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More press for the boy! :-)
Another good article about the man! Bits of this are recycled from other articles I've read. Still, good stuff!
Solo CD puts Chasez front and center
Joan Anderman
Boston Globe
Jan. 9, 2004 07:45 PM
JC Chasez is resting in Las Vegas, which he agrees is an exceptionally odd thing to do. Then again, traveling to a notorious party town for a little R&R isn't any weirder than some of the other moves Chasez has made lately. For example: Late last year Chasez, one fifth of the group 'N Sync, released "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" on the "Drumline" soundtrack. It sounded like a parade band coming unglued on the dance floor. Then he collaborated with the British prog-house duo Basement Jaxx on the song "Plug it In." It sounded like Prince on steroids.
Now we have "Some Girls (Dance with Women)," the first single from Chasez's forthcoming solo debut, "Schizophrenic." It's a jungly clutch of rhythms iced with an itchy-sweet melody, part conga line, part pop tune. It's sexy and silly and funky in a George Michael sort of way. The rest of the album, due out Jan. 27, is all over the place: surf-rock, reggae, disco, techno, dreamy balladry, acoustic pop. Chasez gives props to Jimi Hendrix, Duran Duran, and the Police. There is a gritty ditty called "All Day Long I Dream About Sex." More on this later.
Apparently nobody hipped Chasez to the popular concept of stylistic focus, or the crass notion of niche marketing, or a very useful idea called developing a musical identity. Hence the album's title, which Chasez dreamed up because it seemed smart to pick a name that would explain and possibly even justify this wacky jumble of songs.
Amazingly, it works.
"I created this nice little glue that gave me the freedom to do whatever I wanted to do," says Chasez. "Some of it was jokes. Some of it was inspirations. But it was free-flowing and it was healthy for me. It's what I needed to do."
And who can blame him? Chasez (pronounced Sha-zay) began his musical life as a performer on the Disney Channel's "The Mickey Mouse Club," a program not noted for nurturing creative latitude. The soon-to-be-stars-studded cast included Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera. 'N Sync formed in 1996, and Chasez spent the next five years blending his voice, synchronizing his steps, tailoring his tastes, and generally skewing his life to the greater will of the boy band.
"I always had to think in terms of compromise," says Chasez, who has co-written many of 'N Sync's songs. "I would shoot down ideas in the writing process, thinking 'I don't think the guys will go for this.' It isn't a bad thing, but you have to cater to four other people."
Now, at 26, after selling many millions of albums as part of 'N Sync, Chasez feels like a novice polishing up his demos. While bandmate Timberlake wasted no time issuing his solo album - "Justified" was in stores within a year of 'N Sync's most recent release, 2001's "Celebrity" - Chasez took his time. He went grocery shopping, reconnected with people, reacquainted himself, he says, with a simpler kind of life. Chasez, who lives down the road from his family in Orlando, swears that the only reason "Schizophrenic" exists is because his pals kept bugging him to do it. And when your pals' names are Dallas Austin, Riprock, Alex G, Robb Boldt, Rockwilder, and BT - some of the hottest producers and songwriters in the business - friendly ribbing turns into high-wattage recording sessions with little effort.
"I didn't chase big names," says Chasez. "I would call up my friends and say, 'What are you doing today?' It was natural, hooking up and hanging out. We didn't go into the studio to make a hit, and I didn't take myself too seriously. I think that's one thing that's missing in music."
Which brings us to "All Day Long I Dream About Sex," a.k.a. "A.D.I.D.A.S." - the incomplete but convenient acronym for a buzzed-about - and frankly irresistible - track that Chasez says he made up for fun and produced in an hour. A chunky, synth-driven rocker, it's been dubbed the finger-pointing song, he says, because the enthusiastic supporters at his label, Jive, expect that "everyone will know the words and point their fingers when they sing it." The song, by the way, is not meant to suggest that Chasez dreams about sex all day long, no more than Aerosmith's "Love in an Elevator" is a literal representation of Steven Tyler's locale of choice. Although Chasez concedes, laughing, that all fiction contains a grain - or more - of truth.
"Who would say 'Love in an Elevator'? It's talking about sex in a humorous way," Chasez explains. "I didn't care if my jokes offended people, I just did what I thought was funny. You know, I really respect Kid Rock's mentality, the fact that he's so free and willing to sing country and do hip-hop and just try things. I don't know if anyone wants to hear an album of my material. I figured why not throw it against the wall and see if it sticks?"
In addition to the challenge of distinguishing himself outside the well-established confines of his band, Chasez is dealing with the pressure of following in the footsteps of Timberlake, whose wildly successful solo career landed him on the cover of the current Rolling Stone magazine with the headline: "The New King of Pop."
"Justin's a superstar. He's always had the spotlight on him," says Chasez. "I don't feel that pressure. I make the tunes, and hopefully people show up. I would love that. If they don't, I still get to go back in the studio and hang out with my friends."
There is no question that 'N Sync will record another album. Chasez, Timberlake, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick, and Joey Fatone have had a series of casual conversations about creating a timeline, which will probably see the band getting to work toward the end of 2004 - after Chasez's promotion for "Schizophrenic" winds down. But the teen pop craze is over. The boy band is filled with grown men. One wonders where 'N Sync goes from here.
"My project and Justin's project has opened all of us up to new ideas for the group," says Chasez, "and I think it will help us grow. At the end of the day a good song is a good song, whether it's pop or R&B or whatever. Maybe the fans of our solo music will follow us back to 'N Sync."
Solo CD puts Chasez front and center
Joan Anderman
Boston Globe
Jan. 9, 2004 07:45 PM
JC Chasez is resting in Las Vegas, which he agrees is an exceptionally odd thing to do. Then again, traveling to a notorious party town for a little R&R isn't any weirder than some of the other moves Chasez has made lately. For example: Late last year Chasez, one fifth of the group 'N Sync, released "Blowin' Me Up (With Her Love)" on the "Drumline" soundtrack. It sounded like a parade band coming unglued on the dance floor. Then he collaborated with the British prog-house duo Basement Jaxx on the song "Plug it In." It sounded like Prince on steroids.
Now we have "Some Girls (Dance with Women)," the first single from Chasez's forthcoming solo debut, "Schizophrenic." It's a jungly clutch of rhythms iced with an itchy-sweet melody, part conga line, part pop tune. It's sexy and silly and funky in a George Michael sort of way. The rest of the album, due out Jan. 27, is all over the place: surf-rock, reggae, disco, techno, dreamy balladry, acoustic pop. Chasez gives props to Jimi Hendrix, Duran Duran, and the Police. There is a gritty ditty called "All Day Long I Dream About Sex." More on this later.
Apparently nobody hipped Chasez to the popular concept of stylistic focus, or the crass notion of niche marketing, or a very useful idea called developing a musical identity. Hence the album's title, which Chasez dreamed up because it seemed smart to pick a name that would explain and possibly even justify this wacky jumble of songs.
Amazingly, it works.
"I created this nice little glue that gave me the freedom to do whatever I wanted to do," says Chasez. "Some of it was jokes. Some of it was inspirations. But it was free-flowing and it was healthy for me. It's what I needed to do."
And who can blame him? Chasez (pronounced Sha-zay) began his musical life as a performer on the Disney Channel's "The Mickey Mouse Club," a program not noted for nurturing creative latitude. The soon-to-be-stars-studded cast included Justin Timberlake, Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera. 'N Sync formed in 1996, and Chasez spent the next five years blending his voice, synchronizing his steps, tailoring his tastes, and generally skewing his life to the greater will of the boy band.
"I always had to think in terms of compromise," says Chasez, who has co-written many of 'N Sync's songs. "I would shoot down ideas in the writing process, thinking 'I don't think the guys will go for this.' It isn't a bad thing, but you have to cater to four other people."
Now, at 26, after selling many millions of albums as part of 'N Sync, Chasez feels like a novice polishing up his demos. While bandmate Timberlake wasted no time issuing his solo album - "Justified" was in stores within a year of 'N Sync's most recent release, 2001's "Celebrity" - Chasez took his time. He went grocery shopping, reconnected with people, reacquainted himself, he says, with a simpler kind of life. Chasez, who lives down the road from his family in Orlando, swears that the only reason "Schizophrenic" exists is because his pals kept bugging him to do it. And when your pals' names are Dallas Austin, Riprock, Alex G, Robb Boldt, Rockwilder, and BT - some of the hottest producers and songwriters in the business - friendly ribbing turns into high-wattage recording sessions with little effort.
"I didn't chase big names," says Chasez. "I would call up my friends and say, 'What are you doing today?' It was natural, hooking up and hanging out. We didn't go into the studio to make a hit, and I didn't take myself too seriously. I think that's one thing that's missing in music."
Which brings us to "All Day Long I Dream About Sex," a.k.a. "A.D.I.D.A.S." - the incomplete but convenient acronym for a buzzed-about - and frankly irresistible - track that Chasez says he made up for fun and produced in an hour. A chunky, synth-driven rocker, it's been dubbed the finger-pointing song, he says, because the enthusiastic supporters at his label, Jive, expect that "everyone will know the words and point their fingers when they sing it." The song, by the way, is not meant to suggest that Chasez dreams about sex all day long, no more than Aerosmith's "Love in an Elevator" is a literal representation of Steven Tyler's locale of choice. Although Chasez concedes, laughing, that all fiction contains a grain - or more - of truth.
"Who would say 'Love in an Elevator'? It's talking about sex in a humorous way," Chasez explains. "I didn't care if my jokes offended people, I just did what I thought was funny. You know, I really respect Kid Rock's mentality, the fact that he's so free and willing to sing country and do hip-hop and just try things. I don't know if anyone wants to hear an album of my material. I figured why not throw it against the wall and see if it sticks?"
In addition to the challenge of distinguishing himself outside the well-established confines of his band, Chasez is dealing with the pressure of following in the footsteps of Timberlake, whose wildly successful solo career landed him on the cover of the current Rolling Stone magazine with the headline: "The New King of Pop."
"Justin's a superstar. He's always had the spotlight on him," says Chasez. "I don't feel that pressure. I make the tunes, and hopefully people show up. I would love that. If they don't, I still get to go back in the studio and hang out with my friends."
There is no question that 'N Sync will record another album. Chasez, Timberlake, Lance Bass, Chris Kirkpatrick, and Joey Fatone have had a series of casual conversations about creating a timeline, which will probably see the band getting to work toward the end of 2004 - after Chasez's promotion for "Schizophrenic" winds down. But the teen pop craze is over. The boy band is filled with grown men. One wonders where 'N Sync goes from here.
"My project and Justin's project has opened all of us up to new ideas for the group," says Chasez, "and I think it will help us grow. At the end of the day a good song is a good song, whether it's pop or R&B or whatever. Maybe the fans of our solo music will follow us back to 'N Sync."
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Isn't it wonderful? :-) I'm hoping *madly* that he absolutely knocks people off their feet. He's getting good press so far, and when 'Plug It In' is finally released, there'll be more buzz from that.
I adore him so much. I hope he's a killer success.
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Speaking of his album, do you know what the release date is now? I've not been on the net for a few days so I don't know.
Did you get to get him in concert in December at all?
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A few weeks ago someone spoke with Tim Miller - NSync's sound guy - at one of JC's shows, and he gave her a February 24th release date. At that time, I think that Feb. 10th was being bandied about. People were groaning about yet *another* date, but it looks like it's true after all. Someone reliable on the JJB posted that the date had been changed.
Here it is, from namechanged2protectjob: "BMG U.S. has moved JC's release date. New date is now February 24th."
::le sigh::
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Still wish it had come out last October, of course...
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Yeah I had heard that but didn't know if it was true. So it is. Le sigh indeed. Thanks for the info.
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What does your doctor prescribe?
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Thank you so much for posting. Could he be a cooler guy? Can.Not.Wait.For.This.Album!!!
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Lovely article. Thank you so much for sharing it. :)