After their stormy breakup, Jason
Payne became the last drummer of Nitzer Ebb. Jason Payne left the scene
after the band's last, intense "Big Hit" tour. Stefan of Zero Magazine
caught up with Jason Payne in Los Angeles to hear, for the first time,
his thoughts on the band's breakup, and about his current projects.
Zero Music Magazine
Box 2002
40311 Göteborg
Sweden
Phone: +4631-195 777 (Office) Cell: +46709-269 734
http://www.zeromagazine.nu
ZERO:
Tell us about your time with Nitzer Ebb.
JASON:
I look back fondly on those days. I was only 19 when I started
playing with the band, and learned a lot from the experience. I was
working at an espresso bar in Hollywood where I met Douglas and Bon.
I was playing in a pretty horrible muso-wank band, and they came to
see me play at Café Largo. I started playing with them shortly there
after. I hadn’t really heard much of Nitzer Ebb before I started
playing with them. At the time I wasn’t into electronic music. I do
like the early stuff. The best time was when we worked in the house
in Sherman Oaks, recording Big Hit, and having the opportunity to
work with Flood.
ZERO:
What is your favorite Ebb song?
JASON:
That’s a tough question because there are a lot of songs I like.
Some are really great to listen to, some are super fun to play, and
some are both. I’ve always liked the drum sound from "In Decline." "Living
out of a Bag" is probably my favorite groove. It’s cool to listen to
Doug’s voice on the later records and hear him growing as a vocalist.
I like it when people try different things, when they don’t just get
locked into what worked before. I think that Bon grew a lot too, as
a programming guru and as a songwriter.
ZERO:
How much did you contribute to the songs on “Big Hit”? Can you tell
us about the recording of “Big Hit" and the tour?
JASON:
Basically, all the songs were already written. My contribution was
trying to come up with grooves that worked. We toured Europe and
North America. There were a lot of fun times, and a lot of difficult
times. I became good friends with John Napier who played guitar on
the tour, a fellow L.A. native who I’m still friends with today. The
tension in the band towards the end sucked. It made the end of the
tour miserable. Touring can be quite tiring, but at the end of the
day, you’re still making money traveling around the world playing
music. Not many people get the opportunity to do that.
ZERO:
How did you experience the Nitzer Ebb break up? What was the reason,
according to you?
JASON:
I was bummed that it ended the way it did. It was very abrupt. It
may sound cheesy, but I felt very close to them on a personal level.
I’ve wanted to talk to them since, but haven’t had contact. I
haven’t spoken with either one [Bon or Douglas] in many years.
ZERO:
What did you do right after the Nitzer Ebb break up?
JASON:
Came back home to LA, played for a minute with Maven, continued to
abuse drugs, then got clean and sober and into recovery and have
been for almost 10 years.
ZERO:
What have you done since the break up of the band? Tell us about
your music projects.
JASON:
I played in a band Wild Colonials (Geffen), Eastside Sinfonietta (True
Classical) which was a Kurt Weill/Bertolt Brecht cover band. I have
done sound design for commercials, film and theatre. Currently I do
sessions and have a pop band, La Fin Du Monde.
ZERO:
Would you rejoin the band if the guys called you again?
JASON:
I hadn’t really thought about it. I doubt they’d call me. It’d be
good to hear from them again.
ZERO:
What do you think about the Nitzer Ebb comeback?
JASON:
I wish them the best.
Music from Jason Payne's current band, La Fin Du Monde, can be
accessed at:
www.myspace.com/lafindumonde
His contact information can be found at:
End
