Pheaturing jsin

Hello, and welcome to another entry of the peverett phile, I am your host jason peverett. Today's guest jsin writes his name with lower case letters so I thought I would do the same thing. Well, today we spent the day in St. Augustine, the oldest city in America. Man, there's a lot of Spanish stuff there. Everything has a Spanish sounding name. In St. Augustine there's no bikes allowed, no roller skating and no frowning. They ever have earning signs against that. Take a look at this picture I took.

Told ya. Okay, did anybody see the Oscars Sunday night? It was so long, it took me two days to watch it. Is it me or did it look like James Franco was going to cut his arm off to get out of hosting the Oscars? What I've learned from watching the Oscars: I need to buy nicer envelopes.
Did you notice there was no black nominees? Unless you count a swan. I thought the Oscars were supposed to be young and hip and I only saw all these old people. Then I realized I was watching “60 Minutes.” They brought Billy Crystal out for three minutes in the middle of the Oscars. That’s like bringing Michael Jordan out in the middle of a kids’ basketball game. In other news, a town in Arkansas has had three earthquakes in under 24 hours. They think it could be due to removing waste water which is known as “fracking.” I don’t know what fracking is, but I sure enjoy saying it. Fracking, or as I like to call it phracking. Charlie Sheen has officially gone crazy, and not just a little crazy. Even Gary Busey thinks he’s nuts. He wants an addition $1 million per episode for “Two and a Half Men.” That’s a bold move — after being fired, to ask for a million-dollar raise. Christina Aguilera was arrested for public intoxication. Is that really a crime? Apparently Aguilera was stumbling and incoherent, which makes her perfect to host next year’s Oscars. Well, today is Read Across America. If you read this blog, that counts. Today is Dr. Seuss's birthday, kids. I wish Dr. Seuss was my doctor. back to Charlie Sheen... that guy is everywhere nowadays. he even has his own inspirational poster out.

Okay, recently in the news there's been talk about Obama, Unions and teachers in Wisconsin. All is too much for me to understand. I am just a simple blogger and a theme park host after all, so I thought I would go to an expert to clear things up for me. So, please welcome a new pheature to the Phile. It's time to...

So, please welcome to the Phile, the chairman of the Republican National Committee, Reince Priebus.

Me: Mr. Chairman, can you explain what on Earth is going on?

Reince: Over the past week, Democrats and their Big Labor Union Bosses have been subverting the democratic process, intimidating taxpayers and walking out on the job in order to secure generous taxpayer-funded benefits for themselves at a time when everyone else is cutting back.

Me: But what does that have to do with teachers?

Reince: Classrooms have been left empty and Democrat lawmakers in Wisconsin and Indiana are literally running away from their responsibilities -- fleeing their states instead of making the tough choices required to move our country forward.

Me: And you are blaming Obama I take it?

Reince: Enough is enough. Now is the time to stop Barack Obama's Union Bosses and to show your support for Republicans who are standing up for the taxpayers and middle class families. Friend, I'm counting on GOP grassroots leaders like you to help us win this fight. The Republican National Committee has a new ad campaign that is taking the fight to the Obama Democrats and their Big Labor Union Bosses. But we need your help to spread our commonsense, conservative message of fiscal discipline to voters in every corner of the country.

Me: So, you think the Union's are buying off the President?

Reince: Friend, it's no secret Barack Obama and his Democrat allies are in the pocket of the Union Bosses who work to secure special benefits at the expense of taxpayers.

Me: Do you have facts?

Reince: In 2008, Unions spent over $400 million to elect Obama and other Democrats. In 2010, Unions spent $280 million to elect Democrats nationwide. In 2010, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) alone spent $87.5 million to help elect Democrats. The head of AFSCME's political operations, Larry Scanlon, said at the time, "We're the big dog." These Union Bosses have sent thousands of out-of-state union jack booted thugs into Wisconsin and Indiana to try and intimidate lawmakers and thwart the will of the people. Right now, Barack Obama is busy readying the nation's first billion dollar presidential campaign. The left-wing Union leadership will once again be right behind him -- lining his pockets every step of the way.

Me: Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

There you go, I hope that clears it up for you. I don't think he likes the President too much. By the way, I am British so I am neither Democrat or Republican. And now for sad news...

Jane Russell
June 21, 1921 - February 28, 2011
Twice as famous as anyone was back then.
Eddie Kirkland
August 16, 1923 – February 27, 2011
He played with Foghat for years, and till the day he died, still called them "Froghat." More on Eddie later in the blog.
Duke Snider
September 19, 1926 - February 27, 2011
The only thing more impressive than his baseball record was the fact that he made it out of Compton High School alive.
Frank Buckles
January 2, 1901 - February 27, 2011
You would too, if you were 110.

This is the 14th book in the P.P.B.C...

One of the authors, Toby Hadoke, will be on the Phile soon. And now, from the home office in Port Jefferson, New York, here is this week's...

Top Ten New Award Categories at the 2011 Academy Awards
10. Best Natalie Portman Film.
9. Best Re-vamped, Re-tooled, Re-imagined, Re-envisioned Remake...of a Sequel.
8. Best Unintentional Comedy.
7. Best Performance By An Actor Too Close To The Grave To Be Considered In Any Future Awards.
6. Best Actress In A Surveillance Video.
5. Best Performance By A Losing Nominee While Clapping For The Winner In Their Category. 4. Best Brooklyn Decker Movie -- Or Any Excuse To Get Her On Stage To Accept An Award.

3. Best Over-The-Top Boston Accent In A Motion Picture.

2. Who cares, as long as they don't let Letterman host again.

And the number one new award category at the 2011 Academy Awards...

1. Truest Grit.

Today's guest is a progressive rock singer from Canada whose album "Born" is available on iTunes. Please welcome to the Phile, the lower case named... jsin.

Me: Hey, jsin, welcome to the Phile. How are you?

jsin: I'm good, Jason. Thanks for having me on the Peverett Phile!

Me: Okay, I have to ask you about your name. First, it's spelt in all lower case letters, right? How do you pronounce it? Does it rhyme with my name Jason?

jsin: It's pronounced the same way 'Jason'' is. People tend to put a dash in between the 'j' and 'sin' because they are very uncomfortable with those two consonants side by side. The lower case thing... well it's just one of those things - no real background to it - I just don't like the way it looks otherwise.

Me: I like your look, sir, you look like a scary tough guy who can kick my ass. Is that the look you are going for?

jsin: No... I wasn't but thanks...? Ok but seriously I'm not a big tough guy - I'm just a guy with lots of hair who has an obsession with the Crow and the Joker.

Me: I bet you have some killer tats. Am I right?

jsin: I don't have a lot - just a couple. The best one is that of 'jsin' in the original Colonna MT font but the letters are all intertwined, so you can't really tell what it says until you really examine it.

Me: You live in Canada, right? What part, sir?

jsin: I grew up in Montreal but have been in Toronto for a few years now. I live on my own in the city.

Me: Are you originally from there?

jsin: I grew up in Montreal but my family is East Indian.

Me: I ask all my guests that are from Canada, and there's been a lot, the same question so I thought, what the hell, I will ask you as well, even though for some reason I am betting you'll say no. One of my favorite bands is from Canada... The Barenaked Ladies. Are you a fan of theirs?

jsin: Ahhhh, The Barenaked Ladies. I don't have their songs in my library, but I do like that they keep it real. They do what they do and they have a good time and have had major success so they have my respect for sure.

Me: Let's talk about the band you are a fan of for a minute: Guns n' Roses. You are a huge fan of that band, right, and it is because of them you are a musician, is that true?

jsin: It's true, but even moreso I'd say I'm a fan of Axl Rose. The music, the style, the lyrics, the live performance - to this day it still can't be topped.

Me: And you're a fan of Axl Rose. Are you still a fan, or do you just like the skinny cooler version?

jsin: Hahahaha. Well... it was weird seeing him back in 2001 with the first edition of the "New" Guns n' Roses. He had the dreads and was wearing a Maple Leafs jersey (I hate the Toronto Maple Leafs with a passion) with baggy track pants. I didn't really understand, but the last show I went to (last year) he had his old style back and seemed more like the Axl we're used to.

Me: Have you ever met him?

jsin: No. I want to, but who knows what he'll think about my versions of his songs (I've played "Patience" a million times). I wonder what he thought of Fergie's rendition of "Sweet Child O' Mine"!

Me: What other bands are you into? What about Foghat?

jsin: Foghat! Wow, I haven't even heard that name in a very long time; I will always love "Slow Ride" because of this commercial I used to see as a kid - you know those rock compilations that they'd sell on TV! My #2 band is Radiohead - they intrigue so much and make some really cool music. There haven't been too many days that one of a Radiohead or Guns song hasn't been played. I also dig Muse, NIN, Incubus, and U2 as far as bands go. I've always been a Prince/George Michael fan as well.

Me: Let's talk about your own music, jsin. Your album "Born", which I purchased off from iTunes is very good. I noticed there is a lot of different styles on it. Did you do that on purpose?

jsin: Thanks for listening - I'm happy to hear you think it's good. This album took a while, only because I was extremely fickle throughout the process. I wanted everything but nothing at the same time. I took a break and went back to the songs to really figure out what each song was about and then tried to make it sound the way I felt it 'should' - meaning, figuring out the best sounds to support the lyrics. The songs vary quite a bit lyrically so it just turned out that so did the music.

Me: It sounds like you have a great band on it, and was produced very well. Who produced it and did you hand choose the players?

jsin: Vikas Kohli (Fatlabs) produced and co-wrote the songs. He chose the players for a few songs, and then from there I decided which ones I wanted to use for other songs. All the players we used were awesome though - Jeremy Kleynhans (Rebel Emergency) played the drums on "Inside" and "Something to Say", James MacGregor played lead guitar on "Inside", "You Never Know", and "Vulgar Hypocrisy", and Ben Payne played lead guitar on "Something to Say".

Me: You named the album "Born" after one of your songs. Did you know that was gonna be the title from the get go?

jsin: Yeah pretty much - with me most things have a specific purpose and meaning, and "Born"referred to my entry into the songwriting world (officially). It is kind of separate from the song, but it worked out nicely, though the song was originally titled "Born to be Alive".

Me: My favorite song on the album is "Vulgar Hyprocrisy", which sounds like a great name for a band. Where did the idea for that song come from?

jsin: That's my favorite title - it's so intense. The song is really my frustration with much of the way things work today; instant gratification and people saying things 'just for the sake of saying them'. I feel like whenever one is fixated on a specific objective, they'll encounter this kind of feeling - people pretending like they want to help but in the end are pretty useless.

Me: And I liked "Minions of the Moon". They should of put that song in the movie Despicable Me. Has any of your songs ever been on a soundtrack?

jsin: That song is one of my favourites, because it's pretty unexpected yet pretty real - it wasn't a gimmick song or anything. It's going to be in a short film here that is not yet been titled. "Something to Say'" was featured in a 4x Relay report.

Me: Jsin, are you planning on working on a follow up album?

jsin: I've been writing for a while, but am not yet ready to take it to the studio - I think it will be pretty intense and definitely can't rush it. I think the style(s) will be similar, but the best part of the process is the experimentation so we'll see what comes out of it. In the mean time I plan on putting out an EP of covers this summer - taking some of my favourite songs and playing with the format and genre to see what comes out of it...

Me: So it is gonna be similar in style?

jsin: I do want to lessen the industrial sound and use various instruments. I've been working on indian classical vocal training so I hope the next album will be a bit more complex, musically.

Me: Thanks, man, for being on the Phile. Go ahead and plug your website and anything else you wanna. I wish you continued success and when your next album come out, please come back to the Phile. Take care, okay?

jsin: Thanks for having me, and these were some of the best questions I've yet to answer! I'd love for the readers to join to my facebook page www.facebook.com/jsinisrockmusic.

Well, that about does it for a long entry of the Phile. I wanted to give you guys a lot to read for Read Across America. Anyway, I mentioned Eddie Kirkland earlier and wanted to tell you guys something. I never met the man, but I was supposed to interview him for the Phile. It was during the mid 1970's that Kirkland befriended my dad and Foghat. I was told it was my dad who got him on the Blues Benefit Show in 1977. Eddie's manager asked if Eddie could be on the show, and my dad said yeah, as he was a fan. I heard a lot of stories about Eddie and wish I had the chance to interview him. Okay, now I said that, thanks to jsin for a great interview and special thanks to Wesley-Anne Bock-Nelson from Ariel Publicity for hooking it up. And also thanks to Republican Chairman Reince Priebus. The Phile will be back next week with artist Michael Banks. So, spread the word, not the turd. Don't let snakes and alligators bite you. Bye, love you, bye.