Jet Black Crayon

Jet Black Crayon came into being when Tommy Guerrero was asked to open for Isotope 217 on a short West Coast U.S. tour. Instead of playing solo shows, Tommy decided to gather a group of musicians that he could do live collaborations with. At the time, the future members of Jet Black Crayon (Tommy, Gadget, and Monte Vallier) were already working together on various other projects, so it felt natural to come together. The members of JBC go way back. Monte Vallier and Tommy Guerrero used to skate together when they were kids. Back in Tommy’s Bones Brigade days, Gadget used to DJ parties at his house. As they got older their musical careers were developing in different directions, but they came together again to create JBC. The merging of backgrounds make the Jet Black Crayon sound a unique one. Tommy Guerrero had already been through his early punk days, created his New Breed EP, released "Loose Grooves & Bastard Blues" on Galaxia Records, put out the Tommy Guerrero & Gadget 12"s and "Hoy Yen Ass'n" CD on Function 8, and made multiple records for the Mo'Wax label. Monte Vallier was playing music since the early 80s and spent numerous years in Swell (Beggars Banquet). He was also concentrating on Engineering, Producing and Songwriting (working with such artists as American Music Club, Him, Peggy Honeywell, Rova Saxophone Quartet and many others). Gadget had his early days touring with various bands, one of them being Swell (where he became good friends with Monte). He founded the Function 8 record label and recording studio, releasing his own 12" and working with Tommy and all the other Function 8 artists. He balanced all of this while continuing his Engineering and Producing career. After the first 3 Jet Black Crayon releases ("Low Frequency Speaker Test" EP, "Mean Streets" 7", both on Function 8, and the "Experiments in the Space Metal Time Signature" EP on Galaxia) Tommy, Monte, and Gadget started treating JBC more as a recording project and less like a band. They played with different drummers: Johnny Herndon of Tortoise/Isotope 217/ Grape Dope, Monte's cousin John Vallier, Charlie Hall who also played with Tommy Guerrero for his live shows in Japan, and Gadget. They began experimenting with other instruments and incorporated some guest musicians (mostly Strings and Horns) for a few tracks and sometimes chose to approach song structures outside of two basses, drums, and a DJ. This opened the door for their creativity and allowed their latest album’s sound to expand. With touring plans for Summer 2004 JBC will again experiment and create a unique live experience. On this their first full length release for Function 8 Records, Jet Black Crayon has once again taken 2 steps sideways and 9 leaps forward into uncharted musical territory. Inaccuraices of the Mind Machine is a beautiful whole, thanks to core members Tommy Guerrero, Monte Vallier & Gadget, with drumming from Johnny Herndon (Tortoise, Isotope 217, A Grape Dope), Charlie Hall, and then some. It's been crafted and fine-tuned every inch of the way - music for mourning stars and dapper dervishes. Where tracks “Trace” and “Orca” lay low in the cut, drums skittering about, bass lines plunking heavy, “If Only” soars to new and glorious heights. “Eyes Closed, Numbers Appear,” the closer, rings like a funeral dirge - a slow, strange highway to Somewhere Else, leaving you puzzled, exhausted, and very much wanting more. Melodicas wail away and live strings add a striking eeriness to the proceedings. It's sublime, mature stuff. “The Mentalist,” for instance, very much wants to be taken for a drive along the Coast. “Tomorrow Was Raining” sounds like it just stepped out of an Alex Cox movie. This is soulful, quirky and beautiful music, from a group of fine young fellows reaching for something more. JBC music is both atmospheric and cerebral, like a soundtrack to a film yet to be made. A cinematic sound that takes the listener on a journey, the songs evolve and devolve while moving forward. Jet Black Crayon has reached new heights with this record, but they are constantly exploring and developing their sound.