Getting to Know Jay Draper & The Subterraneans (Interview – Written)
As busy as ever, Jay Draper is a prolific artist with several impactful projects on the go, one of which is Jay Draper & the Subterraneans. Their latest album, ‘Dollhouse’, is out now. In this interview we get to know them a little better.
1. Hello! Thank you for taking the time to chat to us. First things first, tell us a little bit about yourself and how you got started.
Well, I’ve been making music in one form or another pretty much since I was 15. Since then, I formed my first long-running band, The Scarlet Fever in 2005, and the group has been active on and off since then. In 2016 after the band went on a 2 year break, I formed the studio recording project, Jay Draper & the Subterraneans, alongside multi-instrumentalist, Justin Minister. The project originally acted both as a creative outlet while Scarlet was on break and as a way of getting to work with various other people in the Toronto underground music scene that I wouldn’t normally get to. Since then, Justin as gone his own way for the time being and I’ve been mostly flying solo outside of the guest musicians and producers I bring on from track to track.
2. Someone comes to you and asks you to sum up what kind of music you play – what do you tell them?
I would use the loose term “post-punk inspired” because I think it gives a good general overview of what to expect, but I always try not to let myself get too pinned down by labels. I really appreciate artists who can explore many different sounds and influences while still maintaining a quality that is distinctly them. There are a bunch of different things that I draw inspiration from like early 70s glam, late 60s psych rock, late 70s punk, and early 80s goth and synth-pop to name a few.
3. What’s currently keeping you busy? A new album/EP/single release? A new video? Playing live, or planning ahead?
Currently working on the long-awaited 3rd Scarlet Fever album, as well as demoing new tracks for a 3rd Subs album. That and obtaining forbidden and cursed knowledge from the all-knowing all-seeing Outer God known to some as Yog-Sothoth. You know, just trying to keep busy.
4. What is about this current period that is particularly exciting for you?
It seems to me, and probably to many others alive today, that we are living in a uniquely anxiety-riddled time in history. We have both the benefits and pitfalls of living in a time like no other in history, which is to say that we are living under the stress of late-stage capitalism while also struggling in vain to keep up with technologies that are likely well out of our control at this point. It is both a source of stress and depression for me, but also very interesting to watch unfold. It can often be a big inspiration for the type of things I tend to write about.
5. Tell me about the work that has gone into making it a reality and what it means to you.
Making music, as well as other forms of art, if you take it seriously at least, is usually a lot more work than other people seem to imagine. Scarlet Fever is a 6-person group when we’re in our full form, and it can even just a lot of work organizing that many people for rehearsals, shows, and recording sessions. It can often feel a lot like herding cats. On top of that, as with Subterraneans, it always seems to be a lot more work than you’d expect making an album or a track and putting it out into the world. I often have a song I’m putting out that was originally written 5 years prior. Sometimes it’s because you’re being too much of a perfectionist, sometimes it’s because you’re working on it with a band or other collaborators and it just takes a while for the song to take shape. It’s often a lot more work than you feel it should be, and then you put it out into the world, and you can’t help but feel it’s a very personal thing. I’ve obviously never given birth, so I can’t speak to what that process is like, but metaphorically it does feel like giving birth to something you’ve been gestating for the last 5 years, and now it’s out in the world. It’s both a relief but also a little depressing. This is why it’s important to always have new stuff to move on to when it’s complete.
6. Making music and being creative can be a very positive experience and can be very good for the mind. In what way has making music had a positive impact on your mental health?
It is of course, very cathartic. It’s both a great way of expressing yourself and can feel a lot like a release, but it’s also very important to me because it (along with art in general) gives me a strong sense of purpose. I tend to be of the mind that no one is inherently born with a purpose, but as humans, we need to feel we have one anyway. So, we either make it up, or find it along the way. This, along with trying to be a good friend to the people in my life is what I found does it for me so far.
7. It can also be incredibly challenging, more so in the modern times. What have been some challenging aspects of making music and how have you overcome them?
Well, for one, I’ve never thought of myself as a “musicians musician”. I have very little formal training and very little natural talent, but what I do have is a drive to create, and a lot of ideas. I’m also lucky that in Scarlet, I have a band of very capable musicians to bounce song ideas off of, and when it comes to Subs, I get to work with, and take inspiration from, various other people in the local community. I always say that these songs wouldn’t exist without me, but they wouldn’t be what they are in the end without the talented people I work with. This is part of why I’ve always found an artist like Brain Eno to be very inspiring. He never thought of himself as a “proper musician”, but he also never let that stop him and even used that to his advantage sometimes. I don’t know that many people would think of Eno’s music as punk, but I think that ethos is a very punk and defiant way to do things.
8. How do you handle the online aspects of being in a band? Having to put out content constantly, promoting across several different social media platforms, and having your success measured in likes and follows?
I mostly hate it. Artists and musicians are typically not great at or comfortable with promoting themselves. I feel like I’m a little better than the average because I actually take the time to do things like this, but I don’t know that it always comes naturally. The online aspect should be more helpful with these things, but instead, it just ends up feeling like you always have to be “on”, or you always have to be promoting yourself. You’re a brand now and you got to promote the brand. It starts to feel less like making music and more like promoting content. In a way, it can be very good for helping reach people who otherwise wouldn’t hear you, and that part of it is wonderful, but most of the time you just end up feeling like you’re a drift in a sea of content.
9. How do you make this part of things enjoyable, and fulfilling, for yourself?
I actually enjoy doing things like making graphics or little weird videos to post to promote myself. As long as it’s something creative I get to do, it feels a lot less like work, and a lot more like something useful to spend my time on. Constantly having to make things to post online can be very time-consuming, and when you’re just doing it to promote and not because you have a good idea you want to try out it can sometimes slip into feeling like churning out content again. Again, it’s very time-consuming, but I made an animated video for the Subterraneans single, No Exit, and if I can find the time to finish it, I have been working on a new one for one of the songs off the new album, Dollhouse. Time will tell.
10. Speaking directly to listeners – what would you ask they do to help support you?
I’ve got a new album out called Dollhouse. At the very least, I hope people listen to it. If you like it, I would ask you to consider buying either the digital download or CD version from my Bandcamp, but if you don’t have the coin to spare, then even just playing it for a friend who might like it would be great. Anything to get it in some ear holes!
11. Outside of music, what do you like to do to relax?
Mostly read. I actually get a lot of inspiration from books I read or films I watch. That and the whole summoning Outer Gods and chill thing.
12. Where can people find you?
Me? I’d rather not divulge that information at the moment. You can find my music through both Bandcamp, and most streaming platforms. You can check out Jay Draper and the Subterraneans here (don’t forget to listen to the new album Dollhouse!):
As well as following on FB and Instagram here:
Also check out my other group, The Scarlet Fever at these fine locations:
Bandcamp | Facebook | Instagram
