ION INDIE MAGAZINE September 2014, Volume 4 | Page 62

Jay Luke: I think, well, depending on the focus of the effort is--I mean, for me, this (The MESS) is my favorite project. The solo gigs are kinda really easy. You’re depending on yourself, so if you mess up, you take the brunt of it. I guess it all depends on how invested you are into each project. We all have our babies (musical projects), but it’s…we took a break after our last incarnation, which was like two or three years, and everyone did what they did, and we all came back together, organically, which I think is the best part. I hate when you’re forced into something. You can tell when a band isn’t having any fun, and you can tell that this incarnation of The MESS, is really having fun. Joe Longo: I think it’s a positive, cuz these bands that we’re in--The MESS and all the other ones-we all tend to work with each other. ION: Right, like the gig coming up, where it’s The Way, Uman Era, and The MESS, all in one night? Joe: Right. We don’t always use the same bands for every gig. We try to work it up and do different gigs from band to band, but we do tend to work together a lot. Jay: Yeah, that’s definitely a positive. The negative to that would be how tired we get when we do a show like that. There were shows where Janson played with three bands in a row. It’s gotta take a toll on you. ION: And he played ten different instruments. Janson: (laughing) Yeah, it was fun! Jay: He’d be playing while he was going to the bathroom sometimes. (laughter) ION: So Alan, you’re the new guy to The MESS, right? Alan Rowsdower: Yes. ION: So everyone else--you were all in the last incarnation of The MESS, correct? Just different roles? Janson: I played lead guitar and keyboards the last time. (Now Janson is strictly playing keyboards as well as