JUNE 2004
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12 Step Rebels
An interview with the men of 12SxRx
By Ryan Davis (TX PSY CO)

Here's a legend to get you started:
TXPSY = Ryan Davis (interviewer)
MDC = Mad Dog Chad (12SxRx drums)
JI = Jakob Insane (12SxRx guitar/vocals)
Nate = um, Nate (12SxRx upright bass/vocals)

TXPSY:  I was wearing a 12 Step Rebels T-Shirt the other day when I was in line at a San Antonio gas station.  An older dude in his

L - R: Chad, Jakob, Nate

40s smiled and said "Nice T-Shirt, I like that!". Looks like the name appeals to people who might not even like the music… how did you come up with the band name?
Nate: Well, I wasn't in the band when they came up with the name. But it always made sense to me, as in my mind, it kind of just says “live your own life in your own way”.
MDC!: Our original bass player started calling out a bunch of names he wrote down on a list one day and as soon as he said "12 Step Rebels" Jakob and I said "That's it, that's perfect." It just feels like a great name to us, the way it fits our personalities, sound and style - it has a sort of a subtle power to it. Plus there are just too many 12 Step programs out there and it is strictly an American thing... so we were squeezing underlying messages in there as well. Basically we just lucked out with it.
JI: The reason I love the name is because it is pretty original, and it is ear catching.  It really can stand for anything.  With the amount of 12 step programs out there, our name simply means to rebel against them.  But to me it also means to have fun in life and do what you want.
TXPSY: 12 Step Rebels recently signed with Dead Body Wreckerds out of L.A., California.  Please explain a little bit about the label and how you came to work with them...
JI: That one is all Chad.  He is our networker.
MDC!: I was on the phone with Kieran Sandoval from Dead Body Wreckerds one day and he was asking how things were going with our contract with Cargo Records and the album we were recording for them. We talked about how the album was finished and we were waiting for everyone at Cargo to go back to work because of the fires in San Diego at the time. Kieran asked us to send him four copies of the album and I didn't think anything of it at the time since Kieran and I were already friends and talk regularly - then we got a call about a week and a half later saying they wanted to offer us a contract. So I called Cargo and they were very supportive about Dead Body's offer. Geoff Kresge [Tiger Army] is the House Producer at Dead Body, so even though we spent weeks mixing the new album ourselves before we got the contract with Dead Body - we sent the ADATs to him to remix certain parts he felt strongly about working on. Geoff is very talented in the Producer's chair and we trust him.
TXPSY: The U.S. tour you guys did with Mad Sin early last summer definitely opened up some doors for 12SxRx.  And I think it was the first U.S. tour you guys did as a band.  What is the most important thing you learned on tour?  What do you think was the most important thing Mad Sin learned on their first tour of the U.S.?
MDC!: Bring more merch! Our merch sold a lot better and faster than we had anticipated. Mad Sin learned just how far it is between certain cities and shows here in the US . I know they didn't realize just how long you had to drive some days.
JI: The most important thing I learned is to be prepared, for anything.  Tires blowing out, not eating, sleeping wherever.  And to bring a hat because you can't always do your hair.  And Mad Sin learned that the distances between cities in the US can be pretty far sometimes.
Nate: I think not only did we learn a lot about how to survive on the road, but more importantly, we learned we COULD survive on the road. As far as what Mad Sin learned, I think maybe a little humility. No disrespect to them of course, but I don't think their U.S. tour turned out to be quite what they were expecting.
TXPSY: In my view, 12 Step Rebels represent the epitome of psychobilly music in the year 2004.  My reasoning is because 12SxRx combine all the elements of a genuine psychobilly band but still have their own identifiable "sound".  In this day and age of many newer psycho bands taking the speed metal and thrash approach to psychobilly (which I actually also enjoy), 12 Step Rebels seem to employ equal parts of what created psychobilly in the first place... and mix them into their own cocktail.  To me, the energy of the band is pure punk... but I hear a lot of rockabilly in Jake's voice and guitar... and then of course there are the horror movie motifs throughout many of the band's songs.  Not to mention that there are both traditional and new skool psychobilly elements to the band's appearance.  Am I close to describing what you guys are doing?
Nate: Having been with the band only one year, and considering that I was a huge fan and supporter of the Rebels long before I ever dreamed of touching a bass, I think I could say I agree with a lot of what you say. Before joining the Rebels, I was singing and playing guitar in a different band. Even back then, Jake was always a huge influence on me musically and I always deeply respected his talent and ability. I don't think there was ever a 12 Step Rebels show that I missed. In fact, shortly after moving to New Mexico from Alaska , I was even at their very first show. They all thought I was just some crazy homeless guy who'd wandered in off the street! Well, needless to say I wasn't, though I would've never imagined playing bass with them a couple years later.
JI: Thanks, I appreciate your kind words.  The way I look at it, we all like different things in life; different music and we also like different things about psychobilly.  There really is a lot to choose from.  It is not just punk and rockabilly mixed together.  I think we get our sound from each of our own angles on psychobilly, our love of different music and our background in life. 
TXPSY:  This one is for each of you... the obligatory favorite bands question.  Could each of you list a few please?
MDC!: Agnostic Front, The Ramones, Siouxsie & The Banshees, The Smiths, Johnny Burnette, Elvis, Billy Idol, Mad Sin, TSOL, Circle Jerks, Nekromantix, Stevie Ray Vaughn, Tiger Army... I could keep going.
JI:  The Clash, Conflict, and the 3-D Invisibles are my top 3 but I also love Dirt, Toxic Waste, Oi Polloi, Grimple, Mad Sin, Demented are Go!, Os Captalepticos, El Dopa, Tiger Army, Anthrax UK, SubHumans UK, Guana Batz, the Crue, Aus Rotten, old rocakbilly, old country and bluegrass, oh man this could go on forever. I will just stop here.
Nate: The Vices, Mark Linskey, Mike Ness, Dwight Yokum, Shane McGowan, Nick Cave to name just a few.

Animal Liberation

TXPSY:  Jake... this one is for you in particular.  I know I ask about this one a lot but I don't know how many psychos out there truly know your political stance on animal rights.  You are a Vegan, correct?  That probably seems like an anomaly to many people in the psychobilly scene although Veganism and Vegetarianism has a long history in the American Punk scene.  If possible, please sum up your views on your choice of lifestyle...
JI: A lot of people in the psycho scene preach no politics, which I have no problem with.  If you ask Chad and Nate my politics usually never come up unless I am asked about them.  I know preaching to people does not work, in fact the way I became vegan was by watching my wife's example.  She never once preached to me. But I am not just a psychobilly.  Punk rock and politics play a huge part in my life as well.  To me it is a simple choice. I would not eat my dog so why would I eat a pig.  I would not want a cat impregnated over and over to have babies only to have them ripped away and shoved into a crate so why would I allow it to happen to a cow. Not only is veganism good for the animals but it is good for your body and mind.  Plus it is great for the environment as the amount of waste that is created from stockyards is incredible.  And the pollution that has been caused by that waste is immeasurable; it hurts the environment and humans.  Plus all of the space that is used to grow food for the animals that we eat could be used to grow food for all of the starving people worldwide.  So it is a no-brainer.
TXPSY: Nate this one is for you... is it true that you learned to play upright bass right as you were joining 12 Step Rebels?  Either way, how did you learn the instrument and who are your main influences?
Nate: Yeah, I never touched (or even considered touching) a bass before joining the Rebels. Like I said

before, I was playing guitar and singing in my own band before I joined up with Chad and Jake. Well, back then they of course had another bass player who just wasn't quite 'doing it' for the band. I know it was a very difficult decision for them to kick him out of the band considering there was no replacement (or so they thought). Well, they did it anyways and it really impressed me that they would rather face the possibility of the band breaking up, than continue allowing one member to drag the band down simply to avoid having to fill his seemingly un-fillable shoes. (Now, you really have to understand that this is Albuquerque and upright bass players don't just grow on trees, but here in Albuquerque we don't even have the trees). So to me that showed that these two guys were deadly serious about what they were doing, and weren't the type of guys to flake on each other when it matters most. And ANY musician knows (or fucking should know) that that's a rare and important quality in band members. Well, the same could be said about people in general for that matter, but being a musician, I don't give two fucks of a rat's ass about people in general. Anyhow, to make a long story short, they kicked out the old bass player and one night I was riding along with Jake to go pick up an extra guitar chord I was lending them for a show (along with the bass player I lent them from my own band, who was filling in on electric bass until a new upright player could be found), and he told me he thought the Rebels' days were done. He had pretty much given up all hope of finding a new upright player, so he figured the band was done for. I simply told him something along the lines of "You'll get through this, I know you will...I just have a feeling" and he said he hoped so. Well, not much later I played my first show with them after having played on a borrowed bass for only about a week. A year later, here I am. Now that's the VERY short version of the story. Sorry it was such a long read, but Jesus Ryan... you asked.
TXPSY:  I did ask. I think the story is for kids out there who need that kind of DIY inspiration. Chad... you've had the experience of living in different parts of the country I believe.  Is this due in part to your background in the U.S. Army?  When did you get into psychobilly and why?
MDC!: My parents were divorced when I was very young so I spent a lot of time going back and forth on the East Coast between them. I lived in San Antonio when I was in the Army back in the early 90's, Northern then Southern California, and now here in Albucracky.

Chad, Jakob and Nate

TXPSY:  The band appeared on a recent compilation CD titled "Dear Johnny: A Tribute to CASH" released by HairBall8 Records.  What song did you cover and why?
Nate: “Delia's Gone”, because we all liked it I guess. Not to mention it just sort of fell into place for us when we were learning it. It was easy to turn it into a song we all really enjoyed playing. And at least for me, that is most definitely NOT the case when working
on a cover song.
JI:  We just sat down, listened to some songs and that one stuck out.  It has good emotion in it and we thought we could cover it well.  Every band cannot just cover any song they want.  It has to be one that the band can mold into itself.  I think that we did that with “Delia's Gone”.
MDC!:"Delia's Gone" has great chord progressions and I just heard it in our style as we listened to it. Plus, we kind of have a thing for songs about women, failed relationships and regret.
TXPSY:  Does Johnny Cash hold any particular significance to any of you?
MDC!: Absolutely, I first remember paying close attention to a song's lyrics because of Johnny Cash songs. He was a brilliant, a very emotional songwriter.
JI:  Do I have to answer?  I think he's important to anyone reading this interview.  He is Johnny Cash.
Nate: Of course....Shit Ryan, who DOESN'T Johnny Cash hold a deep significance to. He was without a doubt one of the most timeless and influential artists in the history of music. Fuck, if Mars has little green men, you know they're listening to Johnny Cash.
TXPSY:  You guys have a pretty bad ass website.  Would you like to give a shout out to Dead Dan Webmaster for his graphic design and programming abilities? 
JI:  Do I have to...oh well, thanks Dan.
MDC!: Dan has done so much for us over these past few years from logos to the site and videos. He truly does a lot for us and we try to repay him as best we can, but I just piss him off a lot because it's always me bothering him to change things or start a new project. Dan is definitely as much a part of this band as the three of us.
Nate: Yeah, Dan is the best web designer this world has ever known. I would actually like the guy if he didn't smell like a mummy's fart all the time...oh yah, and Dan you gotta stop fondling your dingle-berries and sniffing your fingers like that, it's gross. Seriously
though, Dan is without a doubt, one of the most important people there is to this band...We really owe him everything.
TXPSY:  Any last words?
Nate: Nope, I've said far too much already, if I told you anymore I'd have to kill you.
MDC!: Thanks to everyone in Texas for their great support every time we come play there. It's definitely the people there that make our shows so enjoyable for us and keep us coming back!
JI: Please support He-Man, he sure needs it.  And thanks to everyone who supports us.