that and we were throwing names back and forth. Everything we tried was already taken. He said, “Band It.” But there was already another one. Then I said, “iT?” I accepted for a few days and it stayed the longest of all of the hundreds we came up with. Greg came up with some too. I like really simple names too even though we will probably end up in some kind of lawsuit at some point.
By the Barricade: So you write it as iT? Correct?
Jason Shapiro: For now, yes
Greg Millan: Our first album can be This is iT?
By the Barricade: I heard you play, but can you describe your sound in 5 words or less?
Jason Shapiro: I never know what is coming out of us.
By the Barricade: There is an overwhelming positive vibe. It is upbeat and positive but there is still an aggressive, driving rock sound. That is what I took away; it is a feel good thing, but not a happy, poppy sound. It is heavy and rich.
Jason Shapiro: That is a sound I have always gravitated to. It can’t be put in a certain box because I like aggressive, hard music, but I also like really melodic power poppy music at the same time.
Jazz Limbo: I call it Rock ‘n’ roll. I joined the band last and it has a lot of rock ‘n’ roll driving rhythm and like you are saying, it is not negative. There is a definite groove. You can almost dance to it.
Jason Shapiro: Greg and I like a lot of hard rock and metal as well as punk rock. I think Jazz likes a lot more punk rock and current punk bands. We are from a different generation a bit.
Greg Millan: When I was growing up I was listening to Al Green and a lot of soul music and the early David Bowie records. When Young Americans came out, my uncle was playing all of that stuff. It was my early introduction to music and then my sister came out with Led Zepplin, Black Sabbath, and after that I said, “Ok, now we are moving on.” It went from Neil Young to Sabbath and I decided to keep going that direction and here we are.
By the Barricade: Will you be doing original songs?
Greg & Jazz: Yes, all but the last one you heard.
By the Barricade: Jason, do you write all of the songs?
Jason Shapiro: I wrote all of the ones you heard. It’s all over the place. Some of those songs are literally 20 years old. I found an old home demo tape recently and it was so alien and far removed from where I am now that it was really refreshing. There were a couple of really good songs that I have never played. I thought it seemed like the right time to do a bit of that. There are also bits and pieces since I have started doing music.
Greg Millan: Kibbles and bits.*laughing
Jason Shapiro: There was no real process to it, it can come from anywhere and any procedure. It is all art.
By the Barricade: Since you are doing guitar and vocals, does one come before the other?
Jason Shapiro: I would say guitar for sure. I’m not really a singer by choice. But I don’t want to deal with another person. I like to keep things as compact as possible. If you are a singer, you never get fired.
Jazz Limbo: We would then need to get a guitar player too. It would be a double whammy. I thought I would get fired. I am not really a pick player. It was weird to learn how to lock in well. It is a certain style of playing. It’s not just playing with a pick; there are a lot of down strokes.
Jason Shapiro: Did we even suggest that you play with a pick? I know I play with a pick.
Greg Millan: I think there was a song that I said a pick might sound good for that.
Jazz Limbo: I think the songs call for a pick. We got into it some more tonight and I put the pick down because I am more comfortable with my fingers. I groove a little more when I play with my fingers.
Greg Millan: The other ones are more edgy and aggressive so they have a pounding rhythm.
Jazz Limbo: I think people are intimidated to tell me how to play sometimes. I think I have learned to take that gracefully. You may work with an artist who is very specific about they want. They have a vision; they have the song and know what it sounds like. A certain bass or drum part can really change how a song sounds so I really try to respect that. If Jason has a specific part he wants in there, I don’t mind doing that. I think when I first joined the band, people are unsure that I am receptive to that or I am unsure if that is what they want. I don’t know if they want me to do my own thing or lock into a thing. I thought when I first joined the band that I wouldn’t have made it.
Jason Shapiro: We have only been together about a month. I thought you were instantly good.
Greg Millan: My favorite quote from Jason is when I said we should try Jazz he said, “Is that a person?”
By the Barricade: That is a valid question since it is a musical style.
All: *laughing
Jason Shapiro: I thought we should go for improv that is more of our deal.
Jazz Limbo: The other day someone tagged me in a post and someone else said, “Jazz the Person, that is a great stage name.” *Laughing. I guess I should change my name to that.
By the Barricade: Out of curiosity is that your real name or a stage name?
Jazz Limbo: My real name is Jasmine but everyone has always called me Jazz.
Jason Shapiro: I never wanted to know your real name.
Greg Millan: It’s kind of a downer that you revealed that to us.
Jazz Limbo: You must have thought it was Jasmine.
Greg Millan: I thought it was Jazzercise.
All: *Laughing.
By the Barricade: You have a show coming up on September 25, what can people expect?
Jason Shapiro: We will probably do the set you saw and maybe one more song. We don’t know what people should expect, but hopefully they are refreshed with a new sound coming their way.
Greg Millan: For me the best thing about this band is that we very much are not interested in appealing to anyone in particular. You heard how diverse the set sound is and I think it is just naturally what we want to do. We are hoping and praying that people like it, but ultimately we are doing this because it feels good to us.
By the Barricade: It can appeal to a wide audience because it isn’t in a lock step genre that has a particular sound.
Jason Shapiro: It is hard for me to be genre specific. It would probably be easier for me to be successful if I decided to do say a punk band, a metal band and just do that.
Jazz Limbo: We do have a special tuning. As a listener you may not necessarily notice but if there were a musician who went home and tried to play what we are playing, he would see that it wouldn’t quite match up because we do this unique tuning thing. Initially when I joined the band he (Jason) thought I might freak out about it.
Jason Shapiro: It was new to me too.
Jazz Limbo: But I had done some reading on it. There is a whole thing about how tuning has changed now.
Jason Shapiro: What is it called now, Solfeggio Frequencies?
Jazz Limbo: The natural harmony changed after Hitler in WWII. He changed the pitch that we listen to music at. If you were to look at it as grains of sand vibrating, it is a little more agitated. If you were to listen to classical tuning it is flatter so if you were to look at the vibrating, it is perfect, there is not a grain sand out of the way. But by making it a hair sharper it agitates a little bit. I had read about that before I joined the band
Jason Shapiro: I started reading up on it and thought we should try it.
Jazz Limbo: We have adjusted to the old standard of tuning which is different than most people expect.
Greg Millan: Probably 99 % of the music world tunes different than this band. That is pretty accurate.
Jazz Limbo: It’s a subtle thing so maybe at the show they may notice something is a little different but probably would notice or know why. It’s because we have a weird tuning.
Greg Millan: They may just notice that they feel good.
By the Barricade: The positive thing.
Greg Millan: It aligns more with the human body harmonically so it can be more pleasing.
By the Barricade: I didn’t know anything about it.
Greg Millan: But you felt it.
By the Barricade: Yes, you feel that the music rock and has energy and is hard but it is very pleasing. Do you have any near future goals for the band?
Jason Shapiro: To be successful and not have to work.
Greg Millan: We want to get out on the road.
Jason Shapiro: We want to see the world.
Jazz Limbo: That’s what I really want in a band. That is what drew me to this band. I want to tour and they said, “Yeah, so do we. We want to tour Europe.” That would be cool.
Greg Millan: We definitely want to make it on this journey.
By the Barricade: So it is not a hobby
Greg Millan: That was one of the first questions I asked Jason. We got together and we played and I said, “I like it, it’s good. What do you have in mind? Do you want to be a local band?” I know he plays in Redd Kross so I know when it is time for him to go, he’s going to go. But he said, “No, I want to tour.” I’m definitely in.
Jason Shapiro: I want to stay out year round. I can’t wait around for a year doing nothing.
By the Barricade: You guys have all been in and/or are in other bands and have done this before, but as advice to other prospective bands, what is a key piece of advice for when you are starting out?
Greg Millan: For me it is to live in the moment. That is the most important thing in life. It applies to music.
Jason Shapiro: We only do it because we love it. Everything else is a bonus. Some people get really lucky or know people.
(At this point in the interview, a group of people start playing a pinball machine right next to our table and it gets really loud).
Greg Millan: You have seen Spinal Tap right? Because that machine goes to 11!
Jason Shapiro: Get yourself out there as much as possible. Get out of your comfort zone and try to see your band from the outside. Let go of your ego and view what people are going to see instead of what you think will happen.
Jazz Limbo: I think getting past the third practice is key. I’ve been in a lot of bands and you’d be surprised at how hard it is to maintain everyone’s schedules. If the second practice isn’t as good as the first practice then people get all bummed out and weird. Not every practice is going to be the most fun practice. For the most part you get the songs down and they are fun. You are learning stuff or you are tired and are getting used to meeting with these people once a week. It can be really grueling. I’ve seen a lot of bands never get past the rehearsal process and putting a set together. It takes about 2 months especially if you are only meeting once a week. If you are meeting twice a week then maybe it can be fast. It talks time for the same group of people to get together consistently and to learn the music.
Greg Millan: I got really lucky and got to be in a band with a bass player named John (Juan) Alderete. He used to drive from Venice Beach to Pico Rivera to pick me up and then we would drive to Reseda three times a week. I couldn’t even ask him to do that but he said, “It does not matter. Whatever it takes to make this band happen is what we are going to do?” He plays in The Mars Volta. Just that mentality for me is huge. I have had such lucky experiences with people like that. When I talked to Jason he wanted to get some rehearsals in and I told him I was a work horse. We play from the time we get there until it is time for us to go and that is how we have been. We are really focused on our rehearsals. You can run into people who don’t have the stamina or don’t have the drive or can’t make the schedule. People have millions of problems but this has to be a priority for us to play at a level that we want to play at. I know I want to play at a high level and we have to give it our absolute best.
By the Barricade: If you are in different places in life that can really sabotage things.
Greg Millan: (Revisiting the noise level in the room).If you are playing a different pinball machine, you are not going to make it to 11.
By the Barricade: Switching gears, what music are you listening to now, or what is your go to band when you want to listen?
Greg Millan: I am super eclectic and like anything from Charles Bradley to UFO to James Brown. I like a lot of soul music. It could be absolutely anything. I listen to Motorhead and I listen to all of those on a daily basis. That is how messed up I am.
Jason Shapiro: The Briefs, Supergrass, AC/DC, Rolling Stones, Black Sabbath, Cheap Trick, all over the place.
Jazz Limbo: I am guilty of listening to the same stuff all the time. I know a lot of songs and I have heard a lot of music, but in my own personal time I listen to a lot of Fat Wreck bands (Fat Wreck Chords). I listen to Lagwagon, Strung Out and I really love Propagandhi, that is my favorite band. Lately I also listen to American Steel.
By the Barricade: Is there anything else you want to tell the readers of By the Barricade?
Greg Millan: Come see us because we are putting in 110%. We would love to see you all there. Like us on Facebook.
Jazz Limbo: I have been playing bass a lot longer than you think. I love getting up there and if you think it is going to be your typical girl on a bass kind of show, you can forget that notion right now. I am going to be sweaty and mean just like any dude up there. I will probably sweat more than Jason.
Greg Millan: We push it!
Jason Shapiro: It is going to be fun because we have never really seen each other move around. In practice I am kind of stuck there but I do move around a little more.
Greg Millan: Plus we are rehearsing in a closet so it is a little different when there is room to move around.
Jazz Limbo: We are going to put on a really good show. We are a power trio and there is so much room to do your thing.
Greg Millan: People will be surprised at the sound that is coming out of three people. I am surprised. Honestly, you think of Nirvana and they had a pretty amazing sound going but everybody is singing in this band and that is another element added.
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