NP: I thought there is a DJ and an MC in the Rumblefish lineup?
Possum: We're going to take J-Byrd, the sample guy out on the road with us. He'll do the back up and all the extra sound. We're going to have Dom do a song or two on the album- as a special guest. They're part of the family.

NP: Kinda like what they do for shows, now?
Possum: Pretty much. If we're lucky enough to do some festivals, bigger shows, or West Coast stuff we're going to bring Dom out. That's honestly, the extent of it. The main four in the band is Mike, Jason, Dungis, and myself.

NP: What's the history on Dungis?
Jason: He played bass and sang in a band called Medium. That band was very eclectic and very Primus influenced. He's an awesome bass player. His bass is now toned up as it was in Medium because Medium was all bass. Now, he's playing more of a team. It's a total team in this project. I knew after that first rehearsal when we went over four songs with him and by the end of it, he had them - for the most part. I was shocked! He's one of the best musicians I've ever played with. There is no ego there.

NP: With the line-up change, you're taking away the samples and basically the hip-hop aspect of the band. Did you just get tired of it or is the rock audience not as responsive to that sound anymore?
Possum: Dom was original and J-Byrd was the MC in the old Rumblefish. We had J-Byrd do samples. Basically, the first six months of Rumblefish was a side project for me and Jason because we still had Hot Sauce going on at the same time. Last spring we decided, if we're going to do this we're going to do this right. We've got to clean house- get rid of the nonsense. We got a new lawyer, and we decided to change management. It came down to: we're going to be a good rock band instead of this rap rock band that everyone in Los Angeles thought that we were.
Jason: We have much better songwriting abilities than that.
Possum: Until that time, no one really took us seriously. They all thought we were good live. Our live show - everyone jumps up and has a great time! Now, not only are we a good live band but we have good songs, too. Songwriting took precedent. Then we just put the team in play. No matter how good you are- you need to have proactive management and proactive lawyers or no one is going to find out about you. No one is going to give a shit. You have to have someone representing the band. We did a couple songs for Columbia Records. They thought it was good but it wasn't up to snuff to them. Which honestly, was the best thing that could've happened. If we would've went with them, at that point- we still would've had the rapping element, the same management, and they probably would've thrown us in a rehearsal room for a year and nit picked over stuff. That label is so big we would've gotten lost in the shuffle. With Kevin, it's full circle because Jason and I had a relationship with him before and he believes in us. Once we had the songs to back up the whole thing- that was all we needed because we know our A&R; guy will go to bat for us. He was willing to go to his boss and say, if you do not sign this fucking band- I'm walking. Not many people are going to do that cuz there are a lot of ball-less people in this business that we're in. They're about saving their job, saving their neck- and he was willing to put it all on the line for us- and that is really cool.
Jason: It's because he believes in the music. He's unlike people at other labels that just wait for the buzz to swell then they jump in even if they don't like it themselves. It's just an ego thing. Kevin is just totally different. He didn't care who was into it. He listened to the songs and he knows what Possum and I have to offer. He didn't care if Columbia was into it he believed in it himself and that is the kind of person we want. We're going to get honesty from him - not smoke.
Possum: Yeah, he'll tell us if something sucks and he'll say if it's good. It's funny because since we found out about the deal, there have been a few bands from LA that we have played with that were talking a little bit of shit saying Roadrunner signed this rap rock band. Then they hear the new stuff we just did and they realize there has been a complete change in command- and those bands have now completely changed their tune.
Jason: Rap rock was just a teeny part of what we have to offer musically. It's like saying The Beatles only do acoustic music because some of their songs were acoustic, and that's obviously not true. People get narrow-minded and it gets around. Hearsay totally controls everything. Instead of people just going and checking it out for themselves- they just say, oh that's a rap rock band. Rap rock is just one percent- we don't really have that. We have songs. We have songwriting.
Possum: It took us awhile but we have found our niche. I think every band goes through that. They go through a point to find themselves and we have found it. It took longer than it did with Hot Sauce because that was a completely unique project. With this, we had to do a little soul searching and we have found our element and it's on!

NP: When Rumblefish first started out the style seemed to be much more aggressive- why the change?
Jason: I wouldn't say it's toned down and less aggressive because there are still parts that do have that aggressiveness - we just brought in the other elements we have to offer instead of being one dimensional. There's a lot of bands out there that I consider good but their music is one dimensional and you can't listen to the whole album. Now, you take other great groups- whoever you want- if you listen to their albums they have that variety most of the time. Whether it's a ballad or acoustic. So, Possum and I decided to bring in the songwriting style that we had in Hot Sauce Johnson. Good songs. Not everything has to be like Slipknot- just all out one-dimensional. I mean, that works and is totally cool but we have more to offer than just being aggressive.
Possum: More than anything, it's the vocals. The music is still slammin'! The music that we're doing is like a Rage Against The Machine vibe - it's still hard and has that angst to it. Now, instead of screaming and grunting over choruses there's actually a melody going on. There's nothing better than doing a show and looking out and seeing people actually singing your songs. That's a really fucking cool feeling!
Jason: Before we just had pits. There would just be little dudes and big pits. Now, it's little dudes, big pits, and singing girls- it's cool! We have singing, dancing girls, little dude pits and then just little dudes running around!
Possum: Lots of little dudes.

NP: Roadrunner is obviously a metal label with Slipknot, Fear Factory, Coal Chamber�
Possum: BUT - they were! That's one of the reasons we didn't want to sign with them when we were in Hot Sauce Johnson because they were strictly a metal label.
Jason: They flew us (Hot Sauce Johnson) out to New York and all we saw were these gothic people! Hahahaha! Their publicists are all gothic like Marilyn Manson- we were thinking, how are they ever going to stand our music?? They had spikes on their jackets!

NP: You brought them Truck Stop Jug Hop?
Jason: Yeah! They all loved it! Roadrunner wanted to change and expand somewhat. We just didn't think it was the right move for us at that time. So Slipknot got all our money!
Possum: We didn't want to be the guinea pig for a label that wanted to change it's course. Now, with the success of Nickleback, Roadrunner has an in with radio- that's their first band to have some commercial success. Now, they want to broaden their horizons, so it's a safer bet for us.
Jason: I think now, they want to become a more well rounded label like major labels are. You have some hardcore music and you have some that isn't. That's what they wanted to go into because they have completely conquered that market. I heard the owner of Island/Def Jam has conquered the hip-hop market. Every album they put out goes gold or platinum. He's bored. That's why he started going into rock and that's why you have Sum 41, Hoobastank because he's bored with success. I mean, you want to start other things. I think the owner of Roadrunner thought the same thing with all the hard music and decided to go into a different direction. We still have some hardness but have some pop sensibility, too. I think, Nickleback is their greatest selling act of all time. Next month, Nickleback is going to outsell Alice in Chains' biggest album, Dirt. That's off one song.
Possum: It's cool because the same people that are working the Nickleback record will be working the Rumblefish record. We're not like Nickleback- we're a lot harder and more aggressive.
Jason: Their shows are a lot different.
Possum: : We could play with Nickleback if we had to. We could also play with Fear Factory if we had to. So, we're good and safe!

NP: Explain to the soon-to-be Rumblefish fans your sound.
Jason: It's weird, now.
Possum: I can tell you, if a fan said we're kinda like RATM with melodies and a little pop sensibility- I would be completely happy.
Jason: That is what it's like. I would say it's like an updated RATM. RATM draws heavily from the 70's, at least the guitar and the music do but keep the angst with the rapping. I would say we have the same feel as RATM with an updated guitar sound with updated style of riffs. The riffs aren't based on the 70's they are based on my own style I've come up with but not from Jimmy Page or Jimi Hendrix kinda like what Tom Morello does.
Possum: Without the political side. Honestly, we're not a political band- we're never going to be a political band. As far as the music, the sound, the intensity and the way the crowd reacts - there are some similarities- which is cool.
Jason: Our politics are as political as the Grateful Dead's is - just do what you want to do - as long as you're not hurting us.

NP: You've opened for Linkin Park, Mudvayne, Soulfly, amongst other national acts. How did you land those key shows? Jason: I think when we first played in Rumblefish, everyone was hyped to see what Possum and I was going to do. Also, Mike, Dom, and J-Byrd had a lot of friends. I remember the first show we played we headlined. So, Mike Maglieri, who is the M Productions honcho -was really impressed with what we did and every time a really good national act would come through, he would want us to support it and the show would completely sell out. Then, it would just grow from there. All the sudden, we were playing with Soulfly, Linkin Park, Crazy Town, and we did well with those crowds. We never failed. We always put on a great show. A lot of bands got upset because they wanted their chance to get in there BUT a lot of us getting in there was a lot of hard work. It was on the promotion tip. Possum and I would go through our phone books and just call. We would do internet promotions, as well. The people would just show up and it just got bigger and bigger. NP: I interviewed Nonpoint and they said in order to grow nationally you need to dominate your scene. Do you think you've dominated LA? Possum: Definitely but it's harder in LA. Where is Nonpoint from? NP: Miami, Florida. Possum: I'm from North Carolina and it's easier for a band to get a huge following in their hometown because people are hungry for it. The problem with LA is half the people are involved in the industry somehow. They go to your shows with their arms crossed and they want to be impressed. That's why we like the all ages shows because the kids go fucking nuts! Honestly, 21 and over shows suck in LA because it's all industry and they're not going to get it. It is very important to get that local fan base and start from there but honestly, the bands that are huge- like Creed probably do not sell squat in LA. In Oklahoma, Kansas, Iowa, etc... That band is huge! That's where the kids that are starving for music are. That is where we want to go. We're tired of playing LA, that's our hometown and we love it but we want to play Ft. Worth, Texas and Battle Creek, Michigan. We want to play those spots because those kids are hungry for it. We got a little taste of that in Hot Sauce and we liked it! Jason: We have conquered out here- as much as a band from LA can conquer. We have huge pits and lots of people show up and that is an exception. There are so many bands and some are good and still nobody comes to see them. Here in LA, everyone is trying to do the same thing- it's really hard to really get it going here, fan base- wise. NP: So, what is going to stand out? Jason: Definitely, the live shows. Just the energy! It's all about what you portray and we have that, naturally. You can't fake that. Have you ever seen bands that try to fake it? They look dumb. When they're up they're trying to go off, like they're really trying to get into it and they just look like clowns. That kind of energy is one of the hardest elements to have and we just happen to have it. The next thing is the songwriting and the style of what we're doing. We don't have that gimmick- we're not wearing makeup. Our band is doing it for real- legit. NP: The Rumblefish street team has acquired over 13,000 members in 44 states and even teamers in 18 countries- in only a year and a half of existence - that's insane! Jason: We had links on Sickness1 and The Gauntlet. We actually shut down our website. We had a sign up for the street team and we could not keep up with the requests. People were getting upset that no one was getting back to them. It's really hard to- it takes hours upon hours to. I've kept myself up all night trying to e-mail people back saying, thanks for joining the team, etc. Kids are anxious and that's cool but we just had to shut it down. So, we're going to wait until we come out and we have a professional or a squad of people who can run it right for us. Right now we just do not have the logistics to handle it ourselves. NP: Are you going to keep the Rumblefish1 site? Possum: I think we're going to have something else. Obviously, we've made a few changes by getting a new bass player and management. We're going to start from scratch. That should be soon, though! NP: How did you land a spot on the 2001 Cypress Hill's SmokeOut ? Possum: : Last summer, Cypress Hill put together this contest of all the local LA bands to battle for an opening slot on the SmokeOut. We did a couple shows- they liked what we were doing, so we got invited to do the Fat Festival in San Bernardino, CA with ten bands. We had no idea the winner of the contest was going to be judged by crowd participation. No one told us squat on how it was going to go down. We did not know anyone in San Bernardino. We went out and played- we just hired our new bass player. He had only rehearsed with us twice and only knew four songs. Mike and Jason were sick and we still went out there and fuckin rocked it! It comes time for the crowd to judge who was going to the SmokeOut. B-Real comes out and asks the people who they want to win by crowd participation- it's like old school Gong Show style! He announces each band. There was even a local band from San Bernardino that had quite a few people there and they had a pretty good response. Then they announce our name and we were shocked! The place lit up! They loved it! So, we won that- hands down and got the first slot on the SmokeOut. Which was great because that show was huge - it was at the Blockbuster Pavilion. We were supposed to go on at 11:30 am and I'm glad we didn't because there was nobody there. Afroman and Suicidal Tendencies cancelled, so we ended up going on at 1:30pm and we ended up playing for three to five thousand people. No sound check so the first song sounded a little dicey! After that it was on! I would say by the time we ended with our last song, there was about eight thousand people! It was that show that we got our new management. Our manager, who also manages Deftones had his people there and they saw us and told him that we blew everyone away! So, that's what got him sold! You know, when you're a band like us, you take certain steps and that was a big step for us. First of all, we played for a lot of people and won the crowd over. Second of all, we impressed a really good management company to believe in us. The next step from that was to get the deal. All of that happened in October. It was a great day! NP: The SmokeOut was definitely the boost to get you signed? Jason: Yes. The real boost was making the new demo with Mudrock (Godsmack/Puya) We locked him down and went into the studio with him for four days and knocked out three of the best songs we have ever done! NP: Three months later� Possum: We got our deal with Roadrunner! NP: What's next? Possum: The studio! Jason: We're going to make a record! We're going to be concentrating on songwriting and rehearsing. Possum: A really good record! We're not playing any shows until the album is done. Thanks Jason and Possum for taking time out of your busy schedule of interviews, photo shoots and all that goes along being rock stars! Best of Luck! Interview by: Suzy To view past Interviews and Favorites click HERE. Official website: www.rumblefishmusic.com Company Info     Contest Rules     Privacy Policy     Terms of Use Copyright © 2000-2001 NoizePollution.com. All Rights Reserved.