By Geoffrey Rowlands

 
Slipknot are not the only band to use pseudonyms and masks as part of their stage persona. Los Angeles-based rap rockers Hollywood Undead have adopted the same idea. All six members are known by stage names and perform in unique facemasks.
“The idea of using masks was to give fans a visual representation of each band member as individuals,” explained Hollywood Undead co-founder J-Dog, real name Jorel Decker. “We were obviously aware that Slipknot did exactly the same thing and we’re all enormous fans of their work. But we didn’t want to just be a bunch of dudes with tattoos standing around. The masks gave each of us an individuality with which our fans would hopefully connect.”
J-Dog formed the band in 2005 with Aron Ehlichman, who chose the stage name Deuce. The rest of their original line-up were friends of the boys who played an instrument and happened to be in the same room at the time that J-Dog and Deuce decided to join forces.
“That was pretty much it,” he laughed. “It was like ‘Aron and I are forming a band, do you guys want to join us?’ We’ve known each other since we were kids and were all in different bands. But we’d sometimes write songs together so our collective just kind of evolved into Hollywood Undead.”
Initially a septet, vocalist Jeff ‘Shady Jeff’ Phillips left before the release of their 2008 debut album, Swan Songs. This peaked at No. 22 on the Billboard 200.
“The album release was delayed,” J-Dog stated. “We were signed to MySpace Records but they wanted some songs removed and others censored. We refused and ended up signing with Octone Records who were happy to release the album just as it was.”
The following year saw Hollywood Undead issue Desperate Measures, a CD of six new songs and live recordings of tracks from Swan Songs plus a full concert performance DVD. Their second studio album, American Tragedy, was released in 2011 by which time Deuce was no longer with the band.
“It was sad because we basically lost one of our friends,” J-Dog remarked. “But Deuce had changed. We tried to accommodate his demands. For example, the band paid for his personal assistant to accompany us on tour. The rest of us don’t have any personal assistants. Eventually, Deuce just didn’t turn up to travel out for a tour and didn’t answer our phone calls.”
His replacement was long-time friend Daniel ‘Danny’ Murillo. He joined Jordon ‘Charlie Scene’ Terrell, Matthew ‘Da Kurlzz’ St Claire, George ‘Johnny 3 Tears’ Ragan and Dylan ‘Funny Man’ Alvarez. The band have no set pattern. Each musician is a multi-instrumentalist while vocal duties are shared around the group.
“It’s more interesting for us to fulfil different roles throughout a concert and it’s also probably more fun for the audience,” J-Dog reflected. “But our masks also play a part in helping audiences to follow each band member around stage as we vary our type of participation in each song.”
Most of their masks are based upon the old-fashioned style of protective facemasks worn by ice hockey goaltenders. They have gradually evolved throughout Hollywood Undead’s career and are slightly different again now for the performance and promotion of the band’s newly released third studio album, Notes from the Underground. This has given them their second top five hit by debuting at No.2 on the Billboard 200.
“We have a guy named Jerry Constantine who creates our masks,” J-Dog explained. “We’ve made changes for each album but nothing too radical. Jerry just does enough to make the designs cooler and keep the fans interested.
“The masks are just part of our stage image though. There are many photographs of us without them so we’re not trying to hide our identity. Maybe one day we’ll perform without masks. But we’ll stick with them while we remain captivated by the concept and it still interests our fans.”


IN BRIEF

Fleetwood Mac’s
Rumours re-released

Fleetwood Mac fans who perhaps weren’t around when Rumours, their signature LP, was originally issued may be interested in a 35th anniversary edition of the album which has been released today.
The three-disc expanded version is actually a year late in that Rumours was initially released in February, 1977. It includes the original album, a disc of previously unreleased takes from the recording sessions for Rumours and a dozen unreleased live recordings from the band’s 1977 world tour.
A separate deluxe edition includes everything in the expanded version plus an additional disc of reissue roughs and out-takes, early demos and jam sessions. A DVD of the 1977 documentary, The Rosebud Film, is also in the package along with a copy of the original album on vinyl.
Rumours can be heard in full on YouTube.
 
Such Hot Blood date set

A provisional release date in April has been scheduled for Such Hot Blood, the third studio album from Los Angeles indie rockers The Airborne Toxic Event.
In the meantime, the quintet are previewing their album with new single,  Timeless. The song was written by frontman Mikel Jollett after a year in which he lost four family members.
“It was an awful and horrific year,” he said. “My grandmother’s death was the worst for me in that I was the first person to find her. Timeless is a kind of lament to what happened and how overwhelming these things can be.”
Mikel wrote 11 drafts of the lyrics before he felt the words were perfect.
“I was initially caught in the trap of writing an Airborne song. It just wasn’t right. I eventually realised I just had to write what was in my heart.”
Timeless is the first of a dozen songs posted on soundcloud.com
 
Better Harrison memorial sought
 
A campaign to erect a statue of the late George Harrison near his long-time home in Oxfordshire has been stopped by his widow Olivia.
Local man James Lambert had apparently collected over 2,000 signatures on a petition for a George Harrison statue in Henley-on-Thames. This figure amounts to around 20% of the town’s population.
Fearing an invasion of fans to view the statue, Olivia has suggested a community project founded in George’s name would be more appropriate than the proposed bronze monument.
“George loved the people and the peace he found in Henley,” Olivia stated.
“He wouldn’t want the town overrun by fans visiting his statue. If there was any kind of memorial, he would much prefer it to be something which benefitted the local people.”
 
Debut album from R&B singer
 
R&B singer Jarvis will release Cardiology, his debut album for Capitol Records, later this year.
Lead single, Make A Little Room, is out now and can be heard at www.myspace.com/jarvistheartist.
The promotional video is also posted on this webpage along with a further four of his songs.
More music from Jarvis can be found on Heartache, a free 15-track mixtape. This is available to hear and download at www.datpiff.com.