To my loving Neurosonic fans… I offer you a gift… and an explanation.

First is the explanation. After touring nonstop for over two years, Troy, Jacen, Shane and I decided to take a little break. Nobody deserved it more, and I can tell you that as time passed it got harder and harder to figure out what we all needed to do. We each had different needs from life, love and music. Troy got married, and is expecting his first child. Shane is out touring all over the world with his old friends in SNFU, and Jacen has been working on a solo record called CrashCene for some time. (which I am fortunate enough to be producing) I have been keeping busy with a new wife, and producing records. I just put the wraps on producing the new BIF NAKED album, which comes out in Canada and America May 5th. (You guys are gonna shit when you hear it!) You can check it out on iTunes or at bifnaked.com. It’s called “The Promise”.

The first single is already up on iTunes – it’s called “SICK”.

“Sick” on US Itunes – Click Here
“Sick” on Canadian Itunes – Click Here

It’s been very hard to not come on and tell everyone sooner, but I think we all just wanted to see how it would play out. (Not to mention some denial) There was never a decision to give up or move on, but move on is what we all have done. We are so thankful for everyone’s support of Neurosonic. We have had a blast, seen the world and rocked the shit out of so many people (ha… word play!). It really is a dream come true. We are all moving into different stages of our lives, I am going to continue producing killer records for other great artists that I love to work with and I hope you will all follow me into the next chapter of my musical life.

And now the gift! I want to invite all of you to go to and download a very special song called “Fuck You 2″ for free – visit bifnaked.com/fu2! I know some of you will recognize the song! Check out this record. If you loved Neurosonic this will kick your teeth in. Support this record and spread the word… and please… every single one of you… stay in touch. You’re all mine

xoxo Jason Darr

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During our trip to the Family Values Tour 2007 in Boston (Mansfield), I had an opportunity to talk to Jason Darr of Neurosonic. We met up with Jason behind their tour bus a couple hours after their set. According to Jason’s recent blog entry, they had to cancel the Detroit show because Jason wasn’t feeling well, so we really appreciate him taking a few minutes out of his recuperation time to speak with us.

Be sure to check out Neurosonic on the main stage of the Family Values Tour 2007, in support of their latest release, Drama Queen.

Type 3 Media: How are you are feeling?

Jason Darr: I’m on the mend. I’m still a little congested and the throat was a little raw today, but we got it done. We had a couple of dropped songs though. A couple of the songs… there’s just no way I could’ve pulled them off today. So rather than butcher them we just played a slightly shorter set.

T3M: It was so hot today; did the heat get to you?

JD: I don’t even notice the heat anymore.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

T3M: Not even with the jackets you wear on stage?

JD: Once you do a couple of shows in those jackets the heat isn’t even an issue anymore. We did however invest in fans… each guy has got a fan in front of them. That makes things a lot nicer.

T3M: I’ve had your song “So Many People” stuck in my head since the first time I heard it. Do other people come up to you and tell you the same thing?

JD: All the time.

T3M: How does that make you feel?

JD: Fantastic. It means I’m doing my job. It means I’m good at my job. It’s nice. It’s reaffirming to know that you’ve done something that is making people react. Because the opposite of love is not hate, it’s indifference. I’d rather people hated me than not have an opinion about it either way. So go ahead and hate me.

T3M: Have you received any backlash from the song?

JD: No, not yet. We kind of half expected them to do it, and then we thought ‘no’ they would just be fueling the fire, even if they’re pissed off about it. They’re probably going to have the approach like ‘who is this band’, ‘nobody cares about that band anyway.’ That’ll all change.

T3M: Are you working on any new material?

JD: I’m working on new material, but it won’t be released for a while. We’re still riding hard on this record. It’s our number one priority.

T3M: It seems like you’re becoming much more well-known over the past several months.

JD: It’s climbing, it’s definitely climbing. We’re getting some spins on radio which is nice. We were at number 45 this week, so five more positions and we’re top 40.

T3M: We’ll have to keep requesting it.

JD: Absolutely. Request the fuck out of it.

T3M: How are things working out with your new bass player, Jacen?

JD: Incredibly well. He’s a fantastic singer… he’s a good dude… a hard working guy. He’s of the same mind space as everyone else in the band. He’s a team player. It’s the way things should be. It’s like he’s been in the band for a hundred years.

T3M: Right, that’s how it should be because it’s that family that you’re going to be living with for long period of time.

JD: That’s exactly right. If you’re on tour with somebody and you don’t feel that way, it’s destined to dwindle.

T3M: Have you had any downtime at all recently?

JD: We did. We had a little downtime. We supposed to do a tour with Kittie. We got four or five shows in on that tour, then pretty much said ‘see you later, we’re going home’. Like Cartman says, ‘screw you guys, we’re going home’. It was just not the right tour for us to be on. We didn’t get along with anybody. It was the wrong fanbase for us. We were just treated unpleasantly by the headliner’s crew. It seemed like they gave us obstacle after obstacle, and every time we came back with a solution, they gave us another obstacle. It got the point where we were like ‘ah, fuck this’.

T3M: Something good did happen around that time though.

JD: That’s right! The day we walked off the Kittie tour was the same day we announced Family Values. We were pretty excited about that.

T3M: Close one door and open another.

JD: That’s right.

T3M: Speaking of Family Values, how are things going so far?

JD: I got my ass kicked in poker by Jonathan Davis the other night, but other than that, it’s all good. At this rate, I’m gonna be broke by the time the tour is over though. It’s all fun.

T3M: Jason, thank you very much.

JD: You’re welcome.

T3M: I hope you feel better and I hope to see you guys again soon.

JD: Thank you, it’s good to see you guys again.

www.myspace.com/neurosonic

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with Korn, Evanescence, Atreyu, Flyleaf, Hellyeah, Trivium, Neurosonic, and Droid
July 27, 2007
Mansfield, MA

Droid. I couldn’t think of a better band to start the day by getting the crowd pumped up and excited. Droid‘s set was relentless and unforgiving. A brutal aural assault. Vocalist James “Buddy” Eason told us that Droid “leaves every ounce of energy on the stage”. You better believe it. During the set, he actually jumped into the pit and mixed it up with the fans during one of their songs. It’s refreshing to witness a musician so passionate about his performance that he’s willing to put it all on the line like that.

Eason did have a bit of a Spinal Tap moment at the end of the set. He tired to exit though the audience, off to the side of the venue. “I ran off the side off the stage like I’m out. I just actually was looking for a way back on stage, to finish the show.” Unfortunately there was no stage exit on that side, so he was stuck with nowhere to go, and had to return to the stage the same way he left. I thought it was funny, and he handled it very well. Shit happens. I don’t think too many people knew what happened.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

It had been nearly six months since I saw Neurosonic perform on the SnoCore 2007 tour. We had read that Jason Darr wasn’t feeling well, with some throat and chest issues. According to Jason, they tweaked their set a bit to compensate. “We had a couple of dropped songs… there’s just no way I could’ve pulled them off today. So rather than butcher them we just played a slightly shorter set.” They still sounded great regardless of the illness and shorter set.

During the set, Darr wasted no time reminding us of what an accomplished guitarist and vocalist he is. Neurosonic‘s new bass player Jacen Ekstrom is a perfect fit, providing solid bass lines and tremendous backing vocals. Troy Healy and Shane Smith were better than ever. I still have this band’s infectious funky groves playing in my head.

The stage setups become more elaborate as the day wore on. Trivium‘s setup looked great with their use some attractive artwork on their back drops. Their set was explosive, with Matt Heafy and Corey Beaulieu trading off guitar solos and vocals while Paolo Gregoletto and Travis Smith laid down the musical foundation. If you like their albums, you’ll be blown away by their live performance.

Trivium played a cover of Metallica’s Master of Puppets… and annihilated it. It would have been even better if not for one of the cables getting kicked out of Corey’s effects pedals, which cut off the signal to his amps. The crew scrambled to check wires in order to find the cause of the issue, but Corey spotted the problem a moment later, and plugged the cable back in.

Invitro‘s Mike Pygmie came out and sat nearby to check out the bands on the main stage. He only watched for a short time, but we had a chance to say hello and ask him about how things are going. He seemed excited about their new album, When I Was a Planet, which will be released on September 11, 2007. Get your aluminum foil helmets ready.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

It was a tremendous feeling to see Hellyeah with Vinnie Paul (who received a standing ovation) and Bob Zilla onstage together again, and in good company with Chad Gray, Greg Tribbett, and Tom Maxwell. One highlight of their set was a rowdy cover of Queen‘s Stone Cold Crazy, reworked as Stone Cold Wasted.

I’ve read article’s referring to Hellyeah as a “supergroup”. I’m not sure I like that term, because it too often implies that this is a one-off effort. After seeing Hellyeah kick-ass live onstage, I would hope that they plan to be around for awhile.

After Hellyeah‘s I noticed a girl walking up the isle with half of her face beet-red. Apparently she was tossed a drum stick, but some guy in the audience punched her in the head and grabbed the stick. I hope that guy proceeded to insert the stick up his ass.

Flyleaf was impressive as always. Pat Seals and Sameer Bhattacharya were a bit less animated since the last time I saw them, probably due to the heat… but they were still moving all over the stage… and giving it their all. Lacey Mosley sounded better than ever. At one point she climbed up onto the six foot tall speaker cabinets during one song, and jumped down. Very cool. She also provided a very moving and inspirational story before they performed their song Tina.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

After Flyleaf‘s set we had a change to briefly say hello to Jared Hartmann and James Culpepper backstage. James was talking to Kristen about his new camera which he recently purchased. I was lost in the conversation as soon as lens models came up. Pat and Sameer looked exhausted so we didn’t want to be a bother and only gave them and Lacey a quick wave hello.

We decided to grab some food during the break. We didn’t realize that Atreyu was going to start their set ten minutes early, so when we heard them start playing we bolted for the stage as quickly as possible so that Kristen could take photos.

It was very cool watching and hearing Alex Varkatzas and Brandon Saller trade-off on vocals duties. Saller’s imposing drum-kit includes three kick drums… I’ve never seen that before. I couldn’t tell if they were all functional or not, but it looked cool. Their performance was amazing, and they received a tremendous crowd response. Fans should look forward to their upcoming release Lead Sails Paper Anchor on August 28, 2007.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

Before Evanescence came on, I’m fairly certain I spotted some of the guys from Fiver Finger Death Punch entering the pit to watch the show. The crowd went nuts when Evanescence started to play. Several people, men and women alike, were ejected for being too rowdy.

Though it’s still unknown if Dark New Day members, drummer Will Hunt and guitarist Troy McLawhorn, will remain a part of Evanescence after this tour, it’s clear that this revamped line-up appears to be having a great time onstage. Amy Lee is a stunning performer to watch, and hear. It continued to be a big day for cover songs, as Evanescence took on the Doors classic People Are Strange, with Amy Lee aptly showing off her skillful chops on piano. They made the song their own.

Korn‘s stage setup is massive. The crew did a tremendous job getting it ready quickly. Anticipation for Korn‘s performance steadily grew as the shrouded bio-mechanical microphone stand was placed front and center on the stage.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

It can be said that the crowd was here for the Family Values Tour, but at this moment they were only here for Korn. The crowd erupted when Korn came onto the stage. They knew all the words to all the songs. Such a strong fan reaction can not be downplayed.

Words cannot adequately describe the performance of Jonathan Davis on stage. His sometimes erratic flailing never causes him to lose his way vocally. You can’t take your eyes off Davis as he pours out intense energy an emotion from the stage to the crowd. James “Munky” Shaffer, and Reginald “Fieldy” Arvizu also worked the front of the stage, while the touring members primarily stayed toward the back.

We see so many performance, and once in a while a performance will differentiate itself from all the others, and remain engrained in the psyche… this was one of those performances. Korn‘s show is truly amazing, and I can’t wait until the next time

As we left the venue we stopped by Droid‘s merch booth to say goodbye and thanks to guitarist Jamie Tesseire. He asked us about our favorite performance of the night. I was without words… not because I didn’t want to offend his ego, but simply because I thought the entire day was such an incredible experience that I couldn’t have picked a favorite if I tried.

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Released: January 30, 2007
Record Label: Bodog Music

Review:

My first exposure to Neurosonic was at the SnoCore 2007 concert in Hartford, CT. I thought their performance was terrific, so I relished the opportunity to listen to their music again.

On Drama Queen, Jason Darr and crew draw from a variety of influences to stitch together the songs on this album. The good news is that they seem to have chosen the right ones.

There are a lot of layers to the production on this album. It’s a much different experience than hearing them perform live. It is obvious that a great deal of time and effort was spent crafting this album. I pick up on a different nuance each time I listen to it.

The lyrics can be catchy, emotional, and even venomous at times. The opening track, “So Many People” takes brutal aim at our fascination with pop culture, and fame (not to mention no talent lip-syncing hacks).

The only detraction I will make is that the vocals are not as strong as they should be in a couple spots, and then were over-produced to compensate.

This is a good album that continues to grow on me. It will be in heavy rotation for quite some time. My favorite tracks are “So Many People”, “Crazy Sheila”, “Until I Die”, and “Boneheads.”

Track Listing:

1. So Many People
2. Are Solar
3. I Will Always Be Your Fool
4. Me Myself and I
5. Crazy Sheila
6. Until I Die
7. Fearless
8. Boneheads
9. Frankenstien
10. So Now You Know
11. For the Boy

Links:

http://music.bodoglife.net/neurosonic/
http://www.myspace.com/neurosonic

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with Army of Anyone, HURT, Neurosonic, and Dropping Daylight
February 3, 2007
Hartford, CT

This is the first SnoCore Tour 2007 show I was able to attend. I’d never been to The Webster Theater in Hartford before. It’s a pretty good place to see a show… not a bad “seat” in the house, decent acoustics, and a great crowd. However, they do put too much salt on their pretzels.

I’ve been to many concerts/shows over the years, and have seen some excellent, and some not-so-excellent conglomerations of bands touring together. This tour definitely ranks in the “excellent” column. All the bands on the bill put on a kick-ass show. I wouldn’t hesitate to see any of them again when presented the opportunity. I truly enjoyed the entire concert… not something I’ve experienced too often.

Dropping Daylight took the stage first. It’s got to be tough being in the first slot, because the house is seldom full. For those that showed up late… your loss. These are a talented group of guys with some very well crafted songs in their arsenal.

Next up was Neurosonic. Their performance is very high energy. They really did a great job of capturing the crowd’s attention, and the crowd certainly responded. Musically, again, very impressive.

Photo by Kristen Pierson

HURT’s performance was outstanding. This is the second time I’ve had the privilege to see them perform live (the first was in Providence, RI on 10/31/2006). If the guy from the local radio station hadn’t announced that some members of the band were feeling “under-the-weather” before they came on stage, you would never have guessed it. They played well, they performed well, and the crowd ate it up. Hearing the crowd singing the chorus along with J. Loren during “Rapture” was one of the many highlights during HURT’s set. If you haven’t seen HURT live yet, get your ass to a show.

Each band so far had brought their “A” game, so it was clear that Army of Anyone would not be able to rest on their laurels this evening. And they did not disappoint. They looked like they were having a blast on this tour, and that energy was apparent as it flowed through their music. Robert and Dean DeLeo played great together as always. Ray Luzier, one hell of a drummer, played the 2nd best drum solo I’d seen live. And, Richard Patrick, despite having a cold, was as capable as ever as a front-man. They played a variety of Filter, Stone Temple Pilots and AOA songs, all of which sounded great.

I had a chance to briefly meet a few members of the bands. All seemed to be a great bunch of guys. I said it early in this review, and I’ll say it again here… I truly enjoyed the entire concert… what a treat.

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