Band of the Day: Jack & Sally

From London by way of lots of bits of Asia (south and south east!) come today’s Band of the Day…

Simple things first – where are you guys from? 

Prav Smith (Drums) – Grew up in New Delhi and Chennai, India.

Josh Jacobs (Guitars) – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Bouncing around the U.K. for 8 years now. Collectively we’re based out of East London though. 

Ben Felix (Vocals and Bass) – I was born in Calcutta, India. I’ve lived in a number of places in the UK over the past 8 years – Oxford, Durham, Glasgow and finally London. 

How did you meet? 

PS – I met Ben first through a Facebook group of London Musicians and then met Josh at the first jam that we had in Dalston. 

JJ- I was looking for bands to play with on an online forum, and messaged Dan (the guitarist who used to jam with Ben). I was due to jam with them, but Dan quit then and passed me Ben’s number. Met up with Ben for a jam and the rest is history, as they say. 

How long have you been playing as a band? 

Since December 2017. 

Before you get sick of being asked… where does the band name come from? 

JJ – Too late mate! But for real, it comes from Blink-182’s I Miss You and the Nightmare Before Christmas. We wanted to bring across the idea that we’re all going through the same shit in life, different flavour – we’re all Jack and Sally. 

What are your influences? 

PS – Soundgarden, Foo Fighters, Lenny Kravitz, Alter Bridge, Jimi Hendrix, Porcupine Tree. JJ – Personally it’s Metallica, Blink-182, Paramore. BF – Green Day, Nirvana, The Local Train, System of a Down. 

Describe your music. What makes you unique? 

PS – Our music deals with some very intense yet very relatable things in life like loss, rebellion and growing up in a world that doesn’t always seem like what it is. The sound can be described as Green Day meets Rise Against meets Jimmy Eat World. 

JJ – We each listen to and enjoy quite different things, so I think that helps bring out some unique sounds in our songs – till date we argue about what genre we are, and I doubt that’s going to be settled soon! 

BF – I have to be honest, I think it’s difficult to be unique in the current world of music, simply because there’s just so much music out there. However, I’ve been told by more than a few people that our sound is very reminiscent of the 90s – that we’re bringing back that vibe which makes us unique for this moment in time. 

Do you have any particular lyrical themes? 

BF – Mostly revolutions and rebellions – we’ve each faced a lot of different issues in life – I’ve faced racism, discrimination based on where I come from etc. That translates into the songs I write. But we’ve also had heartbreaks like everyone else – so some of our songs are also along those lines. 

What’s your live show like? How many shows have you played? 

PS – Sweaty, energetic and a whole lot of jumping. Probably about 25 now. JJ – Sweaty is right. We’re loud too. We don’t have a smoke machine yet, but give Ben a few months…. BF – Like the guys said – we sweat bucket loads and we’re loud!! I’ve played a gig with my bass amp turned up to 12! Smoke machine currently sitting in my Amazon shopping basket…. 

What’s the wildest thing you’ve seen or done at a live show? 

PS – Played a song with half a drumstick. 10/10 would not recommend. JJ – Had a strap button completely come off mid guitar swing (I still had hold of the guitar fortunately). Proceeded to play the rest of the gig with one foot on the monitor and holding my guitar on my thigh. 5/7 would not do again. 

BF – I’ve always just enjoyed watching the funny shit that happens to Josh and Prav lol. Josh’s pedal board stops working every alternate gig – no joke! 

What kit do you use / guitars do you play / etc.? 

PS – Dixon Riot 14” snare, Zildjian ZBT cymbals, Promark 5B, Mapex Kick Pedal JJ- Ooh great question, Ben is gonna love this! Epiphone Les Paul Lee Malia custom, EVH 5150 III, and an assortment of pedals – Dunlop, Visual Sound, Boss, TC Electronics, Korg. 

BF – Haha, Josh is right. Question of the day! I used to play rhythm guitars in our band previously, when we had a fourth member on bass. I have two Gibson Les Paul Juniors – the first one is a sunburst named ‘Rose’- its my baby. My other LPJ is a double-cut named ‘Red’. My rhythm parts on our EP are all recorded through a Vox AC15, I used to play a Vox AC10 on stage. Now that I am playing bass, I play a Musicman Stingray through a Hartke HD500 bass amp – and yes I name all my instruments haha. 

What, if anything, are you plugging/promoting at the moment? 

PS – Our upcoming single, which we will be releasing next month and our debut EP dropping in November. 

JJ – We also have a music video dropping for the single (called Long Way Home), so check that out! 

What are your plans for 2019, into 2020? 

PS – Tour the UK and hopefully Europe next year. Put out more records. JJ – Move up in the festival circuit as well – Slam Dunk, we’re looking at you! BF – Just going to add to that – I’d love to have us tour the US at some point in the future. 

If you were second on a three-band bill, which band would you love to be supporting and which band would you choose to open for you? A chance to plug someone you’ve toured with, or a mate’s band we’ve not heard of before! 

PS – Would love to support Paramore and have You Over Me open for us. JJ – A Day To Remember maybe, just cause I love those guys. To open for us, hmm… Last Edition had a solidly sick set when we played with them last, they would be a great opener. 

BF – It has been my life’s dream to open for Green Day! I would love to have our mates from “Change Persona” open for us. Their lead vocalist, Connor, looks like Billie Joe Armstrong. Newsflash – Connor, Billie Joe and myself – all have the same guitar!

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