On the way to Brunswick to pick up a vinyl test pressing of his new album Chasing Love, Jason Heerah took the time to tell me what it’s like to be a real musician surviving success on commercial television. Jason’s professional is resume impressive but as he explains here, the new album is all about showing Australia what he’s really all about.
First things first – the new track “Save Me”. I’m calling it a certified banger. I’m thinking Stevie Wonder meets Pharrell. Tell us how it came together?
That song came together through me meeting up with Rudy Sandapa who does a lot of work with Dirty South. It just flourished from a writing session one day with him. We spoke a lot about the message behind what we wanted to say. A lot of people are picking up on that underlying message. It really has a strong gospel theme through it, without being explicit. We wanted the lyrics to be edgy and represent the youth of today and what they’re going through. A lot of youth are doing it tough these days, facing things like depression, and they need a higher power to pull them through.
After I’d written a whole bunch of tunes for the album, I felt I needed to translate the tunes organically. Doing this is something I’m proud of, because you don’t hear that enough these days. You know, albums from start to finish with organic instrumentation. So much stuff has that electronic tie-in, so I went with “Save Me” as the single because I felt it had that little bit more edge and rock/soul feel to it. But I love that you’re pulling Stevie and Pharrell out of it, that’s awesome.
Most of that, for me, comes from your voice. But the organic instrumentation is something I like hearing musicians talk about.
For me it’s so important, because if you come to one of my shows, I’m playing drums while I’m singing. I had to make sure that the album could be translated well into a live show.
Next question is a little unique. I’m a drummer also. Can you please explain to the general populous how much talent it takes to be able to sing and bang the skins at the same time…
Well, I can talk it up if you want! (Laughs). You can argue that we’re hitting multiple objects with multiple limbs and singing at the same time, so we’ve got one up on guitarists who sing! But to be honest man, it’s something I’ve known for so long. I idolised my dad doing the same thing growing up and it’s scary for me now, because my son is eight years old now. I see him at my gigs watching me in the exact same way; he’s up on stage with me at our church on Sundays, for example, with his shaker, just like I was with my dad and he watches his dad like a hawk. That’s how I learnt and that’s how he’ll learn, you know?
I’ve dabbled with drumming and singing, to little effect thus far. But I guess my point is I have an immense respect for you as a musician because of this. And I think sometimes people can gloss over it too easily. I remember trying to explain to my family during your X-Factor performances just how talented you were.
That’s awesome man, thank you so much. And yeah, I did get rave reviews from the judges and I hold that in the highest regard, because those guys were so successful. To get on a show like that and get those kinds of reactions, you hold that close for the rest of your life. Those moments were special because I went on that show thinking, ‘Man, I hope I can just get to play drums and sing one week.’ I knew a show like that wouldn’t let me do it every week – they’d want to challenge me in other ways, like with the dancing and you know, ‘Come sing a bit of Bruno Mars…’, which I did! (Laughs)
The main objective for going on a show like that was to play for people and show them what I love to do, which is drums and singing. Since then, I’ve figured out ways to get out the front of the stage more without sacrificing the drumming. What the show has really done for me is challenge the way I think about how I present myself on stage. I’ve been experimenting with actually standing up behind the kit at the front of the stage for my live shows.
Back to the sound. “Save Me” is distinctly different from last year’s reggae releases. Was this deliberate, or were you just following the impulses?
The reggae stuff is just another element of what makes up who I am, and the reggae track is actually on the new album.
So what can we expect from Chasing Love then?
The album is really diverse. The title track represents a message to the next generation. It’s a ballad for them, in a John Legend style. I’ve also got some hip-hop style tracks on there and there’s a few crossover tracks as well. It’s actually cool that I can’t box it you know? There’s some vintage sounds as well, with things like strings. Everything was recorded live, so I’m really proud of that. Now that the album’s out and available on my website, it’s all very rewarding because there’s no suits involved. Just from me to you.
So it is totally indie, all done yourself?
Yeah, totally independent. I am in talks to try and get some licensing deals overseas. There’s a couple on the table there and I’m sussing out my options. Obviously, with an album like this, overseas they’re more into album deals. So you know, a body of work that they can get some longevity out of. But I thought, ‘Why do a show like X-Factor and then neglect your home country audience?’ The whole idea is to use that exposure as a springboard. That’s exactly why I’m tackling this release independently in Australia.
Do you feel you’re embracing or distancing yourself from the X-Factor‘s ‘best singing drummer in the world’ tag?
I definitely feel like I’m more than that. There’s more depth there, you know? Otherwise, I’d have just done some fusion album right off the back of it. I do have a hand in that area at the moment, but that’s the more poppy singing drummer image. This album represents my life as a songwriter and producer.
I suppose that’s the beauty of independent releases, you have complete control, which is paramount for me. Because if there wasn’t that kind of music released, we may never see the true heart of an artist.
For sure. I wouldn’t have had it any other way. When I talk to others about the other scenarios of how I could or should have released this, it just all comes back to me doing it the way I wanted to do it.
All those years being drummer to the stars, what have you taken from them that you’ve applied to your own solo work?
You know, I don’t love talking about all the people I’ve worked with because I hate name droppers but man, all those experiences have been invaluable. Just watching how a show is put together from start to finish. The logistics behind touring. Because I’m managing myself at the moment, I’m taking on all those years of dealing with managers and am applying to myself. Not only me [too], when I’m booking my bands as well. I’ve been all over the world with the reggae band the last couple of years, but this year is all about this album and hopefully touring it and it’s all possible because of everything I’ve learnt from other artists.
Tell us more about Heerah St Productions…
That’s something I’ve had for over ten years, and it’s like the ever-expanding black hole. It’s just always evolving. It’s my home crib, my home studio. It’s where I collaborate with people from all over the world. I just did an album with an artist from Mauritius. The whole band was tracking the songs over there, then they’d send me files over here and I was across the whole album without ever leaving the country. The space allows me to do all the pre-production for recording, which saves a lot of time and money.
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Jason Heerah Chasing Love Album Launch:
Thursday 21st April @ 1000 £ Bend, Melbourne
361 Little Lonsdale Street Melbourne
Tickets here!
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