Photo By: Phil Reed

Danielle Dorsey: For those unfamiliar with your music, how would you describe your sound?

Jack: I’d say it’s a hybrid of a few different things, young and old, it’s a little bit of hip-hop, it’s a little bit of soul, it’s a little bit of electronic, it’s a little bit of new wave, which is also electronic. It’s a hodge-podge. We like to think that we have a little bit of something for everybody.

DD: What can we expect to hear from your new album, how is this different from the music you’ve released in the past?

Brook: I think that it’s a large growth from what we’ve recorded over the last few years. Oftentimes, when we’re recording, for example the Beauty & Distortion release, a lot of that was just us in and out of studios, recording what we can, mp3s that have died on hard drives and things of that nature. What we’re working on now has been crafted over the past couple of years and it’s interesting, being able to step back and look at something that you’ve continuously worked on over a long period of time, you’re able to tell whether it will stand the test of time. That’s going to be the biggest difference from what people are used to hearing from us.

DD: What is the expected, tentative release date for this project?

Brook: We don’t buy into the pressure of release dates, it’s done when it’s done. It is coming out, but one thing we’ve learned throughout this process is that the release date doesn’t really matter, but most importantly we want to be comfortable with what we’re releasing and we want all of the people who were involved in the project to be comfortable with the final product.

Jack: Sometime this year, for sure though!

DD: Which artists/producers are you interested in collaborating with in the future that you haven’t previously worked with?

Brook: Brian Eno is one of our favorite producers, so we’d love to work with him.

Jack: I really like Sebastian Tellier, I think that what he does, paired with what we do, could be really innovative and cool. Most of my favorite producers and musicians are dead. It’d be awesome if we could resurrect and record with Jim Morrison, but I doubt that will happen.

DD: What do you think of the current music scene in Los Angeles? Where do you think it’s going and are there any musicians that are standing out to you right now?

Jack: We don’t really get caught up in scenes, but the sound coming out of here right now sounds pretty fucking groovy. Sounds good and fun and very indicative of the culture, laidback, but with a different kind of groove. Everyone has the potential to stand out, everyone has something.

DD: Any favorite album/artist of the moment?

Jack: Well, you’re dealing with two people who are not current at all. We do love Little Dragon though and of course, Blu, who is a friend and collaborator here in LA.

Brook: Yea, I wouldn’t be able to list off too many bands that I think are hot right now. I’m still listening to Talking Heads and The Police and Iggy Pop. To be honest with you, I haven’t heard much lately that has really impressed me.

DD: Recently you released a 5-track EP, Boudoir Synema, and you made it available free for download on your website, what made you decide to do that as opposed to making it purchasable?

Jack: The industry has changed a lot, and nowadays you can’t just sell the music. No one wants to buy music anymore because there’s so much that’s available for free. We figured, and we’ve always lived by this motto, if we have the content, we might as well feed the frenzy. That is what has gotten us to this point.

DD: Is Boudoir Synema at all indicative of your next release?

Brook: I think it’s a good bridge.

Jack: It’s definitely setting up what we have to come.

DD: Visual art and style seem to significantly affect your music, how do you feel about these things becoming more mainstream and do you feel that they reflect a change in the artistry of music today?

Brook: I think that it has to be visual and it has to be all-inclusive. I think that now that we have so much access to almost anything via the internet, you have to have something that has a high level of stimulus to it. It has to be something that is appealing orally, visually, the entire vibe and feeling and purpose and it has to have substance and I think now you can impress people by coming with the full package. It’s so easy to make up a pop star and just feed it to people, but then they want to know what’s up with your live show, what are you about, what do you look like and you have to convey that on as many levels as possible.

DD: What messages or themes do you seek to convey with your music?

Brook: Freedom, I think in general. I have always felt like there was a lack of that in the mainstream and we just want to encourage people through our music to be who they are and not to be boxed in and not feel like you have to belong to a certain genre, scene or category or anything like that. I think that it’s all about freedom and simplicity.

DD: Can you explain Socketumi and the J*Davey Navy?

Jack: Socketumi is the omniscient narrator of J*Davey, he is the spirit, he’s like our mascot and he’s the rabble-rouser who talks a lot of shit and gets everything moving. He recruits J*Davey Babies and J*Davey Navy which is basically our little army of supporters. We have such great fans who are really die-hard, knock down, drag out J*Davey supporters. It’s kind of like how KISS had the KISS Army, we have the J*Davey Navy.