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Getting personal with Jade of Days - Part Two
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Jade of Days (clockwise from upper left - Sandro Costa, Junior Medeiros,
Dana Kelley, Nelson Medeiros, Nelson Candido)
Never let it be said that San Jose’s Jade of Days is a "standard" rock band. Blending powerful and soulful vocals – courtesy of the talented Dana Kelley – with intricate arrangements influenced by a plethora of genres, expertly brought together by musicians Nelson Medeiros (guitars), Sandro Costa (keyboards), Nelson Candido (bass), and Junior Medeiros (drums), Jade of Days is anything but “standard”. In 2005, they released their first album, In the Absence of Light, and set out to make their mark on the local music scene. A year later, their second release – Gracas a Deus – presented fans with a much more experimental collection of music that only served to enhance what they considered to be their signature sound. Jade of Days kept busy, playing every venue in the South Bay (and some beyond), building their base, sharing their unique musical vision with more and more people, becoming recognized as one of the premier talents working the scene. Then, after enduring line-up changes and striving to move onward and upward, health issues within the band necessitated them taking a hiatus from writing and performing, a hiatus which has lasted for a year and a half.
Saturday, April 25th, sees the triumphant return of Jade of Days to the South Bay music battleground as they take the stage at the Cupertino Britannia Arms, happy, healthy, and with a revitalized approach to their music that is a reflection of the talent flowing together in their current line-up. I recently sat down with the band at their rehearsal studio to discuss the past, present, and future of Jade of Days.
Part Two of a two-part interview.
South Bay Rock Music Examiner: Detail for me the standard Jade of Days approach to song writing. Who contributes the lyrics, who contributes the music, etc.
DK: We all contribute what we play.
NM: Yeah.
NC: Well, I think the basic premise usually starts with the guitar line…
NM: Yeah, a guitar line will always start...
NC: …or a bass line. Then he’ll (Nelson Medeiros) give me a recording and we’ll listen to it over and over and over again until we come up with something cool. Kind of sucks for me when Junior comes in because now he’s got this cool-ass little thing and I’m like, “Ok, now I want to do something along his lines.” So, I think the combination starts with the fundamentals, which is the music. And then Dana always comes in and f***ing does her thing and does it wonderfully. It starts with one and it kind of grows from that, y’know? It starts with one mind, then we’ll think of a chorus, we’ll think of a bridge together, or one guy will think of a better bridge, and that’s the bridge we’ll use. So it just starts with one guy and just kind of escalates from there.
NM: A lot of times it starts off, like, personally for me when I write my music, well, when I write music for the band, because it’s not my music, it’s our music, I’m very…this is going to sound weird…when I write music I have Dana’s voice in my head because it makes it that much easier for me to write because I know what register to go to, I know what to do, that with that. Many of us actually have theory under our belts so we can catch those intervals and stuff. And what I will do is try to compose something as close to a finished project as possible. I’ll bring it to practice and then I’ll show everybody what I have. Normally I’ll hand out CDs and say, “Ok, guys, this is something new I’ve been working on.” Then, this is where the collaboration comes into play. I came up with this basis, but then everyone says, “Hey, maybe we should do this”, “Maybe we should tweak this to do this”. And that’s where the real magic start happening because when one person is writing all the music, it’s going to sound the same. When five people put their heads together and say, “Maybe we should do this, maybe we should change the rhythm here”, that’s where that band aspect of writing together really comes into play.
One thing I really look forward to is an opportunity for us to actually spend some time together for maybe a few months and actually meet up once in awhile and write as a group, just come up with ideas on the spot and work. But for right now the music process has been there has been one person, normally, comes up with as close to a finished project as possible and then we present it to everyone else, and input is given. Once we reach something we’re happy with, that’s what we put down.
DK: But they do it so fast. Nelson comes in with a song, and Junior has, like, an amazing beat 20 seconds later, and then he (waves at Nelson Candido) has something, and then plays with it (waves at Sandro Costa) has something, and then I come back, like, 8 weeks later finally…(laughter)
NC: La la la la la…and we’re like, “What are you singing?”
DK: Yeah…like just now, we’re about to record…“We have to hear what you’re singing”
NM: We use to call her “La La”…
DK: I have to wait to write lyrics until I have something to say so I just do my "la la…"
NM: It’s good for us, too, because we hear a better idea of what her melodies are like. Sometimes, I think we get ideas off of that, too.
DK: I have to fit words to the melodies, I don’t write melodies.
NM: The bottom line is that it makes writing so easy because it’s so nice to come to practice with a song and everyone has something written (snaps finger) within five minutes. I’ve played in bands in which I would come to practice with a song written and I’d have my band’s lead singer, for hours, trying to figure out what to do. These guys, I show it to them, they listen to it once, they’re ready to go. Every single one of them. And that’s the best part of this band, the chemistry.
JM: The writing process is definitely pretty fast.
NC: I don’t think we have any big issue with writing music. I think that comes pretty naturally to us. I think what we have to do now is work on our image.
NM: Yeah, we have to lose about 300lbs…
NC: Maybe our stage presence a little bit because I just stand there…
NM: That’s the thing, though. No one goes there to see us (the guys). When you have a gorgeous blond standing in front of you, what’s the point? Who cares about the four fat dudes behind her? (laughter)
DK: (to SBRME) Would you please stress that I am not a blond?
NC: Dirty blond!
(laughter)
SBRME: With the current collection of material Jade of Days has created, what is the next move for the band?
DK: We need to write more songs.
JM: Go to Disneyland. (laughter)
SC: Yeah, we have to write a full, full album…
NM: I’ll tell you what we want to do, too, is just gig a lot more, maybe get a little reunion tour going…
DK: But not ridiculous…
JM: Yeah, get back into it.
NC: Expose ourselves a little bit more now. Because we definitely have the songs and, like I said, its not an issue to write more songs, but take what we have now...
SC: I think what you’re asking is, “Where are you trying to go with the music?”, correct?
SBRME: Well, you have your material prior, you have your new material. What’s your game plan moving forward? Do you want to get signed? Do you just want to tour to tour and get all the material down pat?
DK: I could play the Cupertino Brit for the rest of my life and never get tired…
SBRME: I think that’s what I’m getting at, what Dana said. Do you enjoy staying local?
NM: Oh, of course.
NC: I think with what we have here, we can definitely go different places and attract more fans there as well and just build and build and build and build until eventually we will get that record contract…which we so desperately want. Because let’s face it, that’s what we all want.
SC: We are all hopeful…but we are realistic.
NM: We understand that its going to be tough. Honestly, I can listen to some music right now that’s on the radio and know that – if it wasn’t for the fact that the band was already established – would not be on that radio. And I know that were we already established, it would be good stuff.
JM: But we’re not.
NM: But I don’t necessarily expect something extraordinary happening. I don’t expect to be the next Metallica. And the bottom line is that anyone who does this just to get signed is doing it for all the wrong reasons. If you don’t love the music, you shouldn’t be doing it.
SC: But as a little inkling, everybody does want to get signed. (laughter)
DK: I just like staying in my little Bay Area…
JM: No, I love the Bay Area…
NM: You’re going to tell me you don’t want to see 20,000 screaming fans in a stadium for you…(laughter)
NC: …all those hot guys wanting your jock…(laughter)
DK: Maybe once in awhile it would be cool to do something big and fun, but y’know I don’t…
(giggles and laughter from everyone else)
NM: Are you talking about guys now? (everyone laughs)
DK (playing off the joke) Every once in awhile it would be nice to do something big, but I’m cool with the small ones, too…
NM: ...as long as they know what they’re doing!
SC: Wow, that took a turn for the worse…(laughter)
SBRME: Finally, if you could pick a “dream tour” or desirable bill to be a part of, what other bands – national acts or local – would you want to share the stage with?
NM: Personally…and everyone has their own opinion…
SC: I think you know where I’m going with this…
JM: …Journey, Dream Theater, Muse, Paramore…
NM: I think right now, just for the fact that we are similar to these bands I think the best line-up for us…
JM: Tell him the truth...
DK: Dream, what you would dream…
NM: What I would dream? Ok, it would have to be Dream Theater because John Petrucci, if I could, I would lick his b****, because he’s the man.
SBRME: You know that’s going in, right? (laughter)
JM: You know, personally, for me, I would have to say, like, Muse or Paramore because we kind of sound like them…
DK: Not that we ever would and not that it would match, but Fleetwood Mac. Just to be able to say we played with Stevie Nicks, dude, hell yeah…
SC: That will never happen.
DK: It won’t. But it would my dream.
NC: Never say never.
DK: They are on tour…
NM: What about you? (leaning to look at Sandro Costa)
SC: Oh, Journey.
NM: (laughing) Journey.
SC: Or Testament.
SBRME: Steve Perry Journey or the new version?
DK: Steve Perry Journey.
All: Yeah, Steve Perry…
SC: Absolutely.
JM: I know who you want to tour with (nodding to Nelson Candido)
NC: Although I hate their music now, I’m still a diehard fan of them and I always will be, is f***ing Metallica. It’s always been Metallica. And Mudvayne. I know we are not anything near like them, but I love their bassist.
DK I thought you were going to say Neil Diamond.
SC: The Wham! reunion…(laughter)
NC: A-ha, A-ha…
JM: Kajagoogoo…
NM: Yeah! Kajagoogoo! (laughter)
DK: Its exciting though because we do have Left Coast Live, the Your Music Olympiks again. Left Coast Live is going to be sweet. You should write about that, plug that.
SBRME: Well, that’s all I’ve got. So unless you guys have anything else you would like to add…
DK: We love Barb Rocks!
NM: Barb Rocks!
NC: I love burritos.
JM: Barb Rocks, great manager, awesome friend.
DK: That is something important to say, is that with the success of the cool shows we’ve gotten to play and the magazines we’ve gotten to be in, and the interviews that we’ve gotten, all of that…it’s not because we did any of that. It was all Barb. And just like what you (South Bay Rock Music Examiner) were writing today, how integral to the music scene Barb is, we have benefitted from that immensely. That was probably one of the best decisions we ever made, was recruiting Barb to…I mean, it started out as, “Barb, I don’t want to book shows, will you do it for me?” and now she does everything for us. We do the band, she does all of the “getting us out there”, for nothing (laughter). She’ll get paid someday…(laughter)
Jade of Days is playing the Cupertino Britannia Arms Saturday, April 25, 2009, with Left of Christ, March Into Paris, and T Minus 7. Show starts at 9pm and there is a $5 cover charge. They will also be featured as one of a huge collection of bands that will be showcased during Left Coast Live taking over downtown San Jose May 11th through May 15th. Make sure to visit www.leftcoastlive.com for event and ticket information.
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