Screaming Jets
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Screaming Jets

Do the Screaming Jets even need an introduction? Since the late 1980’s they have released seven albums, gaining more steam with each one as well as touring extensively nation-wide. Nowadays, The Jets are established as one of Australia’s most esteemed rock and roll outfits, and have recently returned with their newest LP Chrome – the bands first release in eight years.

According to guitarist Jimi Hocking, this was one of the bands most enjoyable recording experiences yet. “There was no real strain about it. We did it in a very old fashioned way by working up the album, from acoustic guitars demos basically to all standing in the room playing the songs, and we recorded it like that.

“We got the original producer Steve James, who did the first couple of albums as well as the World Gone Crazy album, so he got back on board as well. In a way, it was the feeling of getting the old gang back together to make this record and it really put us in a good place.”

By recording the album in a live setting, Jimi feels Chrome marks a much more natural sound for the band.

“In today’s day and age, a lot of people have great home recording gear and a lot of small studios work in a different way. Now you can kind of cut and paste a record together and that’s not a bad thing necessarily, but it is a function of technology that people make records in that way. We decided we didn’t want to do that kind of record.

“When you hear a record that’s been recorded by four or five guys who have been in a room playing these songs together, there is a real cohesion about the sound. We are literally playing off each other’s nuances musically. That’s what you don’t get when you record the drums, then bass, then guitars all individually; it’s a different process.”

With no time for slowing down, The Jets have already released a new single “Cash In Your Ticket” which does not appear on Chrome. However, according to Jimi, this single has been a work in progress for a very long time now.

“Paul Woseen has always been the main song writer for the Jets since the very start and I think in a different life Dave, Paul and myself worked on that song, maybe 18 or 19 years ago, but it never really came out the way we had hoped. It is a heavy song – it’s about a friend of Paul, who committed suicide and it is a heavy subject matter for him. When that’s the case you kind of find that you want those types of songs to be exactly how you want them to be. The song sat for a while and has re-emerged now with our new line-up and it really came together great.”

Written by Alex Callan

When & Where: The Gateway Hotel, Corio – October 8