JON SPENCER BLUES EXPLOSION

Jon Spencer's natural showmanship and unique style has had such an influence on the New York underground scene that his unique garage-blues style has infiltrated most of the ground breaking bands to have emerged from there over the last decade. In fact, compile a New York Noise family tree and you could safely bet that Jon Spencer's name comes up more than any other and that any non-Spencer line ups would have his sound there through influenced ex-associates! Ex-Pussy Galore, Gibson Brothers, Honeymoon Killers and Boss Hog, it looks likely that Jon Spencer's latest band, The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, will far surpass Pussy Galore's infamy and should spearhead the New York scene for some years to come, much in the way that Sonic Youth were before they trailed off.

Jon Spencer's music has always been more diverse than the usual flow of U.S. underground records that are put out over here. It has always had a strong garage feel and it was in Boss Hog especially that the blues in Jon's crazed, striking vocals and unique guitar licks began to move forward into a more prominent groove and to have the space to develop into the garage/rockabilly/blues feel that they have in today's new territory.

Jon:"I've always been interested in rockabilly and blues to a certain degree. I think when The Blues Explosion were starting we were really exploring a lot more rockabilly, really listening to it a lot more than I ever have."

So do you think your style of playing has jelled more with The Blues Explosion than it has in previous bands ?

"Yeah, I think the first album is really just us really

being thrilled to be together. We did a lot of touring and things jelled, and I think Extra Width (the latest album) made sure of that."

The Blues Explosion's very first sessions have already been immortalised on vinyl bootleg (before their first official album was out) which documents the original studio session as engineered by New York's most famed producer, Kramer (Ex-Butthole Surfers, Bongwater and founder of the

Shimmydisc label) and their second session which was presided over by Steve Albini (ex-Big Black/top producer/all round bitch.) According to Blues Explosion drummer Russell Simins and

guitarist Judah Bauer, the Kramer session took just two and a half to three hours in which they recorded fourteen songs, only doing second takes here and there.

"The thing is that on some of that stuff, that three hours of rock mixes, we didn't even go to the mixing board. That's all on record: that bootleg - 'A Reverse Willie Horton'.

"With Albini it was just different. It took longer.But a lot of it has to do with Jon."

Judah: "He produces everything and it sounds crazy, doesn't it!"

The first official album, called 'Crypt Style' in Europe and on the Crypt label, is also engineered by Kramer and Albini from those original sessions.

Jon: "Crypt Style is like a variation of the first record. Tim Moran, the guy that runs Crypt picked the songs and the sequencing and I endorse theremin, so I had them out on Caroline Records in the U.S."

Russell: "We haven't stopped touring the last year and a half. We've been touring non-stop; it's the only way to do it. We've done the U.S. and Europe and we're going to Japan, Australia and New Zealand. We've been selling out most of the shows in the States. We did a West Coast tour recently and we sold out pretty much all the big cities. People are really into it. People really liked the album (Extra Width)"

We're considered a good live band and people just seem to notice."

Jon Spencer originally fronted notorious sleaze rockers Pussy Galore, alongside Julia Cafritz ( who went on to Boss Hog/Velvet Monkeys/Action Swingers and now Free Kitten with Sonic Youth's Kim Gordon), Jon Hammill (Velvet Monkeys) and Neil Haggerty (now in Royal Trux), later on taking on board ex Sonic Youth drummer Bob Bert when they moved to New York.Jon then played with Honeymoon Killers for a spell alongside his wife, Christina, before teaming up with her again for Boss Hog, over which she exerted more control than previously. The star studded Boss Hog membership almost constantly changed (although the core of Jon and Christina remained) and includes Clint Ruin (aka Jim Thirwell of Foetus) and Bob Bert again. Boss Hog is now permanently set up with ex-Dinosaur Jr. bassist Jens Jurgenson and drummer Hollis Queens, Jon Spencer being the only member to currently be playing in two bands.

So will you be working with Boss Hog anymore ?

"Yeah! we did the Girl Positive E.P. and we toured much of the U.S., nothing that big but we really for the first time made it there, so we did that instead of coming over to Europe. I was along there for a few months. She's (Christina) talking that she wants to do another single. She might do it without me as I've been very busy. We'll see."

And The Blues Explosion ?

"We've put out some singles with a Los Angeles label called In The Red (jukebox singles) which we haven't got yet and we're going to have an album coming out in Australia in a couple of months called Mo' Width which is stuff that was recorded in '92 when we were recording Extra Width. It's kind of a little more experimental. And we're in the middle of working on our third proper album which will hopefully come out in September. It'll be on Matador Records (USA) and Crypt (Europe). We're planning on finishing this record and then touring so we'll probably be back in Europe in July."

Not long to wait then! Meanwhile, the awesome Extra Width LP is still around in some shops so grab it while you can, and the twelve inch of 'Afro' (as seen to full effect on The Word!) is out now too. Four seven inches exist on the Sub Pop, Clawfist and In The Red labels and the Crypt Style LP has been seen in the North Laines area. So as Jon Spencer finished the Brighton show, facing his band with admiration in front of a stunned audience: "The Blues Explosion !!!" Now that's the way to do it! Get on stage, do a no nonsense, clean cut show, shellshock the audience and introduce your band at the end after they've lived up to their name. Expect to hear more!