Getting ready to rock Australia on their ‘Atomic 47 25th Anniversary Tour’, Screaming Jets frontman Dave Gleeson is excited to be back on the road with new tracks and to be rocking out with the Jets in what looks like an epic tour! Glam Adelaide caught up with ‘Gleeso’ post SANFL Grand Final, and no-one is more excited than the wild man of rock himself about the tour which kicks off on October 17 in NSW and Adelaide on October 24 and 25 at The Gov! The Atomic 47 Tour,cleverly named after the 47th element on the periodic table (Silver) represents 25 years of toughing it out through thick and thin, and a hell of a lot of fun times for the Screaming Jets who ‘ve come a long way since their humble beginnings in Newcastle in the 80’s.
On how the new tracks will sound, Jets fans can expect the classic rock sound that is synonymous with the band. “We’re making it as rock sounding as we can, Paul Woseen our bass player has written the bulk of it and we’re just going to get in the studio and bang it out! To just press record and go is essentially what we want to do,” says Gleeson. Anyone who has ever attended a Screaming Jets gig will understand how authentically ‘rock and roll’ these guys are. Gleeson’s on stage antics and raw energy makes him stick out like dog’s balls- he’s a true showman and totally into what he’s doing. He’s from a generation of rockers that did it tough and earned respect the hard way.
Gleeson laments the old ‘sticky carpet era’ where pubs went for live music instead of the monotonous sound of Poker machines. A lot’s changed over the years in terms of live music venues, but the Jets have stayed on their own path and remained true to themselves despite ups and downs along the way.
They’ve seen the rise and fall of other up and coming bands trying to make it, and believes that bands nowadays have a lot more opportunity to promote themselves through social media and the like, but says that they really need to know how to play the game. ”Getting your chops (or gaining experience) is what it’s all about because if you haven’t got ‘em when you get up in front of the world, you’re pants are going to get pulled down.” Sage advice from someone who’s certainly done that and more!
“When we first started we supported bands like Chain and Stevie Wright, we’d have to lug their gear as the support act- it was part of the deal.” Thankfully, the Jets have done their time and are now a venerated part of the Australian music landscape.
To stay together as a band for 25 years requires dedication and an ability to rise above challenges. The Screaming Jets have had a few ups and downs, and parted ways with some original founding members such as co-founder Grant Walmsley, but Gleeson remains quite philosophic about the bands trajectory and longevity. “We’ve had our ups and downs along the way like any other group has ever had, there’s only Paul and myself left from the original lineup, but I think it’s built on the songs and that we’ve toured the country playing and playing them. People have become loyal to the band and appreciate what we do. Fans appreciate hearing songs done by those who wrote them, and love rocking on. We’re lucky to be part of a great resurgence of people from our age group who want to see bands that influenced their lives. Gigs like ‘A Day On The Green’ are phenomenal in that regard.”
The Jets are now onto their second generation of fans as their original supporters have grown a little older and have had kids who have become Jets fans. “We’ll have a young lady come up and ask for an autograph and we’ll say ‘what’s your name’, and she’ll say it’s not for me, it’s for mum or dad (laughs)”. Such is the appeal of their iconic Aussie rock sound and steadfast image as unpretentious rockers who are as real as it gets. “We’ve gotta make sure we’re always on our game and that we’re not on stage like a boring old bunch of hacks’. I doubt there’s any chance of that happening!
On fronting another iconic Aussie rock band, The Angels, Gleeson says the transition was easy. “They’re (Angels) part of the fabric of Australian rock that’s for sure, to get up there with these guys who’ve written songs we all know and to be able to sing them to a crowd that’s going batshit-that’s fantastic. I look at it this way, with The Angels I’m a subcontractor, with the Screaming Jets I’m the boss…(laughs).” Gleeson says that he had Doc Neeson’s blessing and this makes him feel comfortable with the whole thing. “We toured with them years ago and he was iconic to me, I probably took a few cues from Doc in how I perform. Awhile back I’d ran into him at a memorial for a mutual friend who’d passed and it was just after his diagnosis. We talked, and he said he wanted me to know that there were no grudges and that he totally respects what I’m doing. That was a huge weight off my shoulders.” For rock purists, having a replacement singer is often a point of debate but undoubtedly it has worked well for many other bands such as AC/DC and Van Halen. It’s risky business, but if it means continuing the band’s legacy and keeping fans happy, then why the hell not!
In the meantime though, The Screaming Jets will be enjoying the national tour and creating new memories along the way. “We’ve had some memorable and silly times over 25 years. There’s so many stories of life on the road and just the time spent as a band together in the early days, especially in the tour buses. Little things like that, and those quiet times with the boys are the ones that stick out.”
Here’s hoping that The Screaming Jets have another 25 years in them!
On that suggestion, Gleeson’s trademark rock star reply was simply, ‘Rock On!”
Details on The Screaming Jets Atomic 47 National Tour dates are available at their website http://thescreamingjets.com.au.
Adelaide Fans can see the boys on Friday 24 and Saturday 25 October at The Gov. www.thegov.com.au
Interviewed by Darren Hassan
Twitter: @DazzHassan
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