John “Jughead” Pierson is no stranger to the punk rock community. He first made a name for himself as a founding member of Chicago’s Screeching Weasel, with the band until the mid-00s. Since then, he has released music with various bands including The Mopes and Even In Blackouts. He is also an accomplished writer, actor and podcast host. I recently had the chance to have a lengthy and enjoyable chat with John regarding his newest musical outfit, Semi-Famous. The band recently released their debut album Destroy Ourselves this past July.
Hello John. I am speaking to you from sunny Lombard, IL right now. Some may know, but others don’t. Right now you are in Japan. Can you please let us know what brings you to Japan?
Contractually, all I can say is that I am a wizard that works in Osaka, Japan. I just had my ten year anniversary here, working off and on. I came back during the pandemic. I am in my second year of my current contract.
You have been very busy still while being abroad. It appears seamless to folks since you have still remained active with both your musical endeavors and your podcast (Jughead’s Basement).What have been some of the challenges of doing your podcast while in a different time zone?
My fiancé Nanako and I were apart for a year, so we both got good at navigating time. It has been my job schedule that gets in the way. I don’t mind doing something at 3AM, but when I have to get up at 5:30AM at work it’s difficult. I am getting better at negotiating that part of it with myself. I like to keep it simple. I use Audacity and do all the editing myself. I took some time off after proposing to my now fiancé. Since then though I have gotten rejuvenated and have done them almost weekly now.
I really like the new format you have been doing. The format where you have more casual conversations with friends. I know you have done a few already with the likes of Larry Livermore, Blag from the Dwarves and Mass Giorgini.
I just scheduled Dan Vapid as well. I actually did this format to make it easy on me. As you know I spend a lot of time preparing for each podcast. I don’t do them as much, but when I did I would prepare for months for the album dissections I used to do. Even with the regular podcasts, editing in the “Future John” and the soundbites takes a few days. The “Catching Up With Friends” results in less studying and less editing. I really try to make my podcast into a radio story style format. I still try to balance doing my regular podcasts with this new format.
Well thanks, John. This covers the catching up with what you have been doing portion of the interview.
One more thing I want to cover. I have been working on a book for the past seven years. I have also been working on a longer term book project which goes through the history of my bands. I will find a picture, let’s say of my time in Screeching Weasel, and then write a story to go along with it. I think I am going to call that one “We Screeched.” The novel will be called the “Plight of the Lampoons.” So I wanted to cover that the three main things I have been balancing are the Book, the band and the podcast.
I would like to now turn to your current musical project Semi-Famous. Most know the origin of this as the fictional band in your book Weasels in a Box. What was it that brought this fictional band to life to becoming an actual band?
Tyson Cordell who is also the drummer of the band is the man behind the publishing company Rare Bird Lit. Many musicians have put out books on that label such as Blag and Chris Barrows. I talked to Tyson who was interested in re-releasing Weasels in a Box. I recorded the audio book during the pandemic in my basement. That went well and reinvigorated me. Tyson asked me to fly out to his studio to record a 7”. I had been hesitant to do anything pop punk since I stopped being involved with Screeching Weasel. There was something interesting though about coming back to it as a fictional take on my actual band. It gave me a feeling of protection this way to just go in and do it and not worry about if I was as good as Vapid or Ben.
I do have a copy of your first 7”. “Middle School Monster” is definitely a more aggressive song, both musically and lyrically. It sounds lyrically like a song which would have fit on the first couple Weasel albums, but with more of a contemporary feel. Was it accidental or intentional to have a song like that being one of the first two you recorded?
There was a lot of intention in working on that song. I always wanted to work with Ryan Rockwell from Mixtapes. I was in a touring puppet show where I met Ryan in a video arcade in Cincinnati. He hadn’t done anything musically in a while and I mentioned to him that I was shaking myself out of my pop punk haze and wanted him there with me. He was into doing it. Then I told him I wanted to do a song in the vein of Vapid’s , I came up with the lyrics before Ryan added the music. That first song was truly written by both of us.
At what point did you realize you wanted to bring this fictional band into reality? Also, at what point did you bring in the remaining members of the band, Billy, Tyson and Poli?
Billy was always part of the mix. Whenever I go to LA I always work with him. He was really good friends with Even In Blackouts drummer Bice. His voice is really gnarly and has worked with many hardcore bands. Tyson is very spontaneous on the drums. We just sat there live and worked it out.I also always wanted Christopher Applegren and Paul Russell to work together. Through the years they were always sort of connected, as both had worked on Weasel related releases.I always had Poli in mind for doing a band with as I was always a fan of Bombpops. After interviewing her I found out her husband Mike is a huge fan of Screeching Weasel as well as the book. I sensed that if I brought in a woman singer it would also trigger something in Ryan. As soon as I told Ryan I was bringing on Poli, he started writing songs for the two of them. Everybody was there in the studio for recording the album.
Was the first time the five of you got together when you went to the studio to record the album?
Yes. Ryan and I did all the stringed instrumentation on the album. Unfortunately at that point Billy was unable to use his hands anymore. Poli was brought in the last two days to do vocals. So, it wasn’t until the last two days that we were all in the studio together.
I have really taken the time to absorb the album these past few weeks. One of the main observations and things I appreciate about it is that is doesn’t immediately sound like a Jughead band. It sounds like its own unique entity. I hear everything from pop punk to even 90’s alternative radio sounds. Did you go into this project with an idea of wanting certain type of sound for certain songs or did they just come naturally as the outcome of songwriting?
The intention at first was to be a little more Weasel-like than we ended up becoming. My idea at first was not, though, to do an album by album interpretation. I thought to do more of a Kill The Musicians where we can write whatever we want based on being influenced by my twenty years in Weasel. I didn’t want to be tied down to one time period of the band. Once I opened that up to Ryan it permitted more freedom in writing.
Before diving into some of the specific songs, is there anything high level you want to cover about the album?
I felt very comfortable writing next to someone. It made me realize that you can work with people on the same style of song that have different influences. As long as you are doing it with them, it will still sound alike. It’s two different people working on what each other know and asking the other to contribute. Also, Ryan sang the songs he wrote and vice versa. People do say it’s not as obvious though to tell who wrote each song. One thing I found interesting is that many initial reviews claimed that this is a fun record. I do want to clarify that there indeed are many serious topics on this record.
I would like to run through the album. I have a few questions and comments on a few particular songs. Right off the bat, “Weasels in a Box” is a short and sweet catchy intro track. Was the “I’m Gonna Strangle You” ending with holding out the word “Tonight” as intentional as it seems?
Of course it was! Kevin from the Apers always has one song in every set where he ends with holding out the word “Tonight.” Its such a cool thing that Vapid brought to the band. Ryan had that part written into the end of the song. The album was originally going to be called “Weasels In A Box.” Mass from the Manges though had a heart to heart with me and suggested I don’t push the Weasel thing too far. He suggested I make it my own, though we still kept the title of the song.
As a fan, I like that approach as well. Anything you do will be assimilated to your time in Screeching Weasel. This album though really does stand on its own though. I wanted to ask next on the following tracks you wrote, “Pedestal in Hell” and “What’s a Metaphor?” Can you dive into “What’s a Metaphor?” and its meaning?
It came out after we were in the studio the first time for the EP and Billy told me he had cancer. I had lost another friend of mine Mike who literally died in my hands from cancer. The song is about that. I tried to be straight forward though it may not have come across as much as I had expected. The phrase has been around forever, and I was playing on the word. Also, life is so real that you don’t always need a metaphor. Some of the feel of the song comes from both the Clash’s first album as well as the Weasel song “I’m Not In Love.” The riff in the middle comes from “Slogans” which never came through sonically in the original song.
Two other songs I want to tackle are songs which were penned by guest writers. The first one is the eighth track “Clown In The Window” which was written by Dan Vapid. That song I remember reading in the promo that he had lent a track to the album. I listened to the album before I knew who wrote each song. I was actually a little surprised to find out he wrote that song as it seemed slightly dark for him. It is a great song as I absolutely hate clowns as well. How did that partnership come about.
It was a simple as telling Dan I had a new project. I had played “Middle School Monster” for him which he appreciated as an obvious ode to his songwriting. I then approached him about writing a song for the new album. Knowing Vapid, he always has about 200 songs in the works. In Vapid style, he sent videos playing all the different parts. We completed it with the backing vocals. Dan wrote the lyrics and the guitars and solos. He is such a prolific songwriter that I wanted to do the song exactly as he intended.
“Not Ready” by J Prozac (of the Prozacs) is the second guest written song. How did that come about? Did you give him an idea of what to write?
I gave him a parameter. I wanted something in the range of Wiggle and Anthem For A New Tomorrow. I then gave him free rein to do what he wanted. Like Ryan Rockwell, I wanted to give exposure to people who don’t get enough credit for what they do. Ryan and I played with that one a lot. Jay gave us freedom to do what we wanted with it. We changed some words and placed the guitar solo over the bridge.
As I said before, I didn’t know the songwriters on each track before listening to the album. This song starts with a classic Weasel-like guitar lead. Knowing Jay and the Prozacs style, it did not surprise me upon learning he wrote that track! I know how influential the classic Weasel sound is to his songwriting.
It was fun working on that song. He really gave us a lot to work with.
It’s great that you are using this platform to give that exposure as you stated to those artist who are truly deserving. The last song I wanted to ask about is “Rush II.” Are you directly taking a slam at drummer Neil Peart?
I am taking a slam at all of Rush!
So this is “I Hate Led Zeppelin” part two?
That’s exactly what it was! Ben was actually a huge Led Zeppelin fan when we were growing up. By the time he became a punk he disregarded them and stated that he always hated the band. I know though that he truly used to like them. Even though I like Rush, I knew they are a band like Led Zeppelin that I could have fun with hating. I have never had any shame in liking bands like Queen and Jethro Tull. They came out and did something that no one ever did before, similar to Ramones and Sex Pistols. People didn’t know what it was.
I agree with that fully. I never pigeon hole myself into listening to just one style of music. Even though I am primarily a punk and metal guy, I have always appreciated bands like Pink Floyd. So getting back to the album for a minute. I was reading some promo material which stated that Poli’s husband Mike is now a member of the band.
In my heart and all of our hearts he is a member. When he came to Chicago with Poli he became a member. I later interviewed him for the podcast where he discussed his horror punk band. When Billy passed, I felt we should bring him into the band. He and Poli like to write together. He doesn’t play any instruments but might sing some songs live. We are going back to the studio in February and he will be there the whole time.
That’s a good segue as I had read about plans for the band to return to the studio. Do you already have any songs or ideas written for the album? What is the process looking like?
We have seven songs already. I have three. Ryan has three. Poli and Mike have one so far. From now until February we are writing as many songs as we can and will pick the best out of the batch. There is no specific theme right now for the album.
Will you be going to the same studio?
Yes, the same studio run by Rare Bird Lit, where we have previously recorded.
So it seems like this time around you will have more song writing influence outside of just yourself and Ryan.
Yes, that was one of the goals in getting Poli into the band. She was no longer feeling like she was regarded as an equal contributor to her previous band the Bombpops. The plan was for us all in Semi-Famous to have an equal share in songs and the songwriting process.
Are there any plans for any live performances at this time?
We are going to do one for my birthday in L.A. when we are out there. We do not know the date yet. My birthday is February 21st. A lot will also depend on whether or not I will be staying another year in Japan. I want to take advantage of the band though that we have now and play out.
Another thing I want to point out is my appreciation for how unpredictable the album sounded to me. I had no idea what to expect, but I am glad I didn’t hear Wiggle part 2, for example. I always hear the progression in your projects.
Yeah, with Weasel I was the 2nd in charge. I was always doing other things like theater. Therefore, when I was writing, I never really felt the need or desire to ever repeat myself.
There is one last thing I wanted to ask you about. What is it like putting out an album in 2024 compared to the 90s? What do you think social media and streaming has done to the marketing of an album?
Though you hate to admit it there are still big corporations that buy up all the digital space. There are more bands than ever and people have a lot more than ever to dig through to find with music. I have a hard time with it and was hesitant to put something out. It sometimes feel like you are putting something out into a big void.
I feel you guys did a good job with the promotion leading up to the album. You had released a handful of animated music videos leading up to release date. It is interesting to think about the marketing the limited physical amount of product compared to the number of listeners who will stream digitally.
This was one of the big conflicts towards the end between Ben and I. He was leaning towards never ever wanting to play out live. I was seeing the future where people are going to get our music without paying for it. Therefore, there was a need to play out more. This is the future.
I like your take on that, because less and less are purchasing physical media compared to the 90s. To be viable, there is definitely a need to perform more.
I do indeed like products. There is the songwriting but they are indeed a marker in time. I do like where the outside mirrors what is inside the product. I am also aware that is harder and harder though to do that these days. I love this band and want to continue. I try not to compare the numbers though to that of albums I made years and years ago which still sell well.
I am glad you are still doing it. Thank you so much for the interview.
I am mostly known in cyberspace as a vinyl junkie and punk rock bassist! Fair assessment. I am the bassist of the Chicago area power pop / pop punk band SPACE AGE ZEROS.
