Interview with the Artist of the Week: Alex Jordan

Alex Jordan is a singer/songwriter from Minneapolis, Minnesota. He’s shared the stage with great bands like Boys Like Girls, Sing It Loud, and Allstar Weekend. Check out our interview with him below and click here to see his full featured article.
What made you originally want to pursue music?
“I think it was just that when I was in my early teens I felt estranged from everyone around me. I know that this is a common theme amongst adolescents, but that feeling has never really left me you know. I just feel different. And the only thing that gave me a feeling of unity and togetherness was my favorite bands pumping through the stereo in my bedroom. They made me realize I was not alone in what I was going through and coping with. That somewhere out there, there were like minded souls. I decided right then and there that I wanted to be able to give that feeling to someone else. That’s how you know you’ve truly made it. I’ve never looked back.”

In your twitter bio you mention the Backstreet Boys, so were you a BSB fan or *NSYNC? Do you have a favorite BSB song?

“I actually have a song that mentions my affiliations as far as the battle of the boy bands went. It’s called “One of a Kind” and the lyrics go “I was a Backstreet Boy, and she loves NSYNC”. I was BSB for life. I’d have to say “I Want It That Way” is my favorite, but I always had this desire to seek my parents approval on the music I was listening to. So I remember getting Millennium and grabbing my mom and taking her into our fireplace room and played “The Perfect Fan” for her. Later in my musical evolution, I would attempt to do the same with Limp Bizkit, and laud Fred Durst’s lyrical genius. I re-listened to that album, the Chocolate Starfish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water recently, and immediately after I called my parents and apologized for making them listen to it.”

Had you heard of Allstar Weekend before the tour? What was it like having to plan for tour with such short notice?

“Oh plenty of times! I’ve been friends with their management team for years, and naturally heard all about ASW from them. I remember going to Wal-Mart and buying their first EP. I’ve always liked that band.
As far as planning went, incredibly hectic. I remember one day getting my in ear molds done, working, and getting a haircut and having to keep interrupting the haircut to take phone calls and texts from Trevor Sarver, my t-shirt guy, so that we could get the order in on time for the shows. I felt like one of those guys on Wall Street that you see depicted in movies, and felt awfully sorry for my hairstylist.”

You mentioned in your Tumblr post how you had previously bad experiences at the Rave – after the Summer of Love show would you consider performing there again?

“Oh it wasn’t the Rave that I had bad experiences with. It was down at the Summerfest grounds for Warped Tour. When I went into the crowd for New Found Glory got my wallet pick-pocketed, and then later in the day when I was in the thick of the crowd for All Time Low, a girl that really shouldn’t have been crowd surfing kicked me in the head and knocked me unconscious. I know I was unconscious because when I came to I was still being jostled by the crowd and it was a different song. I stumbled out and into a chair by the stage in the ampitheater when I noticed that my glasses were gone. I found them in 6 pieces on the cement after their set ended. So I had no money, and couldn’t see. I had a 4 hour drive home after that as well. Wasn’t the greatest trip of my life. Oddly enough though, some girl found my wallet (empty of cash of course) and thought I looked cute in my drivers license picture and found me on myspace. Then sent the wallet back to me, which was a relief because of all the personal information and cards in there.
And I would have to say that The Rave is my new favorite venue. So I’d love to come back.”

If you could describe the Summer of Love tour experience in one word. What word would you chose?

” “Randy.” People said that word in the 80’s. I don’t know it’s exact meaning, but using contextual information, I believe it means awesome. It also makes me curious as to who this Randy character was that he would be associated with everything awesome for an entire decade. Now THAT’S a claim to fame.”

Would you like to tour or perform a show with BANE in the future?

“BANE is an incredible band. I was honored to be given a shout out on stage, and to just have the opportunity to see them doing their thing. To be honest, I would totally play with them, but no promoter would ever agree to it. Our musical styles are too diverse, and the crowds would be much the same. Maybe at some larger festival or something. Most genuine guys ever. There are people who make music to make money, and there are people who make it because their soul wouldn’t be at rest without that release. BANE is of the latter, and I’m proud to say I was able to witness that passion firsthand.”

Not many people perform in ties, but we loved your style. Who influenced it? Is a vest and tie what you normally wear on a night out?

“Well it’s actually the same outfit I wore in the “Who I Am” video. When we were trying to come up with what my image would be, my friend Jeron said I should be a bit more classic in style. A gentleman, to match my personality. And my other friend Peter suggested Shia Lebouf as a fashion reference, pre-beard ha. I have always loved dressing well, and this was the perfect excuse to do it. I don’t think I could get away with wearing that out where I’m from and not drawing altogether too much attention to myself. I don’t necessarily like the night life scene, and would much rather not be there at all, much less the center of it’s attention. Most nights I spend at home watching tv shows on my laptop, but when I do go out, it’s usually just a collared shirt or hoodie/leather jacket combo. Nothing too outrageous or dressy. I’m always looking for excuses to wear my blazer though.”

You have two songs available on iTunes are you planning on releasing more?

“Well I actually have 14 songs written and recorded. I think 11 will go on a full length record I plan to release sometime in 2013. It’s been a process, and now we’ve got some remixing and re-tracking of instruments now that I have a fully realized sound. The songs were written over a year and a half period so it wasn’t like there was a consistent theme with them all. So basically right now we are just tying the string on what will be the full package. It’s mostly done, just polishing.
There’s also a free xmas song on my website http://www.whoisalexjordan.com as part of a compilation I did with some friends of mine.”

What are you currently working on?

“Right now I’m really focussing on my stage set and how I’m presenting myself live. As I said in the previous question, we are working on finishing the album, but mostly it’s just how to make the live show more dynamic and effective. We are getting awfully creative with a couple different ideas, and I just love the atmosphere of pure unbridled thought that’s racing through my camp right now. It’s going to be a fun couple of months. We dream big, and then worry about how to realize it after.”
What’s your favorite TV show?

“Right now I watch so many, it’s really hard to pick one. I’m just starting to catch up on all the tv shows I’ve been missing out on. I guess if I absolutely have to pick just one though, it’d be Psych. I love all the random 80’s pop culture references and the fact that Lassiter was the villain in that Disney Channel original movie “Luck of the Irish”. It’s the funniest thing on tv for sure. I also love all the nicknames that Shawn gives Gus throughout the series. I found a list of them online one day. I think the funniest episode though is “He Love’s Me, He Love’s Me Not, He Loves Me, Oops He’s Dead!”. They find this naked guy in the middle of a field who claims he was abducted by aliens and then all have to join a speed dating seminar. Just pure gold.”

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