Monsters, Music, and Muscles

Photo: Leah Burlington.
http://www.leahburlington.com/

1. Any person (living or dead) that you would like to meet and why?

Wow... I've been fortunate to meet a lot of my idols over the years from playing. Dead? I would love to have met Randy Rhoads and taken a lesson from him. Live? King Diamond and Arjen Anthony Lucassen.

2. Who are some of your favorite musicians?

Arjen Anthothy Lucassen is my favorite currently. He is a Dutch musician and the mastermind behind the bands Ayreon, Star One, Ambeon, Stream of Passion and The Guilt Machine. His work, Ayreon especially, is a big influence on my current releases. Others would be King Diamond, Ace Frehley, Tony Iommi, Dave Murray & Adrian Smith, Glenn Tipton and KK Downing, Rick Nielsen and Neil Giraldo.

3. What's your guilty musical pleasure?

Hahaha.. I'm a closet Prince and Jimmy Buffett fan. Have all their CD's.

4. Who did you idolize as a child?

My dad is my idol but I did idolize Evil Knievel, The Six Million Dollar Man, Batman & The Ghost Rider (still a huge fan of both) and Ace Frehley of KISS.

5. Stranded on a deserted island, what 3 cds would you have with you?

Aww man, I hate that question! LOL. Does Box sets count?

KISS - Alive! (first record I ever bought)
Bing Crosby - Merry Christmas (favorite Christmas CD)
Various Artists - These Ghoulish Things. (Various monster themed songs from the 50's. LOVE this CD!)

Box Sets:
KISS - The Box Set (Awesome box set)
Disneyland - The Musical History of Disneyland (HUGE Diz fan so this is almost like being there)
Misfits - Coffin Box set (Everything they released with Glenn Danzig)

6. How would you describe your music?

I term is as "Haunt-Strumetal". My music has 2 uses. They can be used in haunted attractions but can also be played anywhere if you want awesome metal music to jam to. I'm not a shredder so I let the music create "moods/themes" that you can envision.

7. Favorite place to perform?

It's no longer around but I loved playing at the "Coconut Teaser" in Hollywood. It was a DUMP but I have so many fun memories playing there from '94-00 when I was in Foxy Roxx.

8. What makes a good song?

It has to grab you the moment you hear it. The opening riff, the melody... if you find yourself humming it later for no reason.

9. What are your hobbies?

I love reading and mean with an ACTUAL book. Not one of these tablets... I wanna feel the book in my hands, smell the paper. Weird I know. Watching movies also. I'm a HUGE horror/sci-fi fan and, as I mentioned earlier, love Disney. I can watch the Batman films all day. Same with the old Universal monster films and anything Abbott & Costello put out!

I also love going to wine tastings. Beer tastings too. Here in Las Vegas every Saturday, there are several small tastings all over the city for free. And there's beer & wine events every month from March to June then August to Nov. I love trying out new wines and talking to others about them. Some people who meet me for the first time don't know what to make of me. You see all these people who, for a better way of saying it, LOOK like wine drinkers... ya know, NORMAL! Then there's the long-haired guy with the tattoos and the haunted house shirts there. I stick out like a sore thumb! But once you get talking to me about the wines, my passion for it comes out. I love going to wine country with my wife for a few days at a time. There are SO many wines to try!

10. Favorite food to eat on the road?

Hahaha... anything that doesn't give ya food poisoning! But I do love Mongolian BBQ.

11. The first concert you ever went to?

KISS - 1977 Love Gun Tour at the San Diego Sports Arena

12. Who's the best person you've met on the road?

The fans.. hands down!

I attend the Midwest Haunters Convention in Columbus OH (www.midwestshow.com) and all my friends in the Haunted Attraction Industry are so much fun to hang out with! Amazing people!

13. Any current projects?

Oh yeah! I am currently working on my 4th CD "Virus 308" as well as some custom work for a vendor in the haunt industry. I have been asked to do music for a paranormal TV show in Georgia as well.

I am the music coordinator, host of the segment "De-Composing" and the co-(G)Host for the podcast "The Big Scary Show" (www.bigscaryshow.com). We are one of the leading podcasts for the Haunted Attraction Industry. Great guys and I have a lot of fun doing it.

And lastly, I am one of the guitarists for the Las Vegas metal band "Outta The Black" (www.facebook.com/outtatheblack) . We are one of the HEAVIEST metal cover/tribute bands in Las Vegas and we are currently writing original music for an EP to be released later this year possibly co-produced by Oz Fox of Stryper.

Thank you for having me!

VISIT JERRY