Interview: JODY AND THE JERMS

What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today? 

I randomly bought Give Em Enough Rope by The Clash in a second hand record store when I was growing up on Texas at the age of 13. I started playing guitar the same day on my mum's friend's acoustic, 

What would I be doing today - who knows?  

What do you like to do when you are not playing music and how does that influence your creativity?

Jody our singer is very good at baking and makes some amazing and creative cakes. Rock n Roll! I find taking the dog for a long walk in the woods clears the mind and good thoughts and ideas happen. 

How long has your band been around? 

2 and a half years including one Pandemic 

Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music?

Oxford - it's a great City for music with a blend of huge influential bands and some very, very good bands and artists not many will have heard of. 

How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?

 We were going to be Jerm. It had a nice ring to it. 

Then after a few false starts we realized Jody could sing and that was that. 

Tell me about your most memorable shows.

With what has being going on in the world we have only done 7 shows. The first was very memorable, not least because of some serious nerves. Supporting The Popguns at Venue 229 in London in September was a blast too as Jody had one of their early singles tucked away in her collection and was great to hear it live. 

What is your favourite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?

There are some really nice venues in Oxford - The Jericho Tavern or the Bullingdon. Ask us again after our UK Tour in June!

 If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?

Us, then The Go Gos then the Parallel Lines line -up Blondie to headline. With us all singing Do They Know Its Christmas together at the end. 

What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?

Write and play the music that means something to you regardless of what is in or fashionable. Trends change so quickly you need to follow what you believe in and enjoy. Anything else after that is a bonus.

If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?

Don't get an overdraft

Of your songs which one means the most to you and why? 

Jody has taken over more of the lyric writing on our new album, before that it was more of a team effort, and it really works well. Forever Running on the new album Flicker tells a great story. However the first song we ever recorded called Never Going Home is always in our live set. It 's a cover of a song by The Belltower, and was the only way we could get Jody in to the studio to sing for the first time ever. She had the record when she was a teenager and loved it so much. She lost her favorite uncle around the time we recorded it too, so it's an emotional and inspiration song and performance. 

Which songs are your favourite to play and which get requested the most?

Probably our single Spinning - so far that's the one that has been played on the radio the most and more people know it at our shows. And we released it on ltd edition pink vinyl which helped. 

What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?

It's a real team effort that starts with me coming up with guitar chords and a rough structure, Jody takes over with melody and key.

A quick phone recording when we are happy is then sent to the other Jerms who have their own ideas - which always seems to work. 

Then we stick it all together in the studio usually with not enough rehearsal. But it works and captures a huge amount of energy and excitement in the performance.

What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?

Hope, happiness, kindness and honesty 

Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?

Jody and myself often have different ideas but there is always a happy compromise which so far has been the best decision. 

What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?

The new album Flicker releases on March 4. And we tour the UK in June. 

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/jodyandthejerms/

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Website: https://jodyandthejerms.com/

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCWdNErJj9w2V3-1FXdkRGRw

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