JEORDIE WHITE | BASE TENDENCIES
PRESS
Nine Inch Nails has always come down to the mastermind of one man – Trent Reznor. Since 1988, Reznor has played the role of a mad scientist who works feverishly in his lab to create mind-blowing experiments [read: sounds]. Alone in his dark tower, he labors and toils until his noise projects are absolutely perfect. But even when his studio work comes to fruition, there is a slight catch. Reznor can never have that moment for which all crazy madmen must yearn – the moment when they can run out of the lab and shout, “It’s alive!” Nope. To do this, Reznor must drag in several lovely assistants (musicians) to bring his concepts to life, er, tour.
This method has worked quite nicely for NIN. But, hey, it can be lonely at the top. And even geniuses love company from time to time. On rare occasions a few artists have been privy to get inside Reznor’s studio process. For example, Dave Navarro lent guitars to a remix EP Further Down the Spiral (2004), and Dave Grohl did some drumming for With Teeth (2005). And though his touring sidekicks have changed frequently over the years, Reznor has now developed, what he says, is the best band he’s ever had for the With Teeth excursion. The current With Teeth Tour musicians joining Reznor are: Alessandro Cortini (synthesizer, guitar, bass), Josh Freese (drums) [The tour’s initial drummer, Jerome Dillon, had heart trouble and had to be replaced early on.], Aaron North (guitar) and Jeordie White (bass, guitar).
NIN is certainly an elite club to join for those who dare. The pressure is on, and only the strongest, most dedicated musicians make the cut. And Reznor isn’t exactly hosting American Idol-style auditions. (Ew, thank God. Can’t you just imagine one million preteens and 40-somethings donning Hot Topic gear and crying backstage for the camera?)
So what does it take to be in NIN – to live up to the expectations of a meticulous perfectionist and still keep an all-important level of cool? Being in NIN seems like the wet-dream job for any hardcore musician.
Jeordie White, formally Twiggy Ramirez of Marilyn Manson, A Perfect Circle bassist, and collaborator with several notables like Josh Homme (The Desert Sessions), Chris Goss (Goon Moon) and Oasis, shared some insights with RAG Magazine about being in NIN and why he has been chosen to share stages with the most significant players in industrial rock and metal music. Though he was sitting in the studio lobby playing video games while Reznor mastered With Teeth, White hopes that maybe next time around he will be one of the lucky musicians to join Reznor on the other side of the studio door.
Today, NIN is in Des Moines, Iowa. White tells me that in addition to New Jersey and South Florida, he also lived in Des Moines. It seems that his most pressing memory of the place involves a pet goat. “I grew up for a few years on a farm here. I had a pet goat and my uncle shot it, and my cousins and I kept it alive underneath the house,” he says in a quiet, raspy voice. Hmmm, I wasn’t sure if I should sympathize or share a chuckle with him about such a conversation starter as this. Now I know that this strange tone seems to fit White well. He’s the kind of man who blurs the line between darkness and comedy – darkness, simply by default of the bands in which he has partaken, and well, the comedy aspect you’re just going to have to take my word for at this point, since this needs a little explaining.
White says that irony plays a big role in his life. Right now I am finding it ironic that his voice sounds identical to Tall Goth from the South Park episode, “You Got F’ed in the A,” when the kids “get served.” (Tall Goth: “The only cool way to dance is to keep your hands at your sides and your eyes looking at the ground. Then every three seconds you take a drag from your cigarette.”) The resemblance just seems too cliché. Whether he’s being ironic or not, White breaks the goth kid mold by doing really conventional things like eating at Chili’s and working out at the gym. But then again, when you’re in NIN, you can probably do anything you please, even stupid things, and get away with it. White certainly proves this theory true.
RAG: How has the NIN tour been? I know at one point in your
career you said you weren’t sure if you’d want to tour again,
and now this NIN tour seems to be never-ending.
It’s been great actually. I’m around a bunch of healthy, happy
people, so it’s fun. But I mean, basically touring is just: there
are a couple of shows here and there, and you just go to like
Chili’s and Red Robin, and see a bunch of crappy movies, and
go to some really crappy malls in the middle of nowhere and
buy an bunch of stuff you don’t need, buy a bunch of video
games* that you play once and throw out. Then you play a
show. Then you go to your hotel, find another mall. Go to Chickfil-A. And Repeat.
RAG: So, would you say that compared to your earlier touring
days, things now are less crazy and excessive?
I would say so, yeah. I mean I did a tour with Nine Inch Nails in
1994, and I don’t really remember much of it. I know I was there
because it was caught on film. But, uh, yeah, it’s nice to
remember what’s going on.
RAG: Do you think that the change in your tour lifestyle is just
due to your growing older, or do you think Trent has played a
role in that mindset?
I think [Trent] has a lot to do with it. You know, him setting the
tone for everything. But also, it comes with age. You know, I
know that if I touch that stove, it’s gonna burn my hand. So, you
don’t touch the stove anymore. In other words, if you don’t do
this, everything has a consequence. Then you just start to feel
better about yourself – about just, you know, like I said, instead
of staying up all night and doing crazy stuff, going to the mall
and getting some Chick-fil-A.
RAG: What’s it like knowing that you were once in a band
(Marilyn Manson) that was produced by Trent Reznor “The
godfather of industrial music” and to now be in the band of
this legend?
I think it has more to do with our friendship overall more than
my talent or anything. So, it’s not like, ‘Oh, I’m so talented, I’m
in Nine Inch Nails,’ sort of thing. It has more to do with just we
get along together and had shared a lot of experiences together.
And, you know, I think it has more to do with that, and [the fact]
that I am easy to get along with. Rather than, ‘Okay, I’ve had this
history of touring as a musician and blah, blah, blah.’ [It’s] kind
of just, you know, if you’re a plumber, you work with other
plumbers. You meet other plumbers and go and do jobs
with them. It’s the same thing with musicians. You meet
other musicians and when they are looking for other
people to play with, they go, ‘Oh what about that guy?
He’s nice.’
RAG: You must get along with a lot of people. You’ve
worked with so many different artists.
Yeah. Eh, it’s all bullshit. I’m tricking everybody.
RAG: Most of your opportunities have not come from
auditions, but rather run-ins at a party or something.
Considering this, do you think of yourself as a fatalist?
It seems that way. I mean, I have done, and been involved
with a lot of hard work to get where I am today. But, you
know, it all just came really natural to me. I never put my
mind to anything or set goals to do anything. It all kind of
just followed me around. And I think that’s because of the
hard work I put into it, which, you know, maybe I’m good at
what I do and people want to surround themselves with
people like that. I think that has a lot to do with it, but I
think, you know, as far as it goes it’s not like I sat down
and went, ‘Okay, I want to be in Marilyn Manson. What do
I have to do to make that happen?’ You know, it just
happened. Or, ‘I want to be in A Perfect Circle. I’m gonna
call them and try to figure it out.’ With all the bands that
I’ve been in, the knock has just come on my door – and
I’ve gratefully opened it.
RAG: Tell me about your current environment with NIN.
You said you’d like to continue with NIN as long as you
could handle it. What did you mean by that?
Well, as long as I can handle playing music. I keep on
thinking I can get out of [music] and do something else,
but I get pulled back in, and here I am again, on tour. But,
you know, I do enjoy it. I complain about it, but I complain
about almost anything. You know, right now I’m
complaining that the catering on our tour is too good, and
it’s too fancy. I want something more traditional like
macaroni and cheese. I just find you know, that you can
grow. It’s a good argument though. If you’re paying for
something, I’d rather have normal food. But you find
yourself complaining about a lot of stupid stuff. It’s kind
of silly.
RAG: Anyone can get that way at times. You have to
remind yourself of where you are and what you are
doing.
And, you know, you do have moments of perspective. You
know, okay, I’m thankful to be here and to be healthy and
working.
RAG: NIN fans are a unique group of people. And now
there is a new generation of fans who even refer to you
as Mr. White. What’s that like?
The whole name thing was really kind of funny because, I
don’t know if this is going to answer your question or not,
but when we created Marilyn Manson and I went under the
name Twiggy Ramirez, you know, everyone wanted to call
me Jeordie. You know, everyone said, ‘I can’t call you
Twiggy. I can’t do that.’ You know, people close to [me].
But now, all these people come up to me and are like, ‘I
just can’t call you Jeordie. That’s just too weird.’ People
always want what they can’t have, or want the opposite of
everything. So, you know, whatever. It doesn’t matter to
me. They can call me whatever they want. They can call
me asshole, or shithead or something. [laughs]
RAG: Even though you have been in a lot of seriously
intense bands, I know humor plays a big part in your
life. How do you keep things light when working so hard?
I surround myself with as much fun as possible. One of
my greatest points and my worst points is that I don’t take
anything too seriously, which leads you to not
freak out about stuff when it happens. But
also, it gives you a hard time of achieving
goals that you set. I don’t take anything
seriously. Comedy plays a very important role
in my life, for sure.
RAG: What is funny to you? Do you watch Comedy Central or what? No, like I’ll watch movies and find a chapter of a movie that’s not funny and put it on chapter repeat and watch it for like three hours, the same five-minute scene for three hours, just to drive everyone nuts. Repetitive stuff. Stuff that’s not funny starts to become funny, like someone opening a door. And then when it happens again, it starts becoming funny. I know it sounds ridiculous. Or, listening to the music of bands when they were in really weird eras. Like, only listening to Sammy Hagar, Van Halen or just – I can’t explain it. It’s really funny. It’s really stupid.
RAG: You find humor in random stuff then.
Yeah, in just random stuff.
RAG: You were in the recording studio lobby playing video
games when Trent Reznor was mastering With Teeth.
Do you think you’ll be more involved in any future albums
with him?
Would I like to? Yeah. As far as that happening – that’s all a
mystery right now. I’m sure I’ll be touring with them again.
RAG: How does working with Trent work? Is there a lot
of pressure to mimic the sounds he makes exactly?
How much flex room does he give you musically?
No, I mean, he pretty much lets us go with it. You know,
‘Make the part yours.’ Sometimes there will be a certain
feel, or he’ll hear something different than I hear it. Then
it’s just a matter of getting used to it in this live way. But
[the working relationship] is pretty casual, I would say. I
mean, we set standards between ourselves to make
things perfect because that’s how we want the show to be
– great. But it’s not that strict.
RAG: You used to work in a used record store. Where
do you go these days to uncover new music?
The Internet basically.
RAG: Any Web sites in particular?
No, I just search around and start hearing stuff that people
are talking about. Sometimes you’ll like it and sometimes
you won’t. I tend to try to find older music that I’ve never
heard before. And again, irony is a big part of my life, so
I listen to a lot of music for ironic reasons, too. Just stuff
that’s kind of actually not good, but it bothers other people
when I listen to it, so I’ll just listen to it. In theory, in the
end, you are listening to music for entertainment. And
that’s what’s entertaining me – playing musical terrorism
to other people.
RAG: What are some of your ironic bands right now?
Gosh, what am I listening to right now? The other day I
was listening to Van Halen with Gary Cherone. You know,
but in the end, I’ll start liking stuff. Or the “Super Bowl
Shuffle” by the Chicago Bears [football team]. It’s like a
rap song by the Chicago Bears in the ‘80s. It’s about the
Super Bowl. It’s really stupid. The Fat Boys. [laughs]
Christopher Cross – whatever it takes.
RAG: A lot of fans want to know if you’ll do any more
Goon Moon projects.
Yeah, you know. I plan on putting out some more projects.
It’s just when time allows for it to happen. I think that will
happen pretty soon.
RAG: Are you able to do any creative work on the road?
I mean I go day to day. But I bring a studio with me on the
road so I don’t get distracted. I try to make music, but you
know, it’s hard to set it all up in a hotel room, and by that
point you have to break it all down and go to the next city.
But I’m trying.
RAG: What the longest period of time you’ve gone
without touching a guitar?
Well, I was just home for two months and I didn’t touch it.
Well, I take that back, I did touch it at the end. But yeah,
probably a couple of months I didn’t. I can go months
without touching a guitar. The only time I really ever touch a
bass is if I’m onstage or in the studio. I don’t practice at all.
RAG: Really?
Yeah, I never really practiced when I was a kid either. I
mean, I suppose being in a band is practicing. But I never
sat in my room and tried to be a good musician.
RAG: Of all your professional experiences with different
bands, was there one in particular when you realized
that you had made major progress?
As a musician – not in the creative department because
most of my creative work came out with Marilyn Manson –
I think [I grew most] as a musician when I joined A Perfect
Circle. I had to take the bar up a little bit, and actually kind
of pay attention to what was going on. Obviously, that was
a bridge to this band, Nine Inch Nails, with which I had to
raise the bar even higher.
RAG: You grew up in South Florida. Do you still have ties in
Florida? Will you do anything special while you are here?
Yeah, I have some family that I’ll see and some restaurants
that I’ll go to, stuff like that.
RAG: So, you were probably more of a music-video game kid, rather than a surfer beach dude when you lived in Florida? Yeah, I don’t think I’ve ever been to the beach once in Florida – uh, not my thing.
* Note to gamer-NIN fans, check garbage bins around NIN tour buses and hotel for discarded crappy video games.