(1) [Hello James! First of all, let's talk about Jihad. Hopefully, by the time this interview is published, your debut CD, "A Prayer In The Night," will finally be released by Ras Dva records. Perhaps, for most people, their first exposure to Jihad was from your track on the "There Is No Time" compilation, and, more recently, the "Dora Blue" compilation. Are those tracks indicative of the rest of the album? Describe the rest of the music on the album. And, just remind us again when you hope to have this finally released!]

I would have to say that the tracks, which are currently out on compilations, can give a basic idea of what to expect on the full length.. Even though most of the tracks share a certain feel/mood, each track will be very unique in their own way. Things to expect from the music would be that there is a lot of difference in mood amongst each track. There is a lot of melody incorporated within, and definitely a lot of change through out all of the songs.. You will not hear one-sequence based songs that repeat redundantly. There is definitely structure within all of the tracks (Verse/Chorus) as well The lyrical content is definitely something to look into. Rich writes such great/meaningful lyrics. Lyrics which contain a lot of personal meaning, and meaning that people may/may not be able to relate to. The lyrics are going to be printed up in an eight-page booklet, so there shouldn't be many problems following along. There are lots of little things to listen for (Lyrically/musically), so please listen carefully and appreciate the music . My personal view of when our release should have been out and when it actually came out is pretty upsetting. I won't get into that a great deal, simply because I can go on forever in a negative manner on that particular subject. Let's just say that the situation was handled in a very "NON-professional/businesslike" manner. Case closed.

(2) [Does Rich do all the vocals for Jihad? Are there some tracks where you do vocals, as well?]

Rich does write lyrics and vocal to all of the tracks that appear on 'A Prayer in the Night' except for the Killobyte remix. I may incorporate some of that responsibility on the upcoming releases I did write lyrics and vocal to 'Shades Of Grey' on the 'Dora Blue' compilation as well, but that wasn't mentioned on the CD. Although I find it very hard coming up with lyrical content, that is something I may want to gear towards inthe near future.

(3) [What are each of your roles/contributions in Jihad? Describe your writingprocess and the way you and Rich collaborate together with the writing, sampling, and lyrics.]

Our roles/contributions in Jihad are that Rich writes the lyrics, vocals, and structures them for each track. I am pretty much responsible for the rest. The rest meaning: Programming sounds, writing and structuring the music (and at times, the vocals), mixing down each track, and now digitally remastering/editing the songs. I didn't have the chance to remaster any of the tracks that are released on the full length, but rest assured I will be responsible for it on everything else that is to be released from now on. The writing process that works best for Rich and I are that he writes the lyrics and comes up with song titles on his own time apart from when I write the music.. The main reason for this writing process is because we both work full time jobs and live apart from each other. And it also works out very good/differently. I don't believe he has ever sat and listened to a song that we were going to be working on and started writing according to what he heard. We both write subconsciously and bring both halves together to form a complete song. We feel that it works best that way.

(4) [What types of themes, ideas, concepts do you like to write about in your lyrics?]

Rich: Over the past couple of years I can’t help noticing that my writing has taken a subtle, yet noticeable shift in direction. I’ve found myself growing more and more fond of writing ghostly stories often incorporating esoteric themes such as folklore, legend and believe it or not, even nursery rhymes from time to time. I write about things that fascinate and intrigue me and in my honest opinion, all legend whether believed to be fact or fictitious is still based on some form of fact and truth. The lyrical content is purely genuine and exclusive to Jihad. A track that I most recently completed lyrics for and that will appear on the next release is titled "Pandora’s Box" which tells an uncanny tale of an encounter in the basement of a Victorian house with a little girl named Lulu who has just unknowingly released all of the malevolent evils of the world.

(5) [Although the music of Jihad seems darker than Benestrophe, some people might hear similarities between them. Maybe this is a better question for Rich, but, how does he decide which of his ideas will work better for Jihad than for Benestrophe? I bet there must be some cross-pollination of ideas there.]

Rich: Yes. I concur that sometimes there is a natural bond between the two projects; however, in contrast to Benestrophe, which to me serves more as protest music focusing mainly on worldly issues and confrontation, Jihad's subject matter is more haunting and elegant in it's approach. At times, as pages in a diary it can be very personal and emotional to the extent where I even feel a bit hesitant to release them. Overall, both projects are about feeling.

(6) [You're working in quite the fertile environment of electronic music down there in Texas (with your own brother, and your good friendships with Mentallo & The Fixer and Fektion Fekler, just to name a few!). Tell me about your collaborations with them. I know you have mentioned to me before about your upcoming remixes for some tracks off Mentallo's latest full-length "Burnt Beyond Recognition."]

Well, Gary (M&tF) and I never really worked on anything together as far as a side project is concerned, but recently he has entrusted me a great deal (Which I feel honored) to work with some of his music. I recentlyremastered all of the tracks that are to appear on a CD single and digitally edited/remixed two of the tracks (False Prophets & Mother of Harlots) as well. I also edited/remastered the Mainesthai full length that is to be rereleased here shortly. Robert (Fektion) and I go back a long time as well. He and I used to be in a group together nearly ten years ago titled 'Fury and Fear'. Pretty basic, but it was the foundation of both of our musical expectations/inspirations. We both started working on music around the same time.

(7) [When can we expect these remixes to be released? Will they appear on any compilations, or, perhaps, an upcoming Mentallo remix disc?]

By the time you read this, it should be out. Actually, it has recently been released. 'False Prophets' and 'Mother of Harlots' are the tracks which I remixed/edited that appear on the CD single by Mentallo & theFixer titled 'False Prophets'. They are very interesting mixes in comparison to the original mixes. I spent a lot of time (nearly two months straight/8 to 10 hours a day) working on M&tF's music. There was a lot of hard work involved.

(8) [Do you have any other remix or collaborative activities in the works? You've also mentioned some activities with the Mentallo side project, Mainesthai. Any other collaborations that I have failed to mention?]

At this time, I haven't been working on anything. I would like to announce that I would be very interested to do the same (Edit/remix/remaster) for any other bands who like what they've heard in my work. I believe Gary is going to help me get the word out concerning my services as well. About the Mainesthai material I don't know if I will ever collaborate with them, but I do know that the members in the band do take an interest in my work and would like for me to help out in the near future concerning remastering/editing/remixing. I am going to be responsible for doing all of the editing for the upcoming Jihad material. That should be very interesting.

(9) [I also would like to give you this opportunity to set the record straight about your having helped with Gary Dassing's remix of an Oneiroid Psychosis track on the "Complications" remix compilation on Decibel records. For some reason, you are not given credit in the CD liner notes, and I just wanted you to be able to tell people that you had a large part in this. Please elaborate.]

Thanks Stefani for inquiring about the situation. I did help Gary with the remix a long time ago. I programmed the strings and bassline parts. I believe Gary when he says that he included my name on the credits. From what I heard, they (Label) didn't have enough room on the CD sleeve to print my name. Basically there wasn't enough room to thank me for my work. I don't know how they could have forgotten, or left my name off by accident. I think that is a pretty shitty thing to do. I believe people should give credit where credit is due. It kind of pissed me off when I heard about that, but what can I do about it Just let it go, and explain myself when the opportunity arises, which I thank you again for. That is just something that happens quite frequently in the music business. Labels just wanting to get what they can for nothing.

(10) [Now, let's move on to Trial By Fire. This project actually pre-dates Jihad. Give us the background of this project.]

Trial By Fire was something Jaime and I started working on some time in early 1990, which allowed us to explore different styles of music, which neither him or I would not normally write on our own. He feelscomfortable writing the lyrics and vocaling to the music which I create. I like the roles in which we both play, simply because my forte is in the music writing and not in the lyric writing and Jaime writes such great lyrics. We may even mix it up a bit in the near future by me vocaling and Jaime writing the music. Trial By Fire is something we both can write material towards and not initially think about how we want any particular song to turn out. Jaime has been writing music longer than I have been. Initially Jaime and Gary (M&tF) worked on material together a very long time ago (as far back as 86). Jaime is currently in a group titled 'Circus Diary', which entails him and a female vocalist (Holly Nelson). The Circus Diary material is a class act. The style is not at all industrial/goth. If I was to compare their style to another band, I would have to say some influence from Annie Lennox. The material is highly recommended. If anyone is interested in their material, pleaseemail me or Stefani and let me know.

(11) [The style of TBF is certainly quite different from Jihad--it has untreated vocals, is quieter and more acoustic in mood, however, there are still many electronic elements present. In the last issue of CS (Transmission 01.97), we called it "electro folk," for lack of a better term! How would you describe the music?]

I would describe the music of Trial By Fire to be more free flowing and very unplanned. Not to say that I always plan everything I write. Both Jaime and I like to write the TBF material using sounds and ideas that we both would normally not utilize within both or our projects (Jihad & Circus Diary). I can see where you find some of the music to share somewhat of an "electro folk" feel. I like to incorporate some acoustic guitar within our music. It tends to give more of a live feel at times, which I feel is good to have in the music. Also, the vocal effects share nothing in common with the vocal treatments that I utilize in Jihad. Both Jaime and I feel that somewhat of a dry vocal style fits our music more. Dry vocals meaning very minimal effects on his voice, which make them a lot more distinctive.

(12) [While we can talk about the differences between your two projects, it might be even more enlightening to talk about their similarities. After all, Jihad and TBF are "two sides of the same coin"...that is, you! Do you think that a fan of one of your projects would also like the music of your other project?]

It is hard to determine how people with interest towards one of the projects would take on the other. I feel that the two projects share a common ground, yet sound very different. I would have to say that a person who may take an interest to both projects be open minded and willing to accept the music for what it is worth. To appreciate what they would be exposed to.

(13) [Again, describe the writing process for TBF. What are yours and Jaime's roles/contributions to the music and lyrics? What types of themes do you explore in the lyrics for TBF?]

The writing process for Trial By Fire is just the opposite of the writing process for Jihad. Both Jaime and I work together in the same room as we both create the music and lyrics. As I write each piece of the song, Jaime continually writes what he envisions/feels from what he hears. Occasionally he will suggest ideas and different structures towards each piece of the song written. I feel we both work very well together as a writer of the music and lyrics. I mainly write the music and Jaime usually writes the lyrics. Although, we may share the responsibilities in the upcoming material. We are both open to each others suggestions.

(14) [Who are some of your greatest influences, musically and/or non-musically?]

Rich: Some musical influences of mine include Skinny Puppy and related projects (such as Doubting Thomas, Hilt and the Tear Garden), Edward Ka-spel and the Legendary Pink Dots, Numb, Raymond Watts and Pig, KMFDM and Heavy Water Factory. Non-musically, real people influence me. By this I mean free thinkers of the world brave and genuine enough to find and express their own identities.James: I would have to say that I share a lot of the same musical influences that Rich does. In addition, David Sylvian, Tears For Fears, Rush, Duran Duran, Arcadia, Human League, Enya, and many other retro (Acoustical) bands. Non-musically, individuals who have goals in life and people who continue to strive towards something they strongly believe in and never give in no matter what happens.

(15) [TBF has a demo-tape available, called "The Execution Of Witches," plus some of your own remixes from that. What was Gary Dassing's role in the recording? Is this cassette still available from you? Will this material be released on CD? If so, when?]

To be honest with you, Gary never had anything to do with any of the Trial By Fire material. I believe somewhere along the way, there was some confusion in the midst of who did what. Although I wouldn’t mind if he ever wanted to inquire some of his ideas, and want to perhaps remix any of the tracks. Yes. For anybody who is interested, the cassette demo is still available through me. Just email me if anybody is interested. Yes. Eventually, the rest of the material (Revamped) and some new stuff will be available on CD through me. Hopefully after the completion of all of the TBF material we will be shopping for a label. That should all take place in the near future.

(16) [Have you ever performed live (either as Jihad or TBF)? If so, what are your live shows like?]

As Jihad and Trial By Fire, we have never performed live. We would like to perform live in the future (TBF & Jihad). Unfortunately, all members of the projects currently work a great deal and don’t have much time to plan a show. When that happens, I will post info for it. A live show would be very interesting to see, in my opinion.

(17) [Any plans to tour? Perhaps with Mentallo, sometime in the near future? I know you have also mentioned that you are good friends with Heavy Water Factory, and, perhaps might open for them on some of their next live performances...]

We don’t have plans to tour any time soon. Again, unfortunately Rich and I both maintain full time jobs and have a hard time getting away from our work. We have had a few offers from Gary to open up for them on tour, but we never could get away from our work. I would be honored to open up for M&tF as well as HWF if the situation would permit it. Maybe in the near future .

[Well, James, thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. We wish you the best of success with your first Jihad CD, "A Prayer In The Night," and we also wish that Trial By Fire would get signed already! Do you have any closing thoughts?]

Rich: Most importantly, I would like to thank all of our listeners for their support.
James: I would also like to thank infinitely Stefani Goldman and Sage of ‘Culture Shock’ for providing a great deal of support and help to us, and everybody else who has help out in some way. Thank you very much.