pitchshitterarchiver

[pitchshitterarchiver]

J.S clayden with Kris at ozzfest 2000

Source: www.angelfire.com

Credit: starfuckers on angelfire.com

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Black velvet interview with J.S Clayden from Pitchshifter.

PITCHSHIFTER

(JS Clayden Questionnaire - Taken From Black Velvet 20 - May 99)

By Shari Black Velvet

When JS Clayden sang ‘I must be some kind of genius’, he was not too far wrong. www.pitchshifter.com is an immaculate piece of artwork in one of its noisiest forms. It rips, cuts, tears, bleeps, bops, blares and generally twirls you around in circles leaving you dizzy and decidedly off-balance afterwards. JS Clayden, his brother Mark, plus Johnny Carter, D Walters and Jim Davies are one of the most inventive quintets in rock today. Let’s find out more... courtesy of an email questionnaire which JSC was kind enough to fill in.

J = Js clayden

BV = black velvet interviewer

Black Velvet : What has been the highlight of your career so far?

JS Clayden: Meeting Jello Biafra, selling out the Astoria, playing with Black Sabbath, playing Reading Festival to a full crowd, going to Troma Films offices, not having to get a real job for the last five years.

BV: If you were a contestant on Mastermind, which subject (excluding The Life & Times Of Pitchshifter), would you most like to answer questions on?

J: Punk rock/jazz/art.

BV: How was your UK tour back in February? Do any gigs stick out? Which and why?

J: The UK tour was amazing. We sold out about five venues which was a nice surprise. Our fans in the UK have been very patient while we have been touring the world in '98. It was great to get back home and play to a very appreciative crowd. The London gig was obviously awesome, as there were 2250 nutters up for a mad night out.

BV: Which has been your favourite tour to date and why?

J: Personally I loved the American tour with Gravity Kills, Junkie XL and Cold. It was summer, we had a great tour bus, the tour was 3 months long and we all got along really well. I met a lot of really cool people that I still correspond with over the net and it was just one of those Summers, ya know? Japan was also amazing, but I think America had it.

BV: What would be your dream gig? Where? When? Supported by whom?

J: My dream gig? Dead Kennedys, Big Black, Plug, The Walking Seeds, DJ Shadow, Sex Pistols, Jeff Mills, The Specials, Everclear, The Ruts, Shellac and Girls Against Boys.

BV: Are you looking forward to the 'Big Day Out'? How do you think it will be?

J: We are all looking forward to it. The Ozzfest at the same place was amazing and the Big Day Out will be just as cool I'm sure. I like the fact that crowds get so see different facets of harder edged music rather than just a day of ‘heavy metal’. We'll have to wait and see, I guess. Hopefully I can get in the crowd again and meet the folks down front.

BV: What do you think of Earache's re-issue of 'Infotainment?'?

J: I think for someone who doesn't already own the release it is a great package. And for those who already do, well you get the 3 mixes and all the videos for free if you have a computer. Although the band had nothing to do with the re-release it is quite tastefully done and it looks pretty good. The CD-Rom portion is comprehensible and easy to use.

BV: Fanzines - your thoughts on them...

J: They get to review stuff commercial mags are too afraid to, or can't sell. I like fanzines. Pitchshifter have always featured well in zines. Good luck to them all!

BV: Is there such a thing as a typical Pitchshifter fan?

J: I don't think so. Our public is very cross-genre. I would hope that one thing all our fans have in common is their willingness to be open-minded. We try and give our fans every opportunity to experience new things when we can. We take new bands on tour with us, we talk about what affects us on our website, we get interesting remixes done etc.

BV: You're admired as a band by all sorts. Who would you say is your most famous fan? How do you feel knowing that you might have fans who are also into bands ranging from Bon Jovi to 3 Colours Red to Napalm Death?

J: I was out with 3CR last night! They played Rock City and we had a party afterwards (ouch!) (S: I know, I was there). I am always flattered that people have even heard of the band. We never get any radio play or major press. It's through the small indie stations and fanzines and mags like Metal Hammer and Kerrang! and Terrorizer and our website that people know what we are up to. Our most famous fan? The aliens that left the crop circle in the shape of our eye logo!

BV: Since the Seagram merger/Universal Group takeover, have you found any major changes occurring that involve Pitchshifter? How do you think, as a band, this change will affect you?

J: I can't discuss that element of our deal right now. I can assure you that the new LP is on its way however.

BV: The tour diary on your web site is very interesting and enjoyable to read. When is the release of the book and will it be available worldwide?

J: When I collate it and find a publisher! I am actually in the process of writing a novel based on the first tour diary I did in 1994. It won't be finished for some time though. I am actually far more comfortable writing prose instead of music.

BV: Why did you start writing a tour diary in the first place? Do you keep a regular diary? When did you first start keeping a diary?

J: I have the worst memory. I started writing a tour diary to try and remember what the hell I've been doing for the last 5 years. It was just for me. I think being able to see what you think on paper on the screen also acts as a cathartic catalyst for what you think. You should try it.

BV: You've been touring pretty much constantly for ages. How do you keep things fresh and fun on the road?

J: Satanism, child slavery, sex before marriage, crack cocaine, AC/DC records and Sony playstations. No, seriously - we are having so much fun playing music that we just enjoy it every night. We just literally goof around with each other on stage. Watch us and you'll see us laughing as we stage dive. It's a great life style and it's a shame it can't last for ever. The plethora of laptops, digital cameras and samplers that travel with us keep us on our toes too.

BV: How would you like to see Pitchshifter in the 21st century?

J: Madder, balder, fatter, richer, more irreverent, more cynical.

BV: You once said "The music that spoke to us unemployed kids on sh**ty estates in the North of England was punk music... It was angry and we were angry...". Are you still angry now? What makes you angry?

J: Take a look outside your door... GM foods, police brutality, racism, us f**king the 3rd world over, bulls**t politics, right wing lunatics, pro-life extremists, restrictive religions... Want me to go on?

BV: Is there any subject you'd really like to write a song about that you haven't so far?

J: I think we should write a love song. Now that would be funny.

BV: You come up with all sorts of samples. Where do you get your ideas from for them? Have you thought of anything you'd already like to sample for the next album? Anything really weird?

J: We just go to the studio and sample what we like. I think there will be some more back tracking on this LP. We tried dog whistles but they are outside the audio range of a CD. I have sampled my answer phone messages, my flatmate talking drunk, a woman sleep talking and the sampler feeding back through my computer - I'm sure other stuff will ensue.

BV: If you could introduce three new conditions/regulations into today's society, what would you like to introduce?

J: 1 - Radio stations would be forced at gun point to play wide variety of music and the DJ is only allowed to talk if she/he is telling you the name of the record. 2 - Politicians are not allowed to own ANY businesses and any that are caught lying have to parade naked with a dunce hat around Trafalgar Square for 30 minutes while the populous get to throw rotting vegetable matter at them. 3 - Big business is never allowed to regulate itself, no more BSE scenarios please.

BV: Similarly, you like to get people to question what's going on and you hope to open their eyes by writing and/or talking about your beliefs. What do you currently think the masses should open their eyes to?

J: The continual stream of bulls**t in the news and the government line. The classics from Tony Bore: 1 - "We will not support actions that will endanger the lives of people in minority communities abroad". So what does he do? Grants MORE weapons licences to countries like Indonesia who we know for a fact will use to kill people in East Timore. 2 - "GM foods are safe". Yeah, just like BSE baby. We have no idea what the repercussions of altering food might be until 10 years down the line when they say "Oops, actually they kill you". Just like the pill, just like BSE.

BV: When you originally set up the band, and when you bring new members in (i.e. when Jim began working with the band), do things such as whether the guy is a vegetarian, into Greenpeace and all the other same political and social beliefs as you take up as much a role as whether he's a good musician?

J: They are not mandates but they are important. Jim is a veggie and he believes in a lot of things that we think are important anyway and so all is well. We don't care if people eat meat. It's up to the individual. We don't do it and it works for us and we will be happy to explain why to you. But if you don't want to know then we aren't going to shove it down your throat. It's about education not indoctrination.

BV: Describe the other members of the band.

J: Drinky, mumbly, randy, and happy (does that make me snow white?).

BV: Sum up Pitchshifter in ten words or less.

J: Degenerate low life, mal-adjusted freaks.

BV: Anything else you'd like to add?

J: Go to http://www.pitchshifter.com now and see what's up!

Yep, do as the man says.

[pitchshitterarchiver]

A PSI by Pitchshifter tour poster for October 2004 found off way back machine on psirecords.com :P

I do not own this image, all credits to the owners

[pitchshitterarchiver]

A Pitchshifter interview with PETA2 somewhere I think pre or post none for all and all for one single

I found this off the psirecords old site under media and then interview

PETA2: Can you tell new PETA2 fans a little about how it all started and what makes you tick?

J.S.: Basically, we weren’t hearing the music out there that we wanted to hear. Thirteen years later, we’ve recorded nine albums, toured 25 countries, and started our own record label. Not bad for a bunch of punks on a crummy housing estate in the Midlands. What makes me tick? A passion for life!

Mark: We have all been possessed by music for a long, long time. Tours have included the Vans Warped Tour and Ozzfest USA. Our aim has always been to get people to think and question everything.

PETA2: What issue involving animals is closest to your heart?

J.S.: My brother and I have always tried to involve our beliefs in Pitchshifter and often donate tracks for anti-fox-hunting compilations. I think education is the key for progress on the ethical treatment of animals. If people don’t know the full story, they won’t make an informed decision. As with everything, education is the key.

Mark: I despise animal cruelty in any form. Factory farming and seal culling make my blood boil.

PETA2: What was the event in your life that made you decide to stop eating meat?

J.S.: As I remember, it was The Smiths, Crass, and a bunch of punk bands—from the music, I got into the lyrics and then into the ideas. So music really sparked my interest in animal issues.

Mark: I bought the Meat Is Murder album by The Smiths. The track “Meat Is Murder” begins with herds of animals screaming before they are slaughtered. After that, there was no turning back.

PETA2: How did your friends and family react when you went veg?

J.S.: I think I was 15, and Mark was 17 when we first dropped the bombshell on our family and friends that we weren’t going to be eating meat anymore. I remember them all looking at us like we were insane, but we slowly won them over, and they came to accept it. The irony now is that a lot of my friends and family have gone veggie or eat way less meat for health reasons. So you could say it got them in the end.

Mark: At first, people just think it’s something you do to be cool, just a phase you go through. But that was 17 years ago, so I think people have got the message now.

PETA2: Does being veggie tie in with your other ethics and your outlook?

J.S.: Well, I just believe in trying to do the right thing. Human beings are the most complex, astounding, creative, energetic, persevering life form on the planet. We are so beautiful, and yet many of us choose to be so ugly to our species and so many others. It blows my mind. I just try and treat everyone and everything the way I would like to be treated.

Mark: Totally, being vegetarian goes hand in hand with wider environmental issues. If the world farmers farmed soya instead of cattle, then I believe the world could be fed. The world’s resources are being destroyed and people, governments, and countries need to make massive changes.

PETA2: How is being vegetarian different today than it was when you first made the choice?

J.S.: Well, these days, the food is great. These days, you don’t have to “miss out” to go veggie, you just have to realign your purchasing and you’re there. I am loving veggie hot dogs this month. Can’t get enough of them!

Mark: Going to restaurants is really good now, [before] as a non meat-eater, there would only ever be one or two choices. Now vegetarians are being taken seriously.

PETA2: You have been granted the power to change the world. You sit and consider the first thing that you would do. What is it?

J.S.: Well, if we’re going to go into the realm of fantasy, I will take it one step further: If I was given the power to change EVERYTHING and do anything, I would give everyone the knowledge of what it’s like to be everyone else, of every species. Kind of like a ‘day in the shoes’ of everyone and everything. I think if we had that kind of an insight into life, there would be a lot less cruelty going on.

Mark: I would eliminate world hunger and ban hunting.

PETA2: If people are reading this site and trying to decide whether to go veggie or vegan, what would you say to convince them?

J.S.: If nothing else (i.e., you don’t care about it ethically), think of your health. The surgeon general agrees that a diet rich in fruit and vegetables extends lifespan and facilitates a better standard of living. That ALONE should be enough reason. What do you need … a money back coupon and a free set of soup bowls!?

Mark: We are an intelligent species who have evolved to the point where we do not need to eat meat. DO something about it. Watch some films on animal factory farming, and you will be disgusted with the whole industry. Go veggie!

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Photos of Pitchshifter from angelfire.com

These are not my photos

[pitchshitterarchiver]

PITCHSHIFTER INTERVIEW IN 1998:

Back inside the cool, air-conditioned confines of the band's tour bus, which Jon has dubbed "The Dolphin" (affectionately or in spite, I'm not sure), we escape the heat and sit down to do the interview. I'm nervous as hell. I've been waiting a long, long time to see Pitchshifter in person, and to end up lucky enough to be able to speak with Jon Clayden beforehand is both a nightmare and a dream come true. Despite my foot getting stuck in my mouth a few times I find Jon (and all the band) to be generous and kind, well-spoken and intelligent, and, above all, to have a wicked, wicked sense of humor--but of course.

In the end I discover a tight-knit band, both musically and as friends, and who, after a long road together, are happy to finally have their music getting some well deserved notice, and glad to finally be allowed to focus on it exclusively on their own terms--all with the support of their new label.

How's the tour been so far? Any memorable moments?

J.S. Clayden: Oh, a million! The tour's been really good. America's always insane 'cause every state's a different country. We played in Reno the night before last night, and there's some curfew for under twenty-one's in the town center after nine-thirty or ten, or something mad like that! So you can be married, with kids, have your own business, but you're still not allowed to go into the town center. Things like that make me realize how insane America is. There'd be a riot in European countries if that was the case. It'd be like "RIOTTT!!!" Ha ha! There've been a lot of memorable moments. Meeting Jello Biafra in San Francisco. He came to the show and said he really liked our stuff, and talked about working together. My jaw hit the floor and I was like "Aaahhh!!! You're Jello Biafra and I'm no one!" That was really cool. Fear Factory came out to one of the shows. The weird chick from the Addams Family movies turned up for one--can't remember her name. It's been quite mad meeting those people.

So now that you've been from one end of the country to the other, and have spent a whole lot of time in-between in the midwest, what's your take on American culture?

J.S.: I think American culture is like any other culture--it's just tits, beer, and shit TV. It's the same in Germany, it's the same in England. We read The Sun newspaper in England, which has an average reader age of eight, and which is the highest selling newspaper; whereas a paper like The Guardian that actually does have some valid points is way down on the list.

But as in any culture there's fucking really cool things in America that you don't get in other countries. Because we are from four-thousand miles east, the way people perceive us is really different. I think we actually, and I don't mean it in an arrogant way, but when we come to America people actually take us for our worth. In England you're nothing special and you're instantly dismissed, even though when we play there we play for a thousand people. But you can never really make that jump in England to be like Nirvana or whatever 'cause of that mystique of coming from somewhere miles away and, you know… I think when we come to America people do listen to our music and go, "We don't have any music like this here. This is indicative of where they come from and what they do." We're taken more on the value of what we're worth rather than "being cool."

Well, people here have definitely been looking forward to seeing you come and play. I know a lot of people, including myself, who have been waiting quite awhile to see you actually make it out to the west coast...

J.S.: People say that, say stuff like, "I've been waiting for six years to see you play and stuff." And it just freaks me out and I feel kinda bad 'cause we're just the support band and we only do forty-five minutes. Sorry you've been waiting for six years, I wish we could play longer.

Leave them wanting more for the next time you come back…

J.S.: We're going to be back in October or November. After this tour we do three weeks around Europe on the Vans European Warped Tour with The Specials, NOFX, Civ and The Deftones. Then we do two weeks in Australia headlining, a week headlining in Japan, then a couple of gigs in the UK because everyone gets upset when we don't play in England for ages. And then we're going to come straight back to America.

Is it going to be another coast to coast?

J.S.: I hope so. It should be a couple of months, probably until around Christmas.

Do you like being out on the road?

J.S.: I don't think I have any option. Ha! I think yeah, it's a nice lifestyle. It's kind of compulsive and destructive simultaneously. There's a lot of benefits. You get to meet a lot of people, exchange a lot of ideas, see a lot of things that other people will never see in their lifetime, experience a lot of stuff. One day we're up the CN tower and the next day we're on a rollercoaster atop a tower in Las Vegas. You think, "God, what are we doing? It's madness!"

I dunno, you can probably squeeze in what would take nice people half their life in like three months. But it's also quite destructive. Don't get me wrong, I used to drive a delivery truck--a waste of all my years in college. This is a far more productive thing to do with your life, I think. But it can be really destructive--it's impossible to have a girlfriend. We all had girlfriends before this tour, and we all went, "Hey honey, I'll be back on Christmas Day." And they all went, "Don't come back." Heh. So there are negative aspects. Luckily none of us have children or pets.

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Pitchshifter on instagram

“Happy birthday to ‘Shifter vocalist/progammer/writer/designer J.S. Clayden! See you down in front In November”

March 23

[pitchshitterarchiver]

A press cut of Kerrang! With JS clayden from Pitchshifter in 1997

-Source: https://www.reddit.com/r/pitchshifter/s/tq1J4IgH6o

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Pitchshifter on blog spot: Thursday, July 9, 1998

“Man is it hot in Arizona. They have misters outside all the shops to spray water over the customers because they don't want them to die from heat exhaustion before they reach their credit limits on those cards. Before the show I go shopping with Jim. We need some tacky useless shit to take home for our loved ones. My dad (the Reverend D Clayden) likes hats, so I buy him a Tempe Sun Devils baseball cap. I'm sure he's going to love that.

I already got my Mum a jewellery box with a picture of Elvis shaking hands with President Nixon on the top from Gracelands. I thank you. That's possibly the classiest piece of tacky shit on the planet. I'm such a good son. Jim buys his Dad a paper weight with a scorpion encased within in. Classy.

The show is amazing. It's a 750 capacity venue totally sold out. There are a lot of goths in the crowd which I find unusual for somewhere so hot. How the hell can you walk around in the desert with a full length black leather overcoat and face paint? There must be pools of melted goth on every street corner. The ones who couldn't make it back to their coffin. People must tread in them like melted chewing gum stuck to their boots. "look out! melting goth!"

For the first time in my musical career underwear is hurled at me from the crowd. Someone threw a black lacy underwired bra at me while we were playing. I couldn't see who it was because of the bright lights. She could have been a doll, she could have been a beast. I guess I'll never know. That thing was big though. I don't really know that much about bras being your average dumb male, but that thing looked sizeable. 'C' or a 'D'? whatever the hell those letters mean. That thing looks like it could be WAY further down the alphabet. We're talkin Omega here. It's hanging up in the bus somewhere. A shrine to fast living. After the show I give the rest of the band the slip and run off with a car full of people I just met to a live hip hop night at a little local hideaway. The tunes were fat, the break dancing was funny, the pitchers were unending. Before I knew it I was up there dance hall style whooping it up with B boys and girls. Wiggle and wine! Back on the bus I ask Stilly (Pitchshifter's stage tech) what the gig is going to be like tomorrow because he's done it before.

"Last time I came here with the band Carcass someone threw a bag ofmushrooms up on the stage at Geoff the singer."

"Cool."

"Yeah, only it wasn't a bag of mushrooms."

"No? What was it then?"

"A dead rat."

Viva Las Vegas?”

-JS clayden on blog spot

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Stephen Carpenter, the guitarist of Deftones and Jim Davies, the lead guitarist of Pitchshifter during the 98 fall tour with gravity kills and deftones

NOT MY IMAGE

[pitchshitterarchiver]

Pitchshifter live at reading festival 99

08/29/99 / August 29, 1999 NOT MY IMAGE

“Pitchshifter kick ass. At Reading 1998 I was told to go and see them as they were supposed to be good, so I found my way to the tent they were playing in, anchored myself to a support pole, and hoped for the best. The crowd was like nothing I had seen before - violent, spitting, moshing, banging, and when CDs were thrown into the crowd and I got hold of one, I was kicked and stamped on until I let go of it. Vicious.

If you can hold your own in a crowd like that, you can begin to listen to the music. They did rock, admittedly. Their industrial dance style is obviously good for getting a lot out of your system and the music is aggressive and accusatory.

At Reading 1999 and Big Day Out, Pitchshifter were on a main stage. For once I didn't forge my way to the front of the crowd - I didn't need the violence - but danced, moshed and pogoed with friends from midway back in the crowd. This time they were great - I could both hear them and enjoy it.

In short, Pitchshifter rule. Just wear body armour, 'k?”

Source: -https://www.gorge.org/gigs/pitchshifter.shtml

[pitchshitterarchiver]

One of the alternative deviant by Pitchshifter album covers that was rejected by the MCA, universal record label.

“The mock original cover was created by vocalist, JS Clayden, as an extension of the concept of the distorted nuclear family originally debuted on the band's ".com" album; however, the record label feared legal reprisals for the use. And so, in defiance, the band commissioned a second cover by Artist William George as a parody-infused distortion of Norman Rockwell's "Thanksgiving." naturally, the record label freaked out even more over that version and refused to release it.

In a final attempt at something radical that would see the light of day, JS Clayden brokered a deal with Gee Vaucher (she of Crass art fame) to utilize her Pope/Queen image, colorized by NY graphic designer Howard Forbes. This version was approved and was ultimately released as the album's cover.

The original painting by William George was never furnished to the band (aren't record labels wonderful?) and Mr. George sadly died in 2017. And so, that artwork is probably lost to posterity--except for the low-resolution digital version included in this demo release.”

-u/persona420 on Reddit