The Jasons! 13 Questions with the Friday the 13th Themed Punk Band!

No metronomes! No autotune! No punch-in’s to correct mistakes! No Beatles chords! These are the CAMP RULES for independent band The Jasons.  Just 100% Red Blooded American Punk Rock!

Listed as coming to us from Crystal Lake New Jersey and being managed by Mommy Voorhees, the band is a trio best described as The Ramones meets Kiss with a Friday the 13^th obsession.  On lead vocals and guitar is Jason V, with bass and backing vocals by Jason 3D and rounded out with Jason Hell on drums and additional backing vocals.

The Voorhees loving band is determined to bring back authentic, hard-core American punk rock and have recently released their first full offering.  Consisting of eight tracks that play fast and hard, The Jasons’ debut offering is available for free download on the Reverbnation site.  One look at the track listing proves the dedication to the bands concept with the following titles: “We’re Gonna Ki-Ki-Ki-Kill That Girl,” “I Don’t Want to Be a Mongloid,” “Shelly’s Got Shit for Brains,” “Crazy Ralph (Shut Your Mouth),” “Jason Goes To Hell (2 For 1 Burger Sale),” “Don’t Send Me to Outer Space,” “Mommy Got Beheaded by a Bimbo,” and “Imposter” dedicated to Jason-wannabe Roy from A NEW BEGINNING.

We caught up with The Jasons' leader Jason V and had a fun round of 13questions:

1)When did the band formulate and how did the F13th meets the Ramones theme emerge?

 We started about a year ago. Crystal Lake is busy during the summer but we have an off season. So we figured, “Why not start a band or something? I mean, Jersey is pretty boring, so why not." The Ramones thing is just natural for us. They're our favorite band right behind the Bay City Rollers… We would have done a Roller’s kind of heart-throb boy-band thing but we aren’t pretty enough. Plus, the Ramones worked with what they had and kept it catchy and basic, and that’s the same kind of ethic we have. We recorded our CD a month after we started the band, the whole thing was recorded in a day, and pretty much everything was done in a single take unless we really messed something up. Our motto is to just keep moving forward, put out records, play shows, never stop… Like a shark… or a masked… well… like mom taught us.

2) Are all three members active in the writing process?  How are the lyrics mostly formulated?

Yeah, at this point we’re all active in the process. I wrote the first album by myself and there wasn’t a lot of room for the others to contribute just based on how quick it all came together. We’re already basically finished writing our next EP and it’s much more collaborative with songs from all three members. Lyrics are the easy part of the process. They say just write what you know… so we've got a bunch of songs about stalking and slashing.

3) How has the response been from the F13th fan-base and horror community as a whole been?

The response from the horror community at large has been awesome! That’s really our target audience. In more ways than one since we’re also trying to kill most of ‘em.  But your average Joe on the street hears a song called “Shelly’s Got Shit for Brains” and he has no idea what we’re talking about. People in punk rock are always talking about “the scene" and “unity” but if you really wanna see unity, see what happens when two people in Friday the 13th shirts run into each other on the street. 

4) The Jasons are currently offering free downloads on their reverbnation site.  Has there been any label interest at this point and can we expect a commercial release in the future for sale?  Vinyl??

Yeah, nothing is set in stone just yet, but we're talking with Secret Lair about releasing our album on vinyl. Secret Lair is an indie VHS company that has a lot of the same punk rock and DIY ethics that we connect with so we really liked the idea of pairing up with them. As for the CD, that’s available on our webstore which is thejasons.bigcartel.com.

5) Phil Spector had an infamous collaboration with The Ramones on End of the Century.  If The Jasons could collaborate with one musician or producer on a record, who would it be?

I’m a big Lookout Records fan from way back, so I’ve always wanted to have one of those little “Ben Weasel approved” seals on the front of our album. I guess that given all the recent drama it would have a different meaning than it used to… But I’m not gonna point my finger at someone for punching a girl when we spend all summer stalking and slashing em. Jason 3D is the world’s biggest KiISS fan, so I know he would like to team up with them.

6) Each member's favourite Jason kill???

 My favorite kill is when J.J. get’s smashed with that Gibson flying V. Although, I’ve found that the Mosrite style body works better for overall blunt force trauma. 3D's favorite kill is Mark. He always says, "It was amazing that he made it all the way down the stairs without tipping over.” And I know Jason Hell loves the sleeping bag death.

7) The Jasons continue to tour in the States.  What has been your most memorable gig and why?

This past year we opened for Richie Ramone which was cool for obvious reasons. It was also our drummer, Jason Hell’s first show after his predecessor Jason X, got sent back into outer space and had to quit the band. We had maybe two practices with Hell before that show so it was a pleasant surprise when we didn’t completely mess up all of our songs in front of our hero. We also just played the Ghouls Night Out Festival in North Carolina, which was our biggest show to date and we really got to meet with a ton of horror fans.

8) Are your individual names reflective of your favourite F13th entry?  If not, what are each of your favourite chapters?

They are representative in a way. I’m a part V guy myself. Yeah, yeah, I know. He’s an impostor. I know that 3D loves part 3 but, who doesn’t, right? It’s kind of an art imitates life imitates art kind of deal. I mean, obviously those are just movies and we’re real guys from Crystal Lake, NJ. What’s that thing they always say about similarities being solely coincidental and all that?

9) If The Jasons could have one final girl from the franchise appear in one of their videos, which heroine would it be?

If it were up to us there would be no survivors. But we would love to have our mother back in one piece… So, Betsy Palmer would be an amazing addition to a Jason’s video.

10) Have The Jasons been approached by the genre convention coordinates at performing at any expo?

We have. The Jasons will be featured at Shocka-Con horror and sci-fi convention in Charleston, WV, Sept 26-28. We will be playing on Friday night. Hopefully, this is just the beginning.

11) The Jasons debut offering was recently covered in genre mag Rue Morgue.  Did the magazine contact the band at all or how did this come about?

I don’t think we were aware that it came out. It was a pretty awesome surprise considering how big Rue Morgue is. It was cool for us because all of the other releases that they reviewed had the title and the associated record label underneath of them, while ours just had our reverberation address since we’re still unsigned. It was a victory for DIY mongoloids like us. It was also really cool that they compared us to Screeching Weasel and The Hansen Brothers, which are two of my favorite bands.

12) Do The Jasons have any hopes or wishes for the next installment of F13th coming in 2015?

I think that we all collectively hope that it won’t be found footage. I still love the idea of seeing a film set at Crystal Lake in the winter. I also think Derek Mears was great as Jason, he deserves another shot in the role.

13) What can the fans of the band expect next?

Lots of forward motion! More episodes of our web series “Red Blooded American Punk Rock”, a vinyl release for our first CD, more live shows, and a new EP which will be called “Stalk and Slash Summer”.

Make sure to check out the above links for the band's pages and stop by their Facebook page here and support them with a LIKE.  For a closer look at the band's hilarious hijinks and some live performances, enjoy this episode off the band's youtube page: