Die Trying
Loving Life
Issue 2, Summer/Fall 2003
"Who here likes to f*ck?" Now, be honest. When Jassen asks you a question, you better answer loud and proud. Die Trying's vocalist, along with Jack shredding his guitar, Steve rocking out on bass, and Matt banging the drums, will come at you with so much energy, you'll be begging for more. I had the priveledge of interviewing Die Trying and checking out their show at B.B. King's Blues Club/Grill in New York City. When the band started to play, I could hardly believe that they were the same humorous, easy going guys I had been talking to just hours before. If you get a chance to catch Die Trying on tour, do not hesitate to go. And ladies, you just might get lucky.
S&S: How is the tour with Alien Ant Farm going?
Jack: It's been really great. We've definitely made friends with the Ant Farm guys. The opening band, Strata, we were already friends with for about a year and a half now. We used to trade shows as local bands in California. They're from San Jose [and] we're from Sacramento. So, we have a lot of old friends and new friends. It's definitely a comfortable environment and the crowds have been amazing.
S&S: What are your plans after the tour is over?
Jassen: We're going on seventeen dates by ourselves, headlining. After that, we'll be going out with Hoobastank for about 4 to 6 weeks. That will carry us off up until early winter, and then we still don't know what we're doing from there. We have a couple different things on the horizon that we haven't actually settled yet. We know we're doing a lot of radio stuff, radio shows. Aside from that, we don't have actual bands that I could list for you.
S&S: What will be your next single?
Jassen: It's actually a toss up. We're going to do an online poll between "Dirty Dirty" and "Turn Up The Radio". So, of course, there will be some kids that will throw in whatever song they want in there, too. Those are the two main ones that we are actually considering.
S&S: What is your favorite song on the album and why?
Steve: My favorite song on the album is "Love and Guns". As far as musically, and as far as what I'm trying to do with this band, I think it presents us very well. Even though there are other songs that are good on the album, that's my favorite.
Jack: I agree, with the toss up of two or three other songs.
Matt: I like "Turn Up The Radio" and "Oxygen's Gone". They seem more mature, as far as song writing goes and format. Everything seems to go together better. It's not too much. [I think] simple is better.
S&S: How long have you been playing your instruments?
Steve: Almost 9 years.
Jack: 10 years.
Matt: Just over 6 years.
S&S: Do you guys only play your instruments that you play in the band, or can you play others?
Steve: I play guitar, too.
Matt: I play guitar [and] bass. I just don't sing.
Jassen: Pretty much everything. I can pretty much pick up any instrument if you leave me in a room for an hour. I play guitar. I play bass. I'm pretty much good at anything. I did a lot of guitar work for this record.
S&S: Did any of you play in your school band?
Jassen: I never went to school.
Steve: Bass.
Matt: I have no trainings.
Jack: I went to a guitar class in high school, but that was pretty much just trading riffs with my friends. I wasn't really paying too much attention. It was pretty much learning different techniques from different kids at school and stuff.
S&S: Where is your favorite venue to play at?
Jack: Mine is Fort Walton Beach, Florida.
Matt: The Swamp. I like New York City [and] Irving Plaza. That's nice and big and pretty rockin'.
Steve: Stone Mountain.
Matt: Atlanta.
Jack: Oh yeah, Stone Mountain. That was awesome.
S&S: Do you have any crazy show stories? Did anything ever get out of hand?
Jack: We got banned from Atlanta.
Steve: Yeah, Stone Mountain.
Jassen: I say the f word too much. (laughter)
Matt: It's Mormonly owned, I guess, and the Mormons weren't happy with that at all.
Jassen: We were actually supposed to be there the other day with Hoobastank, and they cancelled us on the show because I have a potty mouth.
S&S: Who would you like to tour with that you haven't already?
Matt: Good Charlotte. That would be a good tour. Simple Plan. Ozzy Osbourne. (laughter)
Jack: I honestly wouldn't mind a POD tour, or a Deftones tour.
Steve: I'd be down with an Incubus tour.
Jack: Or a Green Day tour...I could go on and on. (laughter)
S&S: Can you tell me about your video for "Oxygen's Gone"?
Jassen: Well, the concept wasn't what the video actually came out to be. When we got the video pitched to us, the original treatment was basically a group of friends. They were the Parkouristes from France. They're in Nike commercials and stuff. [They do] extreme jumping, climbing up buildings, and running all over crap. The initial treatment was to be that every time it said "oxygen's gone", one of these guys would be getting ready to do a crazy jump or a stunt, sizing it up, [and] realizing it's probably a bit too far for him to jump, but he's going to die trying, to finish out what ever race he started with his buddies. Every time it said "oxygen's gone", one of them was going to eat shit and die. But MTV didn't really appreciate that, the whole dying part. So, they (the Parkouristes) decided, the day of the shoot, that wasn't going to be the case. They didn't know what the hell they were going to do really. They just kind of made it up. So, they ran around, jumped a bunch of stuff, and we got a high energy, action packed video that really doesn't make any sense.
S&S: Did anything funny happen on the set?
Steve: Jack fell. (laughter) I almost sat on his face.
Jack: Our friend Coby was there.
Jassen: A couple guys from Hoobastank were there. A couple guys from Papa Roach were there. Flea from the Red Hot Chili Peppers let us use his El Camino.
Matt: A little rock and roll history.
S&S: Have any of you gone to college or plan on going to college?
Jack: Hell no. (laughter)
All: We won't go! Hell no, we won't go! (laughter)
S&S: This is based on a rumor, by the way, that Jassen is going to leave the band to go to college.
Jassen: (laughter) My mom's on the internet again! Wishful thinking. I haven't heard that rumor yet.
Matt: I haven't heard that either.
Jassen: I'm a tattoo artist. I never did school. I'd go back to tattooing and make good money, as opposed to not making any money.
S&S: Do you still do tattoos? You have to hook me up. (laughter)
Jassen: Yeah, I still do tattoos. Give me a call in about a year. We'll see how it is.
S&S: If you had the gift of magic for one day, what would you do?
Jassen: I would get into Sound Scan, that takes all the money for record sales, and I'd put it up to about four million [in] record sales. I'd make it that we had sold a popular record for four million.
Matt: I'd make world peace.
Jassen: I'd bite into a hundred grand.
Jack: You name it, I'd do it. (laughter)
Steve: I'd stop time.
Matt: And have magic forever?
Steve: Yeah, that's what I'd do.
S&S: If you could have any celebrity be your slave for a weekend, who would it be?
Jack: Burt Reynolds. (laughter)
Matt: What would you have him do? (laughter)
Jassen: Avril Lavigne. That should be fun for a day.
Jack: Yeah, you can keep that, dude. I'll go for the old school and just go for Pamela Anderson.
Steve: No, man. (laughter)
Jack: No, Jenna Jameson. I'm sorry. I would hang out with Jenna Jameson.
Steve: President Bush, [so I could] make him do stupid shit.
S&S: Well, that's actually all the questions I have planned. Do you want to ask me any questions?
Matt: How old are you?
S&S: I'm seventeen.
Steve: Do you have a boyfriend?
S&S: No, I don't have a boyfriend.
Jassen: How long has the magazine been out?
S&S: This is the second issue. This production is going to be better than the first...Meat loaf the food, or Meat Loaf the singer?
Jack: Meat Loaf the singer.
Matt: What about meat loaf?
S&S: I'm going to see Meat Loaf on August 30, actually.
Matt: Is he going to sing songs from the Rocky Horror Picture Show? I didn't really listen to a lot of Meat Loaf.
S&S: I'm all about it. Meat Loaf and AC/DC.
Matt: I love AC/DC. I'm all about AC/DC.
S&S: What were the first cars you guys ever owned? Clunkers or nice ones?
Jassen: Junky, stolen, Russian Hondas.
Jack: Yeah, and we ran them into the ground. Now we're carless.
Matt: Mine still works, but it's pretty ugly.
S&S: Do you guys have a van or a bus?
Jack: An RV.
Matt: Hate it.
Jack: You hate the RV?
Matt: Well, it's a lot better than the van. We lived in a van for four months, and that was kind of bad on the shoulders when you sleep in it.
Jack: I did hear from Jassen's brother this morning, while we were driving, that someone actually won a lawsuit for putting their RV on cruise control and going into the kitchen to make a sandwich. They left the wheel, since it didn't say in the instruction manual that cruise control doesn't mean that you can stop operating it. The guy won.
Matt: And you know what ever Dave says, it's got to be the truth. (laughter)
S&S: Do you want girlfriends?
Matt: I don't want a girlfriend. I had one for a while, but it didn't work out. But I'm probably just going to wait.
Jassen: You have to wait for the right person. When that special person comes along, then you know it's worth it.
Matt: Being patient. Patient and understanding.
Jassen: Caring and loving.
S&S: Are any of you guys vegetarians?
All: No.
Jassen: I'll eat me a good vegetarian, though.
Matt: Yeah, I like salad. I like hummus with pita bread. It's really good. I still like barbeque steak and chicken and stuff.
S&S: Do you guys have a traveling barbeque?
Matt: We almost bought one.
Jack: We got the George Foreman grill.
Matt: Yeah, but that's not as good.
Jack: Yeah, that makes everything kind of rubbery.
Matt: You need charcoal, to add some flavor to it.
S&S: Color photography or black and white photography?
Jack: Black and white.
Matt: Color.
Jack: It depends if the picture is good enough.
Matt: Yeah, but I like color better.
Jack: Black and white hides more shit.