The Ruling Party Interview

New York's posh music scene has seen many diverse changes over the years.  From the counterbalance of the Strokes and Futureheads to the more whimsical sounds of the Verve.  Caught in the middle of the genre are bands like The Ruling Party.  Jen Sencion and her swooning voice elevates this multi dimensional group beyond just another East coast faction.  Ron Haney and Jared Jacobs on the guitar and keyboards respectively have a sound that not only play off one another with key licks and fresh hooks but help push the bands sound beyond another copycat effort.  And with Mark Robohm's heavy drum talent backed by Steve Mostyn on bass, The Ruling Party are shaping up to become more than just a indie flash. We were fortunate enough to speak with them just subsequent to their taping on New York's Fearless Music show.

Pensatos.com: How did Fearless Music session go?
Jen: Awesome.  Jamie Lamm runs a super tight and professional outfit there so things went smoothly.  Had some monitor quirks during the actual takes so I can only hope we were all in key…
Steve: I think it went pretty well too. It’s a good indication of us I reckon. We filmed 4 songs so they will be showing them over the next season beginning October. (Saturday nights, 1am. Check out fearlessmusic.tv for local station listings.)

Pensatos.com: Great plug. Jen: Your voice and sound mimics another up and coming act; Maura Davis of Ambulette.  Was rock always your first choice, as your voice also contains a strong jazz tone that can easily overshadow the supporting cast of the group?  What was your vocal background before the group was formed?
Jen: I’ve always loved rock music – but was always really just a fan of good music – any kind.  My brother was a DJ and would spin everything from The Smiths and the Cure to a Tribe Called Quest and KRS1 – and everything in between.  He’d let his kid sister hang out in the basement with him while he’d work out his set, then I’d go up to my room and listen to Carol King and whatever else my sisters were listening to – being the youngest of five had its advantages as far as being exposed to different kinds of music.  Later when I was in college, a friend of mine started teaching me guitar – and the first thing I learned to play was 12 bar blues.  We’d sit around and listen to jazz and blues and jam.  It was my first real immersion in any one kind of music.  So you can say that I went through an intense jazz phase for a while and became an avid listener of various vocalists and instrumentalists – I also got really interested in improvisation.  While I was into that I also sang in NYU’s gospel choir and took a stab at writing my own songs.  It wasn’t until we started the band that I felt my ideas really begin to take shape and come alive.  When you’ve got four of the best musicians in town creating these songs with you, you can’t go wrong!  It’s a great feeling.

Pensatos.com: Steve: Your background is very diverse in comparison to Ruling Party – from hip hop acts like Missy Elliot to more pop R&B like Alicia Keys.  Before you helped form Ruling Party, what did you take from your experiences with these and many other acts to help keep the group grounded and moving forward?
Steve: Well working with people like Alicia has definitely re-enforced the fact that great songwriting will always prevail. And the simpler the better!! When it comes down to it styles of music are just that but I believe great songs will always cross style barriers. Our online (and offline) fan base is one big melting pot and that’s the way we like it!We have teen girls that are into Panic! At the Disco and such telling us they love us and they’re putting our song on their MySpace profile alongside a hard hip hop guy who will also write us saying he loves our tunes. Also, working with those artists has also taught me practice makes perfect but practice and rehearsing for 10 hours a day makes it unforgettable! Smart work and tenacity always pays off.

Pensatos.com: Ron: How do you divide your time with The Churchills and Ruling Party?
Ron: It’s a bit of a balancing act but we all work around our other projects. That’s been the nature of the beast so far. I like being creatively busy and both bands certainly require lots of attention. The Ruling Party feels like the new girlfriend I’m seeing and I go home to my wife (The Churchills) at night.

Pensatos.com: How did everyone get started in the music arts?  First instrument?
Jen: I started singing/dancing/acting in a community theatre group when I was 6 years old. Always loved singing…  Piano briefly when I was 9 yrs. old – really started learning guitar in college.
Ron: I was trying to figure out Sweet riffs on a Sears guitar my neighbor owned. The guitar seemed like the most romantic instrument to me. After I learned a few chords I understood that I could play any Sex Pistols song. That led to the best campfire sing-a-longs ever. I just stayed with it and started trying to play like Johnny Marr. You develop a style based on the route you take to being a player.
Mark: I have played the drums since I was in 4^th grade.  I thought I wanted to play the saxophone.  When the band instructor was asking who wanted to play which instrument in my little public school, the kid in front of me who I didn’t care for , Patrick – and his mullet – raised his hand so I gave up the sax real quick.  The next instrument up for grabs was the drums.
Jared: I started playing piano at 4, father is a jazz vibraphonist. I grew up around music everyday. Messed around with bass, trumpet & viola, but nothing stuck like piano.
Steve: I started playing music when I was 2 on some rubber band powered organ that santa bought me! Piano lessons at age 7 with a sadistic Nun! It was when I was 9 and seeing a teacher of mine whip out a Gibson SG copy and start rockin out on it that knew what I wanted to do. At age 12 I was forced onto bass by my music teacher. My mate, the guitarist, was a better player for our band, “Funkarella” ( a progressive, instrumental rock band). Glad he did it.

Pensatos.com: Where did everyone grow up?  Childhood mentors that lead you to where you are today?
Jen: Bronx, NY. Childhood mentors? My parents – they really sacrificed everything for my brother & sisters and I.  They wanted us to have opportunities they didn’t.  My dad had an old acoustic guitar sitting around the house he would strum – never really knew how to play it, but he’d try and he’d write poetry and letters.  My mom would read to me and cook awesome brain food dinners for us!  They were obsessed with all 5 of us getting the best education we could get and it made all the difference for us.
Ron: I grew up in the swamps of New Jersey and under the enormous shadow of a generation influenced by Springsteen and Bon Jovi.. I guess you could say I wanted to be the opposite of that end of the musical spectrum. There was a hugely influential indie radio station called WHTG that spawned the likes of Matt Pinfield and I was enamored with the music I heard coming out of there. I would say that the radio station motivated me to pursue music.
Jared: Everybody SAYS they listen to all kinds of music, but I REALLY do. Love almost anything. I'm a big fan of Bob Marley, Herbie Hancock, Sting, Stevie Wonder, The Beatles, Tito Puente, Billy Holiday, Mozart, A Tribe Called Quest, Jill Scott, Audioslave ... The list goes on.
Mark: Until I was about 4, I grew up in Aalsmeer, Netherlands. There is a tape of me speaking Dutch that I can’t understand.  Weird.  After that, mostly Vermont and then New York City.
Steve: I grew up in Sydney, Australia. In the beginning it was KISS. No one else could get the credit for influencing me to get into the rock’n’roll biz like them!!Later on I was definitely more influenced by the British side of things though. (The Jam, The Cure, The Who, The Beatles, Specials, Smiths etc).( And U2 of course) However being a bassist made me search out the best bassists around. I was introduced to the sounds of Larry Graham (sly stone and graham central station) WOW! I was funk hooked and it has definitely helped me in my later career here in the states. Blending the simplicity and melody of rock with the groove and pocket of funk. One other childhood mentor is my old teacher Darryl Chute. (the one who forced me on bass)

Pensatos.com: Mark:  Steve calls you the most musical drummer he knows.  I mean, you beat out Jeff Salisbury as drummer of the year who has played with some greats like Bo Diddley and Chuck Berry and is a prominent figure in the percussion community.  But you also worked with some groups who have moved on and caught some bigger breaks – like recently the Mosquitoes who were featured on The O.C.  What do you see as a turning point for Ruling Party to move out of the local venues and into the below-radar indie scene and beyond?
Mark: Flattering!  I would very much label two of my favorite drummers the same way:  Brian Blade and Steve Gadd.  With drumming, you are not bothered by chords and keys when playing a song but it is important to remember that you should be bothered by all of your limbs playing a way so as to not fill too much space.  Anyway, I feel the turning point for The Ruling Party will be honesty.  We are all seasoned musicians who are not bitter (rare!) and care both about the music and the songs we are writing.  In an industry undergoing its’ own puberty or “turning points” we offer solid songs without selling out to the pop-music songwriting equation.  And we can play them live.  People are attracted to honesty in music and the industry will hopefully follow suit.

Pensatos.com: Are you going back and/or currently in the studio?  Next project?
Jen: Still writing and about to go in and record a couple of new songs – we’re totally psyched.
Ron:  We will be recording more songs in the near future. The process of putting together the songs on our EP was a very collaborative one. It’s fun to be around such great musicians.
Mark: Always. Writing songs.
Steve: We have come up with some really nice new songs. I think people will really be into it. Recording with some other producers in a few different studios. Hope to have it all finished by October then start shopping!!

Pensatos.com: What is the hardest/most frustrating aspect of being an unsigned act?
Jen: Doing everything.  Promotion, bookings, designing, writing, rehearsing, scheduling, getting the word out there, etc – the list goes on.  If we could all just clone ourselves we’d be fine!
Mark: Carrying your own gear every night, all the time.  The gear can get heavy after 25 years of carrying it.
Jared: I've backed up many of the biggest names in Hip-Hop & R&B...currently I've been practically living in the studio with G-Unit Records (50 Cent Label), but the Ruling Party is the first band I could call my own. Being used to all the amenities of major labels and major artist makes this different, but the most fun I've ever had with a band.
Steve: Well I definitely miss my guitar tech! (Hey Eli!) It’s a lot of work. Just like any small business it’s frustrating to not have the marketing power etc. Websites like MySpace are obviously a big help for bands like us, but you still have to get out and play. That’s where a label/ promo company would make things easier for us. (And we are looking/shopping!)

Pensatos.com: What current music act would you be most honored to share a ticket with?
Jen: U2 – Coldplay  -  dream ticket…
Mark: Donnie Hathaway live at the Bitter End in 1972.
Jared:I would love for us to share stage with Sting, or even Lenny Kravitz.
Steve: I'd love to be out with U2 also. Paul McCartney and if The Smiths ever reformed I’d pay to be there.

Pensatos.com: Any debacles while on the road; stories of breakdowns, personal breakdowns, etc?
Mark: Oh yes.
Steve: After a few gigs on the road, we were loading into a club only to find about 1/2 of the female staff was walking around, well, naked surrounded by an above average sized staff of bouncers. After sound check, we went downstairs to the bar for a drink and the bartender was shadowed by about a dozen gogo girls. A Guns n' Roses video it was not, but a surprised band it was - seems as though we were playing in a club/stripclub. Although not the nicest, um, venue we have ever played in, there have been worse gigs.

Pensatos.com: What is the best aspect of your live act?
Jen: We’ve got a great energy on stage that people seem to really engage in.  Other than that, I think the fact that the live version of our songs actually sound like our recordings.  People fall in love with recordings and don’t want to be let down when they hear them live – we won’t let anyone down…if anything sometimes they come off better.
Steve: It’s musically intense. You really believe us because we’re telling the truth. We’re not trying to play or sound like someone else. It’s not an act. Yet because of that it’s very entertaining. We really get lost in it and hope you come along with us. Plus a few of us are pretty good lookin!