Jukebox the Ghost (JTG) is one of our favorite bands. The trio weighs 300 pounds combined, is cute as a button and talented #AF, and is one of the hardest working groups we know. How do they stay so upbeat and personable? How do they keep their girlish figures (hint: breakfast is the most important meal of the day)? Read on to discover their secrets…
First, congratulations on the new album! Can you talk a little about the inspiration behind the name, Off to the Races?
For the last few years we have put on a show called Halloqueen. For this show we do a set of original music and then take a set break, get in costume and character, and return to play a whole set of Queen. It’s one of the highlights of our year. In putting this show together we learned a ton of Queen tunes. It opened our eyes to how songs can be constructed and performed. So yeah – it’s a bit of a nod to their record A Day At The Races.
Queen has been a career-long role model which I know your fans love to see in your work. It sounds like your new material may include some more contemporary influences (e.g. Walk the Moon). Are there any other newer influences you can talk about in your work?
Honestly – It’s funny to say that because Queen hasn’t really been a conscious reference for us in our process until this album and I remember when Walk The Moon broke out we had a bunch of fans come to us and say “YO! this band sounds like Jukebox The Ghost!” So to be honest – we don’t actually have a lot of newer influences that we consciously tried to apply. I find with writing music it is almost better to block out what is currently happening as a way to try to forge your own path.
It must feel great to have Off to the Races finished up – but the work is far from over as you look towards your spring/summer tour schedule! I’ve always wondered what bands look forward to more: the album-creation process or the live tour component of showmanship. What’s your favorite part of the musical process? And what are you most looking forward to on your upcoming tour?
I love writing music – always have, that moment where a song comes into existence is a magical thing for me. So that’s probably my favorite part of the process. As for touring – I can’t wait to perform these new songs. Adding new tunes to a set adds and creates a wonderful and needed energy.
I’m sure your travels are always exciting (if, at the same time, exhausting) but I imagine, at the end of the day, there’s no place like home. What do you think of as home? Is it the place you make your best music as well or is that another location?
Brooklyn is all of our homes now. It’s the place where we relax and write and recharge.
Your band’s origins go back, by some counts, over a decade. What has changed most about the music industry in that time? What is the most frustrating thing about being in the music industry right now? What is the most rewarding thing?
When we started we were spending hours on Myspace trying to build an online community. I think it can be frustrating to be at the mercy of ever changing technology and musical spaces. From pirating to iTunes to Spotify… Regardless at the end of the day each of these things are making fans – so that’s what’s most rewarding.
If you could choose any question to be asked in this interview, what would it be and what would your reply be?
Q: What’s your favorite Breakfast food?
A: All of it.
Jukebox The Ghost’s Off to the Races is out on March 30, 2018
