The JD Project, a California Roots Rock band based out of San Luis Obispo, California, describes their self-created genre of music as a little bit of everything.
The band is comprised of some of the former members of Itchy McGuirk, and includes Doug Groshart on lead vocals and keyboard, Jon Scholl on bass, Dan Ernst on guitar, and Dave Lacaro on drums. Scholl, Ernst and Lacaro all sing backing vocals as well, and bring different musical influences to this eclectic group.
What genre of music would you characterize the band as being?
"California Roots Rock is our self-created genre...basically, our music comes from all the different types of music that came together to make rock, blues, country, soul. The California part of the tag represents the diversity in our music, just like our state, with it's mountains, desert, ocean, lakes and agriculture, we've got a little bit of everything." ~ Doug Groshart
Who are the band's biggest influences?
"Allman Brothers, Blues Traveler, and a blend of country, blues and classic rock bands." ~ Dan Ernst
"The Eagles" ~ Jon Scholl
"Blues Traveler, Led Zeppelin, Allman Brothers" ~ Dave Lacaro
"I listened to a lot of The Eagles, Willie Nelson, and other country-rock type stuff growing up." ~ Doug Groshart
What's the story behind the band's name?
"Our original drummer was Jeff, so we had Jeff, Jon, Dan and Doug. Two J's and two D's. We booked a gig and needed a name for the ad flier, so we came up with The JD Project. It didn't hurt that some of the guys in the band are quite fond of Jack Daniels either." ~ Doug Groshart
When/How was the band formed?
"Dan and John have been best of friends since junior high and have played a ton of music together since then. They'd been in a ton of bands locally. Jon and I played in Itchy McGuirk together for years, and Dan and I had played quite a bit of music together over the years as well. Dave was added to the mix in 2008, we met him at a big, weekend-long jam session at a studio down in L.A. and just hit it off. He's a great addition to the band because he comes from a slightly different musical background than we've had before, and he's got an amazing voice." ~ Doug Groshart
Why the title "Past Due" for the new CD?
"The band has been together for roughly ten years, but has yet to put a CD out. Therefore, the CD is past due." ~ Dave Lacaro
"It was about time we recorded something nine years after we formed." ~ Dan Ernst
"Secondly, the economy's not so good right now, and a lot of people are seeing 'Past Due' on their bills. The photo on the album cover is from the docks at New York harbor in 1936. It shows four guys waiting for work to come their way, that sums us up pretty much. We're all in this together, ready to work, all we need is the opportunity." ~ Doug Groshart
The song "Better off Insane" has a distinct country influence that is much different than the other songs on the album, what prompted the band to include this track on the CD?
"Better off insane represents our country influence like Cash, Williams, Nelson...these are great country musicians that have left a footprint in American music and The JD Project's music today." ~ Dave Lacaro
"Diversity keeps people interested!" ~ Jon Scholl
"Doug's drunk uncle I think?" ~ Dan Ernst
"The part about 'mixing his whiskey with more whiskey' is about my dad's Uncle, that's what he said he mixed his whiskey with...more whiskey. The reason it's on the album is that we've all got a little bit of country music in our backgrounds, so we wanted to show our country side." ~ Doug Groshart
Where will the CD be available for purchase?
"Currently cdbaby, downloads and streaming available in August or September at itunes, Napster, Amazon MP3, Rhapsody, Emusic, Liquid Digitam Media, Nokia, Tradebit, Last.fm, Verizon V-cast, LimeWire and Zune." ~ Jon Scholl
As for the future goals of The JD Project, the band would like to put out another CD and play more shows at bigger venues and large festivals. They want to put out music they are proud of, and share their music with all the wonderful people of the world. For details regarding upcoming concert dates, check out the band's page on Myspace, or become a fan of The JD Project on Facebook.
The band were in conversation with Suite101.
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