With "Every last time" Gameface released one of my favourite albums ever. I just love their music. Lately they did a split record with Errortype: 11 and this one's again great. So I decided to do an interview with Jeff Gameface who turned out to be very nice...
Hi Jeff, do you have any introduction to this interview?
Well, this is Jeff. I play guitar and sing in
Gameface. I can tell you're a pretty good guy already, judging by your musical
selection.
Thanks, haha. Talking about the split release, how
did you get in touch with Errortype: 11 to do a split CD and who came up with
the idea of doing this? Do you like them and their music? How about a side
project containing members of Gameface and Errortype 11 (something like the Get
up Kids did with Coalesce)?
We
did a short tour with them and we really got along well. There aren't many bands
that we have bonded with like that. I think we're unusually difficult to mesh with as humans. The ET:11 guys were just like us. We had a great
time on the tour and when we got home I got a call from Phil and he asked
about possibly doing a split 7" with them because they had an extra
song from their "Amplified To Rock" sessions. The people at Revelation
are also ET:11 fans and they encouraged us to record a few more songs and make a
split EP out of it instead. I thought it was a great idea. So did they. As for
an actual band project, it would be difficult since they live in NY and we live
in CA.
When will the next full length album of Gameface
come out? Did you already record some songs and how will they sound like? Where
will you record and who will produce it, again Jim Monroe and do you like his
job on "Every last time"?
We're getting ready to record a new album. We have about 10 songs ready
to go. I think this is our best stuff yet. It's in the same direction as the two
songs on the split. Very rock, a little less punk. We're taking a few risks on
this record with guitar sounds and vocal styles. I think this will be our
most diverse record yet. Jim Monroe will be engineering and mixing as he
did the last one. I think that "ELT" sounds great. There are always
small changes that I'd make but that's how everything is.
You did a UK tour in recently. How did that tour turn out and why didn't you come over to continental Europe, especially to Germany, don't you know German fans are eagerly awaiting to see you live, haha?
We
just returned actually. It was great. We had a lot of fun. I'm glad we got a
chance to play so many shows in the same country. On our last tour of Europe, we
played so many countries that we didn't really have a chance to enjoy any of
them. We really like the UK, the people there, and the bands. We wanted to be
able to spend some real quality time there. Maybe we can do the same in Germany
sometime.
I really hope so, it's been way too long since you
played here. Let's go a little bit back to the first days of Gameface: When and
why did you found the band? Did you play in other bands before? What did your
parents say about you making music back then and what are they saying nowadays?
Which bands/music was influential for you when you started making music? Did
your influences change over the years?
I always wanted to be in a band. Even when I was 12
years old and didn't know how to play an instrument I would dream about it. I
was always into music. I would know all of the rock songs on the radio because I
would listen to it all of the time. Some of my favorites from back in the day
were Jackson Browne, Elvis Costello, Boston, Billy Joel. I just loved rock music.
When I got into high school I hooked up with some guys and I sang in a band
called No Such Thing. We played a lot around town and recorded a couple tapes
and a 7". In high school is where I was exposed to other types of music. I
was into R.E.M. and the Cure and then I got into punk and hardcore like The
Adolescents, D.I., The Descendents and Uniform Choice. My first show was 7
Seconds with Verbal Assault. Since then my musical influences and appreciation
for all types of music have grown immensely. As for what my parents think, they
actually like most of my music. I think they're proud of what I've done. They
understand that music is something that I need in my life to be happy.
Would you ever sign to a majorlabel or wouldn't you
do that? Do you think your (old) fans would follow you? I am asking that because
sometimes it seems the hardore/punk scene is fixed merely upon things like
"which label are they on" and not so much about the music which is the
main thing that counts in my opinion.
I'm
glad you feel that way. I think that there is more importance placed on whose
logo is on the back of a record than what the music says sometimes. I don't
think it was always like that. I don't care about what label a band is on. All
record labels are essentially evil in one way or another anyway. It makes no
difference. At this point I don't think we would sign to a major if we had the
chance. I've heard too many bad stories from friends about them.
There are more and more great emo-bands coming up
or older emo-bands are getting more attention like the Get up Kids, Hot Water
Music, By a Thread, A New Found Glory,... Are you in touch with some of these
bands and do you consider Gameface as part of that emo-scene? If not, how would
you describe your music to someone who hasn't heard of you (is there really
still anybody?)?
I don't really think we're part of the new emo
scene. I think it's kinda silly actually. We've been around too long and have
been doing this type of music for too long to jump on some new bandwagon. We're
to the point that we don't care what's cool and what other bands are doing or
what is selling records these days. I like to think of Gameface as a rock band.
The people who like our music are going to like it no matter what people are
calling it.
What are you doing besides the band? Can you live
from the music?
We've never really made any money from doing the
band actually. We all have jobs that we hate and have to do in order to have the
privilege of making music. I'd like to be able to make money from music but I'm
not into making those kinds of sacrifices. There was a time long ago when it was
cool to quit or jobs to go on tour, etc. Three of us are married and have real
responsibilities now. We need to make sure we can take care of what's important.
I think all of you know that Jeff is also doing
great artwork not only for albums but also great paintings. So I wanted to know
a little bit about that: Do you only do artwork for Revelation bands or also for
other bands/labels and do you also create other art apart from covers? Which
artwork do you like best among those you did by now?
I do art for a lot of bands. My main job is Revelation but I like to do as many other projects as I can. I used to paint a great deal. I don't do it as much as I should anymore. I can't really pick a favorite record that I've done. There are certain things I like about each one. This would be a whole other interview...
Did you do a video for the 'Every last time' album
and are there any other older videos? I think that a viedo for a song like
"My star" would be perfect and really a chance to get your music to a
wider audience, do you agree? Would you like the idea of having a video shown on
MTV quite often?
We did a video for "My Star" It was our
first "real" video. I had a lot of fun doing it. It's Hopeless
Records' Cinema Beer Belly Video Compilation. You should check it out. It's
really cool. My wife has done two other videos for the band. They're not the
best quality but they're interesting. ("Friday Matinee" and "Only
Chance We Get") I really think
that if we were so lucky to get the "My Star" video on MTV people
would really enjoy it but we aren't in to playing the game that you have to play
to get those kinds of favors.
Did you write the lyrics for "My star" especially for your wife?
Yes, I wrote it for my wife.
Where do you get the inspiration for your great
lyrics from?
Just
life. I keep a journal and write in it when I think of a memory or when
something interesting happens to me. I try to write songs like short stories
that people can see themselves as the main character.
You know, I listened to "Every last time"
over and over again, but I could not find the David Bowie lyrics "Look out
you rock and rollers, pretty soon..." you were talking about in the booklet.
Where did you hide these words?
It's the last two lines of "Hey Radio".
On "Every last time" you were thanking
Texas is the Reason (what a pity they split up a couple of years ago). Did you
do that because they were friends of you or because they were influential for
you or even because they had reformed at the moment of the recordings of your
album?
They are great friends of ours.
Your early albums/7"s were released on many
different labels like Nemesis, Network or Dr.Strange. Why did you change labels
so often and are you satisfied with Revelation?
Nemesis was a one record thing, Network Sound went
out of business. Dr.Strange is a great label but when we finished our contract
with them, we felt that we should go somewhere else. We think that Rev better
fits us as a band.
The CD "Reminder" contains old 7"s.
Were you involved in that CD or was it released without your knowledge and what
do you think about compilations of old 7"s in general? Many people think
that it's disappointing for the old fans who were into the band since the
beginning (that's not my opinion actually).
We have mixed feelings about releasing that CD.
Part of me thinks that all of those old recordings are better left as they were
in the past. But as a musician, it's nice to see where a band has been. Some of
those songs are so bad it's embarrassing but it's all the truth. We can't hide
from it.
How did people react to your acoustic album and how
did it sell? Will there ever be an acoustic tour for these songs?
It was just something I've always wanted to do. We
thought that in our tenth year, it was finally time. People seem to really like
the record. I did a few acoustic shows in England and they were great.
How old are you? Did you achieve all the goals with
the band you had when you started or are there still some things you want to
achieve with Gameface?
We're all in our late twenties and we've definitely
done more than we ever thought we would. We're very fortunate.
Ok, I think that's it, how did you like this
interview and do you have anything to add or any closing words?
Thanks for your time in preparing these questions.
I thank you for your interest in our band.
(Stefan)