Virginity
Do you like the state of Florida, bad jazz records, and remorse about band names? If so, have we got an interview for you. But, seriously, we caught up with Jordan of Virginity to talk about FEST 22, while also reflecting on their new record that came out earlier this year on Smartpunk.
Scene Point Blank: First, how many times have you played The Fest? How many times have you personally attended (if that # is different)?
Jordan Shroyer: I've been going since FEST 6 and have only missed one since then. Virginity has been playing since FEST 18. I've personally been lucky enough to have played every Fest since FEST 10 between Teen Agers, Direct Effect, Bad Accent, and Virginity.
Scene Point Blank: There are a million festivals these days. What makes The Fest stand out?
Jordan Shroyer: I get to attend a good amount of festivals across the country through my job (Smartpunk) and can say Fest is hands down the best festival in the USA. It's really unlike anything else out there: 350 bands over 3 days across 10+ small venues and 2 large stages, all walking distance from each other. There's nothing like it. At any given time there could be three bands I want to see, so it's exciting trying to navigate it and make those hard choices. The way they've adapted to have bigger bands playing multiple sets has been great, too. Especially when the second set is at a smaller venue.
Scene Point Blank: Building off that last question and answer: You're also from Florida. What does The Fest mean, from a Florida-local perspective? (I can say without a doubt that Fest has helped me discover probably dozens of Florida bands I otherwise wouldn't have heard in the Midwest.)
Jordan Shroyer: Tony and Randy have been very good to the local Florida scenes. They've for sure given a lot of our bands a larger platform than we'd necessarily have without Fest. We always go out of our way to see our friend's bands sets at Fest ‘cause we know, in many instances, it's going to be one of their best shows of the year. People really come together and get extra pumped at Fest in a way that doesn't always happen outside of it.
Scene Point Blank: You play power-pop, which is a style that's possibly metaphorically "innocent and clean." Did that style concept play a role in choosing the band's name? Where does it come from?
Jordan Shroyer: That's a really interesting observation. I wish we put that much thought into it. To be perfectly honest... I kind of hate that name. haha. Our friend Shaw came up with it. Not sure how, we thought it was pretty catchy and stuck with if. But goddamn, every time a family member or non-punk adjacent friend asks, "What's your band called," I for sure cringe before letting it out. But I kinda like what you came up with. Might have to steal that from you.
"It's less about the style of the music and more about the ethos of it. And, you know, if it's good, or fun. Sometimes fun is better than good."
Scene Point Blank: I'm from Minneapolis, which is simultaneously known for Husker Du, D4, Amphetamine Reptile, and Profane Existence. In other words...lots of DIY but diverse sounds. What do you think people associate with the sounds of Florida? As Florida is a large state with a lot of cities, do you find that "the Florida sound" varies from Miami to Tallahassee and everything in between?
Jordan Shroyer: For sure. Florida is so diverse. I started playing shows in Central Florida around 1999/2000 and between then and now I've seen so many ebbs and flows, so many different scenes thrive and fade, so many styles of music. For me, as a kid, my favorite local bands were My Hotel Year (an early indie/emo/rock kinda band) and Agent Felix (a sloppy fast fun pop-punk ala Drive-Thru type band). They'd play shows with New Mexican Disaster Squad, who were way more aggressive, and The Splitvalves or Brownie Points, a ska band whose singer happens to be the drummer of Virginity. Everyone was kind of playing together and having fun. At the same time, a lot of my closest friends today were living in South Florida which had a thriving hardcore scene that also dabbled in pop-punk. Fest seems to encapsulate all of that, too. It's less about the style of the music and more about the ethos of it. And, you know, if it's good, or fun. Sometimes fun is better than good.
Scene Point Blank: How does Gainesville stand out (non-Fest time) compared to playing elsewhere in the state? What is the vibe?
Jordan Shroyer: I want to preface this by saying I fucking love Gainesvnille and cherish every second I get to spend there. But in general, non-Fest shows there can have a kind of lame vibe. Typically a lot of folks standing around with their arms folded. Which is fine. I know I'm still gonna see (or play) a show in a great room, with great sound, eat killer food and drink too many beers.
Scene Point Blank: Let's talk about Bad Jazz. What is the worst jazz record you've ever heard?
Jordan Shroyer: Bad Jazz. By Far.
Scene Point Blank: What is the best jazz record you've ever heard?
Jordan Shroyer: Time To Blow - Del Paxton
Scene Point Blank: But, seriously, the new record. How did it come together? Everyone has a post-lockdown story about songwriting/production/etc these days.
Jordan Shroyer: Casey had a couple song ideas and we decided to set up in my living room and jam on them over a weekend. We just played all day. Chris cooked us dinner, everyone slept over and we fell asleep on the couches between our gear, watching Lethal Weapon even though we talked about watching Hoosiers all day. We woke up the next morning and did it again. At the end of the weekend we had 4-5 songs pretty much fleshed out that are 95% structured how they ended up on Bad Jazz. It was such a great experience. We left rejuvenated. So we did that a couple more times and ended up with about 20 songs. At one point we went into Jim's studio and started tracking some of the songs. I think we fully recorded four of them, but something was wrong. The tracks just felt stale. We realized these songs were meant to be played live. So we set aside four days, two weeks in a row to record as much of the record as we could live. Over those eight days, we ended up doing about ten takes of each song. Once we decided on the best one, we did overdubs and vocals on top. And that's the album!
We still have 7 songs partially done that we're going to eventually get finished and out in one way or another. While it was more work, I for sure think it was the best way to do it and hope we continue to record that way in the future. You can hear how much fun we're having in those tracks.
Scene Point Blank: What song on the new record is the most fun to play live?
Jordan Shroyer: I personally love playing "Some Hard Feelings," which is one of the more dynamic ones and "Nashville Hot Chicken," which is a nonstop chuggin’ rocker.
Scene Point Blank: Is there a song on Bad Jazz that took a surprise turn from start to finish?
Jordan Shroyer: Probably "Any Good Thing," just because it was the last song brought to the table for the record and just kind of organically existed out of nowhere -- our quickest composition and seems to be a fan favorite.
Scene Point Blank: If you were to play a covers set at FEST 22 or in the future, what band would it be? Or would this question break up the band as you try to reach consensus?
Jordan Shroyer: We've been talking about doing Fountains of Wayne. Got a little too busy this year since I convinced the band to be my wedding band and learn way too many other covers songs. So maybe next year!
Now, a rapid fire Fest-focused Q&A:
